NCAA Division III women's ice hockey

Conferences

Conference affiliations and the conferences themselves experienced numerous changes in the later part of the 2010s. The most substantial alterations occurred with the founding of the Colonial Hockey Conference (CHC) in 2015 and the folding of ECAC West in 2017, which precipitated the creation of the Northeast Women's Hockey League (NEWHL) in the same year. The conferences and affiliations presented below are accurate through the 2019–20 season.

A conference with seven or more affiliated programs automatically qualifies for the NCAA DIII Women's Ice Hockey Tournament. In practice, the Colonial Hockey Conference (CHC) and the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WIAC) are the only conferences that do not receive automatic bids for the tournament.

The Anna Maria Amcats women's ice hockey program of Anna Maria College in Paxton, Massachusetts has participated in the NCAA Division III as an independent team (ie. without conference affiliation) since the 2018–19 season.

Conference of New England

The Conference of New England (CNE; known before the 2024–25 season as the Commonwealth Coast Conference) is a college athletic conference which operates in New England. It added women's ice hockey by taking over the former Colonial Hockey Conference (CHC; previously ECAC North Atlantic) in 2020. As of the 2024–25 season, there are six member programs:

• Curry College (Colonels) – Milton, Massachusetts
• Endicott College (Gulls) – Beverly, Massachusetts
• Nichols College (Bison) – Dudley, Massachusetts
• Suffolk University (Rams) – Boston, Massachusetts
• University of New England (Nor'easters) – Biddeford, Maine
• Western New England University (Golden Bears) – Springfield, Massachusetts

Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference

The Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC) is a college athletic conference located in Minnesota. The women's ice hockey programs that compete in the MIAC include:

• Augsburg University (Auggies) – Minneapolis, Minnesota
• Bethel University (Royals) – St. Paul, Minnesota
• College of Saint Benedict (Bennies) – St. Joseph, Minnesota
• Concordia College (Cobbers) – Moorhead, Minnesota
• Gustavus Adolphus College (Gusties) – St. Peter, Minnesota
• Hamline University (Pipers) – St. Paul, Minnesota
• Saint Mary's University (Cardinals) – Winona, Minnesota
• St. Catherine University (Wildcats) – St. Paul, Minnesota
• St. Olaf College (Oles) – Northfield, Minnesota
• College of St. Scholastica (Saints) – Duluth, Minnesota

The most recent change to the MIAC membership came after the 2020–21 season, when St. Thomas was expelled from the league and moved to NCAA Division I, joining the Summit League for most sports and the Western Collegiate Hockey Association (WHCA) in women's ice hockey. St. Thomas was replaced by St. Scholastica.

New England Hockey Conference

The New England Hockey Conference (NEHC; previously ECAC East) is an ice hockey-only conference which operates in New England. As of the 2019–20 season, there are nine member programs in the women's division:

• Castleton University (Spartans) – Castleton, Vermont
• Johnson & Wales University (Wildcats) – Providence, Rhode Island
• New England College (Pilgrims) – Henniker, New Hampshire
• Norwich University (Cadets) – Northfield, Vermont
• Plymouth State University (Panthers) – Plymouth, New Hampshire
• Salem State University (Vikings) – Salem, Massachusetts
• Suffolk University (Rams) – Boston, Massachusetts
• University of Massachusetts Boston (Beacons) – Boston, Massachusetts
• University of Southern Maine (Huskies) – Gorham, Maine

New England Small College Athletic Conference

The New England Small College Athletic Conference (NESCAC) is a college athletic conference of liberal arts colleges and universities located in New England and New York. The member schools of the NESCAC are often referred to as the "Little Ivies." The women's ice hockey programs competing in the NESCAC are:

• Amherst College (Mammoths) – Amherst, Massachusetts
• Bowdoin College (Polar Bears) – Brunswick, Maine
• Colby College (Mules) – Waterville, Maine
• Connecticut College (Camels) – New London, Connecticut
• Hamilton College (Continentals) – Clinton, New York
• Middlebury College (Panthers) – Middlebury, Vermont
• Trinity College (Bantams) – Hartford, Connecticut
• Wesleyan University (Cardinals) – Middletown, Connecticut
• Williams College (Ephs) – Williamstown, Massachusetts

Northeast Women's Hockey League

The Northeast Women's Hockey League (NEWHL; successor of ECAC West) is a women's ice hockey-only conference comprising seven member schools in New York. It was founded in 2017 by the women's ice hockey teams of five schools in the State University of New York Athletic Conference (SUNYAC); its membership was increased to seven programs in 2019–20. The programs competing in the NEWHL are:

