The 2018 NCAA Division III Women’s Ice Hockey Tournament was a tournament to determine the Division III national champion in women’s ice hockey. This was the nineteenth time a national championship tournament at the Division III level had been held and was the seventeenth one sanctioned by the NCAA.
Format
Nine teams qualify for the single elimination tournament. This year’s tournament field expanded by one team from the previous tournament held in 2017. The conference tournament champions of the CHC, MIAC, NCHA, NEHC, NESCAC, and NEWHL received automatic bids to the tournament. Three at-large bids were also selected, one guaranteed to a school from a non-automatic-qualifier conference.
This is the first year in which the CHC earned its own automatic bid, as the conference was in its second full season with seven teams. The United Collegiate Hockey Conference started play in the 2017-18 season and would not be eligible for an automatic bid until the 2019-20 season. Until then, the conference’s schools were put into Pool B along with the WIAC schools and independents. With the UCHC being formed, the ECAC West disbanded, and the remaining schools formed the Northeast Women’s Hockey League. This was also the first season of play for the NEWHL. Because of extenuating circumstances, the NEWHL was given a two year grace period to keep its automatic bid, despite the league initially only having five teams. The opening round game was held at a campus site on March 9. The quarterfinal games were held at campus sites on March 10. The semifinal and final rounds were held March 16 and 17 at Kreitzberg Arena of Norwich University, the highest remaining seed in the tournament.
Bids
Automatic Bids
- Colonial Hockey Conference champion: Morrisville Mustangs (1st appearance)
- Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference champion: Hamline Pipers (1st appearance)
- New England Hockey Conference champion: Norwich Cadets (9th appearance)
- New England Small College Athletic Conference champion: Middlebury Panthers (15th appearance^^)
- Northeast Women’s Hockey League champion: Plattsburgh Cardinals (14th appearance)
- Northern Collegiate Hockey Association champion: Adrian Bulldogs (4th appearance)
At-Large Bids
Pool B (Teams from non-AQ conferences)
- Elmira Soaring Eagles – UCHC* (14th appearance)
Pool C (Teams from all conferences)
- Gustavus Adolphus Golden Gusties – MIAC (13th appearance^)
- Wisconsin-Eau Claire Blugolds – WIAC (1st appearance)
^ = Middlebury appeared in the 2 AWCHA tournaments that predated the NCAA tournament
^ = Gustavus appeared in 1 of 2 AWCHA tournaments that predated the NCAA tournament
* = UCHC did not receive an automatic bid in its first season, making them a pool B conference
Misc.
- Six of the nine schools who earned bids appeared in the previous season’s NCAA tournament.
- This is the 7th of an active 14 consecutive NCAA Tournament appearance streak for Plattsburgh.
- This is the 6th of 9 consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances for Elmira.
- This is the 4th of 4 consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances for Middlebury.
- This is the 3rd of 5 consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances for Adrian.
- This is the 2nd of 4 consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances for Norwich.
- This is the 1st of 4 consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances for UW-Eau Claire.
- UW-River Falls misses the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2008.
- St. Thomas misses the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2013.
- The MIAC gets two bids into the tournament field in back-to-back seasons.
- As of 2025, this remains as Morrisville’s only appearance in the NCAA tournament.
- Norwich becomes the 8th school to host the Frozen Four.
- This was the last season in which selections were made using the human element, and not a mathematical formula.
- This year’s selection committee consisted of:
- Katie Boldvich (chair) (CHC and NEHC commissioner)
- Dave Clausen (Utica head coach)
- Crystal Lanning (UW-River Falls interim AD)
- Bill Mandigo (Middlebury head coach)
- Michelle Morgan (St. Thomas associate AD)
Seeding
East
- Norwich (24-1-3)
- Plattsburgh (23-2-2)
- Elmira (23-2-2)
- Middlebury (20-4-3)
- Morrisville (17-7-3)
West
- Hamline (20-4-3)
- Gustavus (20-3-4)
- UW-Eau Claire (18-6-4)
- Adrian (22-5-1)
Results
First Round
Held at campus sites
-Don Roberts Ice Rink- St. Peter, MN
Quarterfinals
Held at campus sites*
-Ronald B. Stafford Ice Arena- Plattsburgh, NY
-Murray Athletic Center Arena- Horseheads, NY
-Kreitzberg Arena- Northfield, VT
-Don Roberts Ice Rink- St. Peter, MN*
*= Hamline’s home rink, TRIA rink in St. Paul, MN was not available to host the quarterfinal game
Semifinals
Hosted by Norwich University: Kreitzberg Arena- Northfield, VT
Third Place
Hosted by Norwich University: Kreitzberg Arena- Northfield, VT
Championship
Hosted by Norwich University: Kreitzberg Arena- Northfield, VT
2018 NCAA Division III Women’s Ice Hockey National Champion Norwich Cadets
Bracket
Tournament Notes
- Norwich wins its 2nd national championship as a program, with their first coming in 2011.
