New England Women's Hockey Alliance
The New England Women's Hockey Alliance (NEWHA) 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. As of the current 2023–24 NCAA hockey season, the conference is made up of eight teams, with two each in Connecticut, Massachusetts, and New Hampshire, and one each in New York and Vermont.
| Association | NCAA |
|---|---|
| Founded | 2018 |
| Commissioner | Robert M. DeGregorio, Jr. (since 2018) |
| Sports fielded | |
| Division | Division I |
| No. of teams | 8 |
| Headquarters | Winthrop, Massachusetts |
| Region | New England, New York |
| Official website | newhaonline.com |
History edit
Prior to 2017, the women's ice hockey program at Sacred Heart University was a longstanding independent team, part of no conference. In that year, three NCAA Division II colleges and one Division I college (College of the Holy Cross) were removed from their NCAA Division III hockey conference (the New England Hockey Conference, formerly the ECAC East). Those teams had previously not been eligible for postseason play, but the conference no longer wanted Division I and II teams playing a conference schedule at all. A sixth team, from Post University, announced plans to start playing that year as well.
Sacred Heart, Post, and the other four programs (Holy Cross, St. Michael's, St. Anselm, and Franklin Pierce) then formed a scheduling alliance called the New England Women's Hockey Alliance. This was not a formal conference affiliation, just an agreement among the teams to schedule each other during the regular season; officially the teams would be classified as Division I or Division II independents. (NCAA women's ice hockey makes no distinction between Divisions I and II; the NCAA operates a single National Collegiate Championship for women's hockey that includes both Division I and Division II teams, and scholarship limits in that sport are identical in both divisions.)
Holy Cross intended to be independent only for one season, applying for and gaining membership in Hockey East effective 2018. In that year, the other NEWHA members announced plans to adhere to Division I recruiting rules and offer scholarships, and so applied to the NCAA for the NEWHA to be recognized as an official Division I conference. They also announced the conference would include Long Island University's team when it began play in 2019. NEWHA was approved as a Division I NCAA conference in September 2019.[1] The conference will need to play at least two seasons with the same six members before being granted an automatic bid to the National Collegiate Championship playoffs in women's ice hockey.[1]
The NEWHA expanded to seven members in 2022 with the arrival of Stonehill College, which started a varsity women's hockey team in the 2022–23 season. Stonehill had initially planned to start play in 2021–22,[2] but NCAA-imposed recruiting limits imposed in the wake of COVID-19 led the school to delay the team's start by a year.[3] The latest addition to the NEWHA is Assumption University, which joined for administrative purposes on July 1, 2022 in advance of its first season of varsity play in 2023–24.[4]
On February 22, 2020, Saint Anselm and Franklin Pierce broke the record for longest NCAA women's hockey game with a five-overtime contest in the NEWHA Playoff Tournament that went 147:24. The game eclipsed the previous record of 144:32 in a 2010 game featuring RPI and Quinnipiac.[5]
Members edit
Current members edit
| Institution | Location | Nickname | Founded | Affiliation | Enrollment | Joined | Men's Hockey conference | Primary Conference | Colors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Assumption University | Worcester, MA | Greyhounds | 1904 | Private (Catholic) | 2,349 | 2023[a] | Northeast-10 (D-II) | Northeast-10 (D-II) | |
| Franklin Pierce University | Rindge, NH[b] | Ravens | 1962 | Private (Nonsectarian) | 2,381 | 2017 | Northeast-10 (D-II) | Northeast-10 (D-II) | |
| Long Island University | Brooklyn/Brookville, NY | Sharks | 1926 | Private (Nonsectarian) | 18,500 | 2019 | Independent[c] | Northeast Conference | |
| Post University | Waterbury, CT | Eagles | 1890 | Private (For-profit) | 849 | 2017 | Northeast-10 (D-II) | Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference (D-II) | |
| Sacred Heart University | Fairfield, CT | Pioneers | 1963 | Private (Catholic) | 5,428 | 2017 | Atlantic Hockey | Northeast Conference (Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference in 2024–25) | |
| Saint Anselm College | Goffstown, NH | Hawks | 1889 | Private (Catholic) | 2,015 | 2017 | Northeast-10 (D-II) | Northeast-10 (D-II) | |
| Saint Michael's College | Colchester, VT | Purple Knights | 1904 | Private (Catholic) | 1,600 | 2017 | Northeast-10 (D-II) | Northeast-10 (D-II) | |
| Stonehill College | Easton, MA | Skyhawks | 1948 | Private (Catholic) | 2,500 | 2022[3] | Independent | Northeast Conference |
- ^ Assumption joined for administrative purposes in 2022, but did not start NEWHA play until 2023.