• Buffalo State University (Bengals) – Buffalo, New York
• Morrisville State College (Mustangs) – Morrisville, New York
• State University of New York at Canton (Roos) – Canton, New York
• State University of New York at Cortland (Red Dragons) – Cortland, New York
• State University of New York at Oswego (Lakers) – Oswego, New York
• State University of New York at Plattsburgh (Cardinals) – Plattsburgh, New York
• State University of New York at Potsdam (Bears) – Potsdam, New York

Northern Collegiate Hockey Association

The Northern Collegiate Hockey Association (NCHA) is a hockey-only conference, which operates in Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, and Wisconsin. The women's programs competing in the NCHA are:

• Adrian College (Bulldogs) – Adrian, Michigan
• Aurora University (Spartans) – Aurora, Illinois
• Concordia University Wisconsin (Falcons) – Mequon, Wisconsin
• Finlandia University (Lions) – Hancock, Michigan
• Lake Forest College (Foresters) – Lake Forest, Illinois
• Marian University (Sabres) – Fond du Lac, Wisconsin
• St. Norbert College (Green Knights) – De Pere, Wisconsin
• Trine University (Thunder) – Angola, Indiana

United Collegiate Hockey Conference

The United Collegiate Hockey Conference (UCHC) is a hockey-only conference which operates in the Mid-Atlantic region. The women's programs competing in the UCHC are:

• Alvernia University (Golden Wolves) – Reading, Pennsylvania
• Chatham University (Cougars) – Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
• Elmira College (Soaring Eagles) – Elmira, New York
• King's College (Monarchs) – Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania
• Lebanon Valley College (Flying Dutchman) – Annville, Pennsylvania
• Manhattanville University (Valiants) – Purchase, New York
• Nazareth University (Golden Flyers) – Rochester, New York
• Neumann University (Knights) – Aston, Pennsylvania
• Stevenson University (Mustangs) – Stevenson, Maryland
• Utica University (Pioneers) – Utica, New York
• Wilkes University (Colonels) – Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania
• William Smith College (Herons) – Geneva, New York

Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference

The Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WIAC) is a collegiate athletics conference in Wisconsin, primarily comprising institutions in the University of Wisconsin System. The women's ice hockey programs participating in the WIAC are:

• Northland College (LumberJills) – Ashland, Wisconsin
• University of Wisconsin–Eau Claire (Blugolds) – Eau Claire, Wisconsin
• University of Wisconsin–River Falls (Falcons) – River Falls, Wisconsin
• University of Wisconsin–Stevens Point (Pointers) – Stevens Point, Wisconsin
• University of Wisconsin–Superior (Yellowjackets) – Superior, Wisconsin

List of champions

Laura Hurd Award

Main article: Laura Hurd Award

The Laura Hurd Award is an annual award given to the top player in NCAA Division III Women's Ice Hockey as awarded by the American Hockey Coaches Association (AHCA). Since 2007, it has been named after Laura Hurd, a stand-out player for Elmira College who was killed in a car accident. Previously, it was known as the Division III Women's Player of the Year Award.

Award winners

References

References

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2. (2017-11-02). "Morrisville, Canton will join NEWHL in 2019-20".
3. "Anna Maria Women's Hockey Team History".
4. "Women's Ice Hockey Team Pages".
5. Jay, Michelle. (2020-07-15). "University of St. Thomas joins the WCHA for 2021-22 season".
6. "2019-20 Women's Ice Hockey Standings".
7. "A History of Women's Hockey and the NCHA".
8. "AHCA Awards – Laura Hurd Award".
9. "American Hockey Coaches Association".
10. (2011-04-12). "Tiger hockey – women and men – set national records at season's end".
11. Dunning, Derek. (2012-03-15). "Julie Fortier wins Laura Hurd Award".
12. "Teal Gove of Plattsburgh State is D-III Women's Player of the Year".
13. "Sydney Aveson wins Laura Hurd Award; Women's All-Americans announced".
14. "Ashley Ryan of Elmira is D-III Women's Hockey Player of the Year".
15. (2019-03-14). "Hamline's Bre Simon is 2019 Laura Hurd Award Winner as AHCA Division III Women's Player of the Year".
16. (2020-03-26). "Norwich's Amanda Conway is 2020 Laura Hurd Award Winner As AHCA Division III Women's Player of the Year".
17. (5 April 2019). "UW-River Falls' Callie Hoff is 2022 Laura Hurd Award Winner As AHCA Division III Women's Player of the Year".
18. "Matson wins Laura Hurd Award".