OXFORD, Ohio — Miami’s 16-year losing streak against Robert Morris is over.
The RedHawks scored five goals in the first 25-plus minutes en route to a 7-1 win over the Colonials in their home opener on Thursday, snapping a five-game skid vs. RMU dating back to 2010.
Matteo Giampa led Miami offensively with four points.
The teams wrap up the home-and-home series in Pittsburgh at 7 p.m. on Saturday.
RECAP: Just 1:53 in, Miami’s Ilia Morozov ripped a one-timer past Robert Morris goalie Charlie Schenkel from the left faceoff circle off a set-up by Giampa on the power play.
Less than four minutes later, the RedHawks’ Ryan Seelinger took a feed behind the RMU net and scored his first collegiate goal on a wraparound to make it 2-0.
The Colonials briefly cut the deficit to one when a pass found Luca Primerano all alone at the side of the net, and he shoveled a forehander past Miami goalie Matteo Drobac from the top of the crease with 9:05 left in the opening period.
But with 4:35 left in the frame, Giampa threaded a pass from the top of the left faceoff circle to the right side of the cage for a waiting Morozov, who trapped the puck before slapping it home.
Less than three minutes into the middle stanza, Miami’s Kocha Delic forced a turnover at the half wall, played give-and-go with Giampa and buried a wrister from the left faceoff circle to extend the RedHawks’ lead to three.
Cal Huston gave Miami a 5-1 lead two minutes later on a wrist shot from the high slot that snuck in just under the crossbar for his first tally as a RedHawk, ending Schenkel’s night.
On a play that is already a candidate for strangest goal of the season, Miami’s Matous Kucharcik was left all alone in the front of the net and had his shot denied, and Giampa seized the rebound, backhanded a shot from the right side of the net that bounced off the top of the net twice, was tapped out of the air from the left side of the cage by Kucharcik and again knocked out of the air to the right of the net by Delic with 6:29 left in the period, extending the RedHawks’ lead to five.
Miami wrapped up the scoring 98 seconds into the final frame, as Branko Vukas slid a pass from behind the goal line to Ethan Hay, who snuck in a one-timer far post from the slot.
STATS: Giampa recorded four assists, the first four-point game by a RedHawk in almost a year and the first four-helper contest in almost three years. Ryan Smith recorded a hat trick and an assist at Lindenwood on Oct. 25, 2025, and the last Miamian with four assists in a game was Matthew Barbolini on Oct. 27, 2023.
It was the second-highest point total of Giampa’s career: He notched five points with Canisius on Oct. 22, 2024.
Delic scored twice and added an assist for his second career three-point game. He went 2-1-3 in that contest as well, on Oct. 10, 2025 vs. RPI.
Deputy finished with three assists, the first multi-helper game of his career. He tied his career high of three points, set against Omaha on Jan. 17.
It was Morozov’s third career two-goal game, with both markers coming on the power play. He also blocked a rip from the high slot on a 4-on-3 Robert Morris power play and was 11-9 (55.0 percent) in the faceoff circle (Hay was a ridiculous 78.6 percent on draws).
Seelinger ended the game 1-1-2, scoring his first career goal and tallying his first career assist.
Huston’s marker was the first of his career.
Hay’s tally was his first of the season and fifth of his career, and Kucharcik picked up an assist for the second straight game.
Vukas recorded his first career helper, and Michael Phelan also earned his first point of the season on an assist.
— Miami had not scored seven goals in a game since a 7-4 win at Mercyhurst on Dec. 12, 2021.
— The RedHawks finished with a season high 35 shots on goal, and racked up 30 in each of their first two contests. The last time Miami fired 30-plus shots each of its first three games to start a season was in 2013.
ANALYSIS: As the score indicates, there was a ton to like here.
Let’s start with the crowd. Despite being a Thursday game, it was SRO with students lining the entire concourse on both sides in the first two periods.
Three years ago, weeknight game against a no-name opponent? Maybe 1,500 listed attendance.
Last season, Cady Arena started filling in en masse. That has clearly carried over into 2026-27.
— While the outcome was obviously positive, the first period was painfully slow. The first eight minutes took 20 minutes in real time. Sources say officials were lightheaded from blowing the whistle so frequently. Offside, icing, then the semi-annual yawnfest crackdown on faceoff positioning.
The game opened up the final 40 minutes. Much more skill on display and scoring chances.
— Talk about finishing chances. Miami had numerous scoring opportunities at Northern Michigan but couldn’t cash in. Had the same issue at times last season.
Not Thursday. The RedHawks scored some beautiful goals, and when their hard work turned into scoring chances, they put the puck in the net.
— Scary moment late in the first period when Kucharcik was taken down crossing into the offensive zone. He appeared to get hit in the knee (the refs initially called a major but reduced it to a tripping minor) and was very slow to skate off with assistance, but he was back on the bench for the second period.
Kucharcik was fun to watch in person. At 6-4, on Thursday he could seemingly stickhandle in a proverbial phonebooth — for those of you who know what a phonebooth is — and regularly drove the net with defenders draped on him.
— Speaking of injuries, Phelan did not play the third period (the RedHawks dressed six D-men instead of their typical seven, so they were down to five for the final 20 minutes), which means potentially three of Miami’s top four defensemen are on the mend, including Tim Runtso and Vladislav Lukashevich, who have not dressed this season.
LINEUP CHANGES: Deputy, who missed the NMU series with an injury, debuted, replacing Charlie Blanchard, who was scratched for the first time this season.
STANDINGS: In the way-to-early segment of this piece, Miami is 25th in the NPI, the computer rankings that determine NCAA Tournament qualifiers.
FINAL THOUGHTS: It was 236 days since the RedHawks’ last home game, but Thursday exceeded any presuppositions.
Miami scored, it defended, it stopped pucks.
It was physical when needed and smartly locked it down defensively when blew the game open.
Considering the RedHawks are still missing two of their best players, this was a good day for Miami Hockey.
Despite the opening-night loss, this season appears promising.
