The Western Women's Collegiate Hockey League (WWCHL) is an American Collegiate Hockey Association Women's Division 1 club level hockey-only college athletic conference for women's hockey teams. It is one of four ACHA Women's Division 1 conferences, along with the Central Collegiate Women's Hockey Association, Women's Midwest College Hockey, and the Eastern Collegiate Women's Hockey League. The league has a large footprint spreading across the western United States, featuring members in Arizona, Colorado and Utah.
Among the ten members the conference has hosted, both Minnesota (2013) and Wisconsin (2002 and 2004) won ACHA national championships prior to joining the WWCHL, while Colorado and Colorado State also have lengthy histories pre-dating the conference's creation. The rest of the league roster, however, consists of newer programs, largely in emerging hockey locales. Denver began play, as the WWCHL itself did, for the 2014–15 season. Arizona State started its program in 2016–17 while Grand Canyon and the University of Utah did so in 2017–18 and 2019–20, respectively.
Current membership
InstitutionLocationNicknameFoundedTypeEnrollmentColorsPrimary FacilityArizona State UniversityTempe, ArizonaSun Devils1885Public51,585Maroon and Gold Mullett ArenaColorado State UniversityFort Collins, ColoradoRams1870Public33,877Green and Gold Edora Pool Ice CenterGrand Canyon UniversityPhoenix, ArizonaAntelopes1949Private/Christian20,500Purple, Black and White AZ Ice ArcadiaUniversity of ColoradoBoulder, ColoradoBuffaloes1876Public35,528Silver, Black and GoldCU Recreation CenterUniversity of DenverDenver, ColoradoPioneers1864Private11,614Crimson and Gold Joy Burns Ice ArenaUniversity of UtahSalt Lake City, UtahUtes1850Public32,994Red, Silver and Black SLC Sports Complex
Membership timeline
Playoff championship game results
Year Champion Score Runner-Up Location 2015 Minnesota 3–2 (OT) Colorado State Sun Prairie, Wisconsin 2016 Lindenwood–Belleville 2–1 Colorado Boulder, Colorado 2017 Minnesota 2–1 Colorado Tempe, Arizona 2018 Colorado 5–2 Minnesota Fremont, Nebraska 2019 Midland 3–2 (2OT) Colorado Las Vegas, Nevada 2020 Colorado 5–1 Arizona State Salt Lake City, Utah
Regular season champions
2014–15 Colorado State 2015–16 Lindenwood–Belleville 2016–17 Lindenwood–Belleville 2017–18 Colorado 2018–19 Colorado 2019–20 Colorado
ACHA National Tournament appearances
Appearances made while a WWCHL member.
School Appearances Years Championships Lindenwood–Belleville 3 2016, 2017, 2018 None Minnesota 3 2015, 2017, 2018 NoneColorado 2 2018, 2020 None Midland 1 2019 None
World University Games selections
Since 2011, the American Collegiate Hockey Association has supplied players for the United States team at the World University Games women's hockey tournament, held biennially and as part of the multi-sport event for college and university student-athletes.
Year Location Player School Result 2015 Granada, Spain Molly O'Neil Colorado State Fifth Place Whitney Thomas Colorado 2017 Almaty, Kazakhstan Jordan Anderson Minnesota Bronze Medal Kathleen Ash Colorado Alexandra Brown Lindenwood–Belleville Leah MacArthur Colorado Lyndsay Oden Minnesota Becca Senden Minnesota Livia Twohig Minnesota 2019 Krasnoyarsk, Russia Kathleen Ash Colorado Fourth Place
Notable ACHA award winners
Year Winner School Award 2014–15 Kelsey Brown Colorado Community Playmaker 2014–15 Emera Danos Colorado Off-Ice MVP 2015–16 Katherine Hannah Lindenwood–Belleville Coach of the Year 2018–19 Jason White Midland Coach of the Year 2018–19 Kenzie Bertolas Midland Off-Ice MVP
See also American Collegiate Hockey Association Arizona State University Sun Devils Division 1 Women's Ice Hockey Lindenwood–Belleville Lynx women's ice hockey List of ice hockey leagues
References
External links Western Women's Collegiate Hockey League Western Women's Collegiate Hockey League Facebook page Arizona State University Women's Hockey Colorado State University Women's Hockey Grand Canyon University Women's Hockey University of Colorado Boulder Women's Hockey University of Denver Women's Hockey University of Utah Hockey