[11] While that turned out to be the pinnacle of NU's campaign - the Purps finished the regular season 10–15–8 overall and a third-place-worthy 3–6–3 within the CHA - Richards continued to demonstrate an aptitude for big, dramatic goals.

[12] Two weeks later, at Mercyhurst, Niagara found itself facing third-period deficits of 2–1 and 3–2, but Richards answered each time, the latter with just 12 seconds remaining, to force a draw with the fifth-ranked Lakers.

[13] In the 2012 CHA playoffs, Niagara again saw its run come to a quick end in the semifinals, this time to a Robert Morris team en route to its first-ever conference title.

[15] For Richards, along with defenseman Kelsey Gunn, the solution to the Niagara situation was a move south to newly crowned CHA champion Robert Morris, a transfer that paid nearly-immediate dividends.

Along the way, Richards showed that she didn't leave her knack for late-game heroics at Niagara, as she deflected home a third-period goal to force overtime at Vermont on November 4, 2012, then fed Anneline Lauziere for the winner.

[17] RMU slumped badly after New Year's however, going just 2–11–1 in 2013 before a regular-season-ending sweep of NCAA newcomer Penn State salvaged a 13–14–3 overall record and a fourth-place finish in a tight CHA race.

[18] Richards' late season was highlighted by her hand in both Robert Morris goals (along with a third-period checking from behind major and game misconduct) in a tie with RIT on January 26, 2013[19] as well as two other multi-point efforts.

Richards' season was highlighted by her being named the CHA's Offensive Player of the Week on November 4, 2013,[23] following a weekend sweep at Penn State, where she scored twice on 11 shots (of RMU's 49 total) in the second game of the series.

[26] In a bit of a parallel to the end of her time at Niagara, Richards' RMU and college career came to a close in the CHA semifinals at the hands of a team en route to a surprising championship run, in this case an RIT squad that was 16–15–3 overall during the regular season.

She also offered eight points over four consecutive January 2016 games including, arguably, the Thunder's biggest results of the year, a sweep of the Inferno via overtime and shootout wins at Brampton Memorial Arena on the 9th and 10th.

Richards scored in the first game while setting up Candice Styles' OT winner, then had three assists the next day in a wild 8–7 shootout victory that saw Brampton rally from numerous large deficits, including 5–1 early in the second period and 7–5 midway through the third.

[33] In 2016–17, the Thunder slid slightly backwards to 12–10–2, but were a carbon copy of their 2015–16 version in many other ways: the team finished third in the league standings, and was defeated in a playoff semifinal sweep to the eventual Clarkson Cup champion, this time Les Canadiennes de Montreal.

[36] In 2015, along with future Thunder teammates Vint and Jamie Lee Rattray, Richards competed at the Canadian Ball Hockey Association national championships and helped the Toronto Shamrocks to the title.