- Norwich ties Amherst for the 4th most national championships.
- The Cadets end Plattsburgh’s run of 4 consecutive national championships.
- Elmira finishes as national runner-up for the 4th time in program history, falling to 3-4 in the national title game.
- In their first ever NCAA Tournament appearance, Hamline finishes in 3rd place.
- Plattsburgh reaches its 12th Frozen Four and 7th straight, clinching its 2nd 4th place finish in program history.
- Norwich’s title technically broke the six year streak of ECAC West championships, though the league disbanded before the season. (Norwich would have broken it regardless, as an NEHC team)
- This was the only year with the nine-team format.
- In the inaugural “play-in” or “first round” game, UW-Eau Claire defeats Gustavus in the longest NCAA Division III women’s hockey game ever, lasting 101:02.
Statistics
Skaters
Top Scorers |
||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Player | Team | Pos. | Yr. | GP | G | A | P | +/- | PIM | SOG |
| Amanda Conway | Norwich | F | So. | 3 | 5 | 3 | 8 | 7 | 0 | 19 |
| Sophie McGovern | Norwich | F | So. | 3 | 2 | 4 | 6 | 6 | 4 | 13 |
| Bryn Labbe | Norwich | F | Jr. | 3 | 1 | 4 | 5 | 7 | 2 | 7 |
| Shannon Strawinski | Elmira | F | Jr. | 3 | 3 | 1 | 4 | 4 | 6 | 11 |
| Darby Dodds | Hamline | F | Sr. | 3 | 3 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 6 | 16 |
| Mackenzie Millen | Plattsburgh | F | Jr. | 3 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 2 | 4 | 12 |
| Sarah Hughson | Elmira | F | Sr. | 3 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 5 | 0 | 9 |
| Becca Zarembinski | Hamline | F | Jr. | 3 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 13 |
| Annie Katonka | Plattsburgh | F | Fr. | 3 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 15 |
| Erin McArdle | Plattsburgh | D | Fr. | 3 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 9 |
| Lizzy Viola | Plattsburgh | D | Sr. | 3 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 6 | 2 |
| Samantha Benoit | Norwich | D | Fr. | 3 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
| Adrieana Rossini | Norwich | F | Jr. | 3 | 0 | 3 | 3 | -2 | 0 | 2 |
Goaltending
Top Goaltenders (minimum 110 minutes played) |
|||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Player | Team | Yr. | GP | W | L | SA | GA | GAA | SV% | SO | TOI |
| Kelcey Crawford | Elmira | Sr. | 3 | 2 | 1 | 97 | 4 | 1.12 | .959 | 1 | 213:50 |
| Laurie King | Norwich | Sr. | 3 | 3 | 0 | 65 | 4 | 1.45 | .938 | 0 | 166:05 |
| Erin Connolly | UW-Eau Claire | So. | 2 | 1 | 1 | 80 | 5 | 1.88 | .938 | 0 | 159:32 |
| Kassi Abbott | Plattsburgh | Jr. | 2 | 1 | 1 | 79 | 6 | 2.88 | .924 | 0 | 124:53 |
| McKenna Hulslander | Hamline | Fr. | 3 | 2 | 1 | 82 | 11 | 3.57 | .866 | 0 | 184:53 |
All-Tournament Team
- F: Amanda Conway- Norwich
- F: Sophie McGovern- Norwich (MVP)
- F: Shannon Strawinski- Elmira
- D: Carly Menges- Norwich
- G: Kelcey Crawford- Elmira
