- College Hockey America
-
College Hockey America
(CHA)
Established 1999 (men's)
2002 (women's)Association NCAA Division Division I Members 4 (6 in 2012) Sports fielded Ice hockey (men's: no; women's: yes) Region New York, Pennsylvania Headquarters Detroit, Michigan Commissioner Robert M. DeGregorio, Jr. (since 2010) Website http://www.chawomenshockey.com Locations 
College Hockey America (CHA) is a women's college ice hockey conference in the United States. It participates in the NCAA's Division I as a hockey-only conference. The conference is currently made up of four women's teams in New York and Pennsylvania.
The CHA was founded as a men's-only league in the 1999–2000 season, with women's league play beginning in the 2002–03 season. The men's division folded after the 2009–2010 season.
Contents
History
The CHA was founded as a men's-only league in the 1999–2000 season. The conference was formed by seven teams, three of which were Division I independent teams, other three moving up from Division II, after the NCAA stopped sanctioning Division II hockey in 1998, and one new varsity program (Wayne State).[1]
The women's league began play in the 2002–03 season with four teams.[2] Findlay, Mercyhurst and Wayne State were former Great Lakes Women’s Hockey Association members, while Niagara played previously in the ECAC.
The men's division folded after the 2009–2010 season.[3][4]
In 2011 the CHA saw changes when Wayne State abruptly ended their women's hockey program, dropping conference membership to only four teams for the 2011–12 season.[5] In July 2011, Penn State, which is upgrading men's and women's hockey from club to NCAA Division I status for 2012, submitted an application and was later accepted for admission for the 2012–13 season.[6] Later in 2011, the conference announced that Lindenwood University will officially join the CHA for the 2012–2013 season.[7] Lindenwood, currently in the process of transitioning its athletic programs from the NAIA to NCAA, had already been slated to play ten games against CHA opponents in the its first season of NCAA competition as an independent program for the 2011–12 season.[8]
Members
Institution Location Nickname Founded Affiliation Enrollment Joined Women's championships Men's conference Primary Conference Mercyhurst College Erie, Pennsylvania Lakers 1926 Private/Catholic 4,106 2002 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011 Atlantic Hockey PSAC (D-II) Niagara University Lewiston, New York Purple Eagles 1856 Private/Catholic 3,746 2002A – Atlantic Hockey MAAC Robert Morris University Moon Township, Pennsylvania Colonials 1921 Private/Non-sectarian 5,000 2005B – Atlantic Hockey NEC Syracuse University Syracuse, New York Orange 1870 Private/Non-sectarian 19,082 2008 – – Big East Future members
Institution Location Nickname Founded Affiliation Enrollment Joining Men's conference Primary Conference Pennsylvania State University University Park, Pennsylvania Nittany Lions 1855 Public 44,817 2012 Big Ten (2013) Big Ten Lindenwood University St. Charles, Missouri Lions 1827 Private/Presbyterian 17,351 2012 – MIAA (D-II) Former members
- University of Findlay Oilers, 2002–2004 (dropped program[9])
- Quinnipiac University Bobcats, 2004–2005 (moved to ECACHL)
- Wayne State University Warriors, 2002–2011 (dropped program[5])
Membership timeline
Conference arenas
School Arena Capacity Mercyhurst Mercyhurst Ice Center 1,500 Niagara Dwyer Arena 2,000 Robert Morris Island Sports Center 1,100 Syracuse Tennity Ice Skating Pavilion renovations pending Women's tournament finals
For the first time in conference history, the 2006 men's and women's tournaments were held at the same site: The Michigan State Fairgrounds Coliseum in Detroit, Michigan. The 2008 tournaments were also held jointly, at Dwyer Arena in Lewiston, New York.
Year Champion Score Runner-up City 2003 Mercyhurst 1–0 Findlay Detroit, Michigan 2004 Mercyhurst 3–1 Niagara Lewiston, New York 2005 Mercyhurst 4–1 Niagara Erie, Pennsylvania 2006 Mercyhurst 6–2 Niagara Detroit, Michigan 2007 Mercyhurst 4–1 Wayne State Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 2008 Mercyhurst 2–1 (ot) Wayne State Lewiston, New York 2009 Mercyhurst 6–1 Wayne State Erie, Pennsylvania 2010 Mercyhurst 3–1 Syracuse Detroit, Michigan 2011 Mercyhurst 5–4 Syracuse Syracuse, New York Postseason women's hockey history
The women's CHA does not have an automatic bid; all of these participants reached the tournament via at-large bids.
