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ERIE, Pa. - The Mercyhurst University men's hockey team will play its final game before the Christmas holiday when it hosts the Colonials of Robert Morris University on Saturday night, December 14 at the Mercyhurst Ice Center. Faceoff is scheduled for 7:05 p.m.

The Lakers (9-7-1, 7-1-0 AHA) enter Saturday night's game against Robert Morris winners of its last four games and eight of its last ten to take over sole possession of first place in the Atlantic Hockey Association standings and to enter the latest USCHO.com poll, which was released on Monday. The Lakers received eight points in the rankings.

Mercyhurst has won seven of its eight conference games to hold a one-point lead over Bentley in the AHA. Mercyhurst's only hiccup is a 4-3 loss at Canisius on November 9.

Over the team's four game-winning streak, the Lakers have swept American International and Sacred Heart, outscoring those two teams 23-6 over the stretch. Last weekend, Mercyhurst swept Sacred Heart by the finals of 7-1 and 4-1 to keep a hold of the top spot in the conference.

Mercyhurst has scored at least three goals in 11 of its last 12 games helping the team move into fifth in the country in scoring offense (3.76 goals per game). Junior Matthew Zay has been a main cog of the offensive output this season, leading the team with nine goals and 15 assists for 24 points. He enters Saturday's contest on a 14-game point-scoring streak, scoring in every game this season except for the season-opener at Minnesota in which the Lakers were shutout.

Zay is tied for third in the country in points per game (1.60), tied for fifth in the country in assists per game (1.00), and is tied for the national lead with three shorthanded goals. His 24 points prior to Christmas is the most since Steve Cameron had 26 points prior to the holiday during the 2008-09 campaign.

The junior from Glendale, New York is getting plenty of support from senior Daniel O'Donoghue and junior Ryan Misiak, who are also both over the 20-point plateau this season. O'Donoghue is three point shy of becoming the 16th player in the Division I era at Mercyhurst to record 100 career points.

In goal, junior Jimmy Sarjeant has been stellar, posting a 9-3-1 overall record with a 2.40 goals against average and a .926 save percentage. He ranks in the top 20 in the country in both save percentage (T-18th) and winning percentage (13th). His numbers are even more eye-popping in conference play as he sports a 7-0-0 record with a 1.72 goals against average and a .948 save percentage.

Robert Morris (2-10-1, 2-5-1 AHA) comes in with a disappointing record but eight of its ten losses have been decided by two goals or fewer - including a pair of 3-1 losses at nationally-ranked Lake Superior State and 5-3 and 5-4 losses in a home-and-home series against Ohio State. Last weekend, however, the Colonials suffered their worst losses of the season - 4-1 and 7-2 against Bentley. Zac Lynch leads Robert Morris with six goals and nine assists for 15 points. Cody Wydo leads the team with 11 goals and is second in points with 14. Terry Shafer has seen most of the work in goal and is 2-8-1 with a 3.58 goals against average and a .900 save percentage.

After Saturday's contest, the Lakers will be off until December 28 and 29 when they travel to Columbus, Ohio for their final non-conference games of the regular season against Ohio State. Faceoffs both nights from the Value City Arena are scheduled for 8:05 p.m.