- ^ Franklin Pierce is located in New Hampshire, but plays its home hockey games in Winchendon, Massachusetts.
- ^ While LIU has been an independent since its first men's ice hockey season in 2020–21, it is a scheduling partner of Atlantic Hockey.[6]
Former member edit
| Institution | Location | Founded | Type | Nickname | Joined | Left | Current Conference |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| College of the Holy Cross | Worcester, Massachusetts | 1843 | Private (Catholic) | Crusaders | 2017 | 2018 | Hockey East |
Membership timeline edit
Champions edit
| Season | Regular Season | NEWHA Tournament | NCAA National |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2017–18 | Saint Anselm[7] | Sacred Heart[8] | No Autobid |
| 2018–19 | Saint Anselm[9] | Saint Anselm[10] | No Autobid |
| 2019–20 | Sacred Heart[11] | LIU[12] | No Autobid |
| 2020–21 | Not Played - COVID | Not Played - COVID | No Autobid |
| 2021–22 | Franklin Pierce & LIU[13] | Franklin Pierce[14] | No Autobid |
| 2022–23 | LIU[15] | LIU | LIU |
See also edit
- NCAA Women's Ice Hockey Tournament (National Collegiate division)
References edit
- ^ a b USCHO Staff (September 4, 2019). "Alliance approved for NCAA Division I status, effective with '19-20 season". USCHO. Retrieved January 16, 2020.
- ^ "Stonehill to Add Women's Ice Hockey; Accepts Invitation to Join NEWHA" (Press release). New England Women's Hockey Alliance. December 9, 2019. Retrieved January 29, 2020.
- ^ a b "Stonehill to Delay First Women's Hockey Season to 2022-23" (Press release). Stonehill Skyhawks. September 11, 2020. Retrieved November 25, 2020.
- ^ "Assumption accepts invitation to join NEWHA as its eighth member" (Press release). New England Women's Hockey Alliance. June 29, 2022. Retrieved July 16, 2022.
- ^ Staff (February 23, 2020). "One night after winning longest game, Saint Anselm women fall". The Union Leader. Retrieved February 24, 2020.
- ^ "Men's Hockey Announced as Atlantic Hockey Scheduling Partner" (Press release). LIU Sharks. October 15, 2020. Retrieved October 19, 2020.
- ^ "NEWHA Women's Conference Standings: 2017-2018". USCHO. Retrieved January 16, 2020.
- ^ "Sacred Heart 3, Saint Anselm 1". uscho. Retrieved January 16, 2020.
- ^ "NEWHA Women's Conference Standings: 2019-2020". USCHO. Retrieved January 16, 2020.
- ^ "HIGHLIGHTS/REACTION: Women's Ice Hockey 3, Franklin Pierce 0 - 2018-19 NEWHA Championship Game". YouTube. Saint Anselm Athletics. Retrieved January 16, 2020.
- ^ "NEWHA Women's Conference Standings: 2019-2020". USCHO. Retrieved February 24, 2020.
- ^ "CHAMPIONS! Women's Ice Hockey Defeats Saint Anselm, 1-0 to Capture NEWHA Championship". LIU Sharks. Long Island University Athletics. February 22, 2020. Retrieved February 24, 2020.
- ^ "Standings". College Hockey | USCHO.com. Retrieved April 22, 2022.
- ^ "PERCHED AT THE TOP: Women's Ice Hockey Claims NEWHA Title over Saint Anselm, 1-0". Franklin Pierce. March 5, 2022. Retrieved April 22, 2022.
- ^ "Standings". College Hockey | USCHO.com. Retrieved February 17, 2023.