INDIANAPOLIS — The National Collegiate Women’s Ice Hockey Committee announced Sunday the field of eight teams which will compete for the 17th National Collegiate Women’s Ice Hockey Championship. Quarterfinal competition will be conducted on the campuses of the participating institutions, while the 2017 Women’s Frozen Four will be hosted by Lindenwood University and the St. Louis Sports Commission, March 17 and 19, at the Family Arena in St. Charles, Missouri.
BRACKET: Interactive | Printable
Eight teams are selected for the championship. Of the eight teams, the top four teams are seeded.
Four conferences were awarded automatic bids for the 2017 tournament. The remaining four teams were selected at-large. The automatic qualifying conferences and their representatives are as follows:
| Conference | School |
| College Hockey America | Robert Morris |
| ECAC Hockey | Clarkson |
| Hockey East Association | Boston College |
| Western Collegiate Hockey Association | Wisconsin |
Additionally, Cornell, Minnesota Duluth, Minnesota and St. Lawrence were selected as at-large teams.
The quarterfinals will be played Saturday, March 11 with two teams competing at each of the four quarterfinal sites. The winning team from each quarterfinal will advance to the 2017 Women’s Frozen Four.
Wisconsin enters the tournament as the No. 1 seed and will host Robert Morris. Clarkson, the No. 2 seed, will host Cornell. Minnesota Duluth enters the tournament as the No. 3 seed, and will host Minnesota. Boston College, the No. 4 seed, will host St. Lawrence. All game times will be updated and posted on NCAA.com's interactive bracket.
The first national semifinal will be played and streamed LIVE on NCAA.com at 6 p.m. ET Friday, March 17. The second semifinal will begin at approximately 9 p.m. ET and be streamed LIVE on NCAA.com. The national championship game will take place at 3 p.m. ET on Sunday, March 19 and will be broadcast LIVE on the Big Ten Network.
Minnesota claimed its fourth national championship in five years and sixth overall after defeating Boston College 3-1 in last year’s championship game.