NCAA Tournament Year CHA Rep. Opponent Result 2005 Mercyhurst Harvard L 5–4 (3ot) 2006 Mercyhurst Wisconsin L 2–1 (2ot) 2007 Mercyhurst Minnesota–Duluth L 3–2 (ot) 2008 Mercyhurst Minnesota–Duluth L 5–4 2009 Mercyhurst St. Lawrence W 3–1 Minnesota W 5–4 (frozen four) Wisconsin L 5–0 (national final) 2010 Mercyhurst Boston University W 4–1 Cornell L 3–2 (frozen four) 2011 Mercyhurst Boston University L 2–4 Men's division
The CHA was originally founded in 1999 with only a men's division. Three of the seven charter members, Alabama–Huntsville, Bemidji State,and Findlay, had recently moved up from Division II, while Air Force, Army, and Niagara were formerly independent. Wayne State was a charter member, and began sponsoring varsity hockey in 2000.
Niagara went undefeated in conference play in 1999–2000, winning the conference tournament and gaining an at-large invitation to the NCAA Tournament. (The conference did not gain an automatic bid until the 2003 tournament.) Army spent only one season in the league before leaving for the MAAC. Findlay dropped its hockey programs following the 2003–2004 season, to be replaced by Robert Morris, which began play in 2004–2005. After Air Force left for Atlantic Hockey in 2006 and Wayne State dropped its program in 2008, the conference was left with only four teams. The CHA sought to add new programs to its men's league, hoping to draw interest from some of the top club teams in the country, including Kennesaw State University.[1] However, these efforts came up short, with CHA and school personnel citing Title IX as a major hurdle in the negotiations.[10]
On January 29, 2009, Niagara University announced that it and Robert Morris University were moving to Atlantic Hockey beginning in the 2010–11 season.[11] Bemidji State applied again to the Western Collegiate Hockey Association for inclusion and was accepted, along with the University of Nebraska-Omaha of the Central Collegiate Hockey Association. Alabama-Huntsville applied to the CCHA[12] following the announced departure of Nebraska-Omaha and was denied. [13] Alabama-Huntsville will compete as an independent team beginning with the 2010–11 season.
Member schools
There were eight member schools in total during the eleven seasons. The conference began in the 1999–2000 season with seven teams, and ended in 2009–2010 with four.
Institution Location Nickname Membership Men's championships Fate University of Alabama in Huntsville Huntsville, Alabama Chargers 1999–2010 2007, 2010 Independent[14] Bemidji State University Bemidji, Minnesota Beavers 1999–2010 2005, 2006, 2009 WCHA[3] University of Findlay Findlay, Ohio Oilers 1999–2004 – dropped program[9] Niagara University Lewiston, New York Purple Eagles 1999–2010 2000, 2004, 2008 Atlantic Hockey[4] Robert Morris University Moon Township, Pennsylvania Colonials 2004–2010 – Atlantic Hockey[4] United States Air Force Academy Colorado Springs, Colorado Falcons 1999–2006 – Atlantic Hockey United States Military Academy West Point, New York Black Knights 1999–2000 – Atlantic Hockey Wayne State University Detroit, Michigan Warriors 1999–2008 2001, 2002, 2003 dropped men's program 
Championship games
Main article: List of CHA Men's Ice Hockey Tournament championsTournament champions were awarded the Bob Peters Cup.
Year Champion Score Runner-up City 2000 Niagara 3–2 Alabama–Huntsville Huntsville, Alabama 2001 Wayne State 4–1 Alabama–Huntsville Huntsville, Alabama 2002 Wayne State 5–4 (ot) Alabama–Huntsville Lewiston, New York 2003 Wayne State 3–2 Bemidji State Kearney, Nebraska 2004 Niagara 4–3 (ot) Bemidji State Kearney, Nebraska 2005 Bemidji State 3–0 Alabama–Huntsville Grand Rapids, Minnesota 2006 Bemidji State 4–2 Niagara Detroit, Michigan 2007 Alabama–Huntsville 5–4 (ot) Robert Morris Des Moines, Iowa 2008 Niagara 3–2 Bemidji State Lewiston, New York 2009 Bemidji State 3–2 (ot) Robert Morris Bemidji, Minnesota 2010 Alabama–Huntsville 3–2 (ot) Niagara Lewiston, New York Postseason Men's Hockey History
NCAA Tournament Year CHA Rep. Opponent Result 2000 Niagara A New Hampshire W 4–1 North Dakota L 4–1 2003 Wayne State Colorado College L 4–2 2004 Niagara Boston College L 5–2 2005 Bemidji State Denver L 4–3 (ot) 2006 Bemidji State Wisconsin L 4–0 2007 Alabama–Huntsville Notre Dame L 3–2 (2ot) 2008 Niagara Michigan L 5–1 2009 Bemidji State Notre Dame W 5–1 Cornell W 4–1 Miami (OH) L 4–1 (frozen four) 2010 Alabama–Huntsville Miami (OH) L 2–1 Bemidji State A Michigan L 5–1 ^A At-large invitee. College Hockey America was not awarded an automatic bid until 2003.
References
- ^ a b Brown, Scott (April 23, 2006). "A New World Order". USCHO.com. http://www.uscho.com/news/college-hockey/id,12591/ANewWorldOrder.html. Retrieved 15 March 2010.
- ^ Morris, Geof F. (Aug. 1, 2002). "College Hockey America Starts Division I Women's League". USCHO.com. http://www.uscho.com/news/college-hockey/id,4490/CollegeHockeyAmericaStartsDivisionIWomensLeague. Retrieved 15 March 2010.
- ^ a b "WCHA Brings Aboard Bemidji, Omaha". USCHO.com. http://www.uscho.com/news/college-hockey/id,17119/UPDATEDWCHABringsAboardBemidjiOmaha.html. Retrieved 15 March 2010.
- ^ a b c Lerch, Chris (Jan. 28, 2009). "Atlantic Hockey Approves Expansion: Niagara and Robert Morris To Join". USCHO.com. http://www.uscho.com/news/college-hockey/id,16508/AtlanticHockeyApprovesExpansionNiagaraandRobertMorrisToJoin.html. Retrieved 15 March 2010.
- ^ a b Staff (May 27, 2011). "Wayne State drops women’s program; CHA left with four teams". U.S. College Hockey Online. http://www.uscho.com/2011/05/27/wayne-state-drops-womens-program-cha-left-with-four-teams/. Retrieved May 27, 2011.
- ^ Staff (July 6, 2011). "Penn State women apply to CHA". U.S. College Hockey Online. http://www.uscho.com/2011/07/06/penn-state-women-apply-to-cha/. Retrieved July 16, 2011.
- ^ Staff (November 11, 2011). "Lindenwood formally admitted into CHA". U.S. College Hockey Online. http://www.uscho.com/2011/11/11/lindenwood-formally-admitted-into-cha/. Retrieved November 11, 2011.
- ^ Staff (September 14, 2011). "Lindenwood files application to join CHA". U.S. College Hockey Online. http://www.uscho.com/2011/09/14/lindenwood-files-application-to-join-cha/. Retrieved September 14, 2011.
- ^ a b Wodon, Adam (Jan. 6, 2004). "Findlay To Drop Hockey". USCHO.com. http://www.uscho.com/news/college-hockey/id,7618/FindlayToDropHockey. Retrieved 14 March 2010.
- ^ Shaver, Wally. "News and notes from the 2008 NCAA Men’s Frozen Four". http://www.letsplayhockey.com/953shaver.html. Retrieved 2010-01-28.
- ^ http://www.purpleeagles.com/sports/mhockey/release.asp?release_id=11115 Niagara Men's Hockey To Join Atlantic Hockey
- ^ http://www.grandforksherald.com/articles/index.cfm?id=104225 Alabama-Huntsville interested in CCHA, WCHA
- ^ http://www.uahchargers.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=1008&Itemid=245 CCHA denies hockey program's application for admission – Press Release – Aug. 11, 2009
- ^ McLaughlin, Budd (September 23, 2009). "UAH program standing alone". The Huntsville Times.
External links
College Hockey America Women TeamsLindenwood University Lady Lions (2012) • Mercyhurst Lakers • Niagara Purple Eagles • Penn State Nittany Lions (2012) • Robert Morris Colonials • Syracuse OrangeArenasLindenwood Ice Arena (Lindenwood) (2012) • Mercyhurst Ice Center (Mercyhurst) • Dwyer Arena (Niagara) • Penn State Ice Pavilion (Penn State) (2012) • Island Sports Center (Robert Morris) • Tennity Ice Skating Pavilion (Syracuse)TournamentsFormer teamsMen (defunct) TeamsAir Force Falcons (1999–2006) • Alabama–Huntsville Chargers (1999–2010) • Army Black Knights (1999–2000) • Bemidji State Beavers (1999–2010) • Findlay Oilers (1999–2004) • Niagara Purple Eagles (1999–2010) • Robert Morris Colonials (2004–2010) • Wayne State Warriors (1999–2008)Tournaments2000 · 2001 · 2002 · 2003 · 2004 · 2005 · 2006 · 2007 · 2008 · 2009 · 2010 · ChampionsNCAA Division I hockey conferences Current conferences Atlantic Hockey • Central Collegiate Hockey Association • College Hockey America • ECAC Hockey • Hockey East • Western Collegiate Hockey Association • Independents
Future conferences NCAA • Championships: Men / Women Categories:- College Hockey America
- Companies based in Detroit, Michigan
Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.
