College Hockey America (CHA) was a college ice hockey conference in the United States. It participated in the NCAA's Division I as a hockey-only conference. The conference's final membership featured six women's teams, with three in Pennsylvania; two in New York, and one in Missouri.
On April 30, 2024, CHA merged with the Atlantic Hockey Association to form Atlantic Hockey America in 2024–25.
History
The CHA was founded as a men's-only league in the 1999–2000 season. The conference was formed by seven teams, three of which were Division I independent teams, another three moving up from Division II, after the NCAA stopped sanctioning Division II hockey in 1998, and one new varsity program (Wayne State).
The newly formed women's division of the CHA began play in the 2002–03 season with four teams. Findlay, Mercyhurst and Wayne State were former Great Lakes Women's Hockey Association members, while Niagara played previously in the ECAC.
The CHA Women's Division managed to remain at four teams between 2002 and 2008; although teams continued to come and go. In 2004, Findlay dropped its women's hockey program and was replaced by Quinnipiac University for one season. In 2005, the Bobcats removed its women's team and moved to another conference (ECAC). They were replaced by the Colonials women's ice hockey team of Robert Morris University. In 2008–09, Syracuse University started up its women's hockey program and joined the conference; bringing the total number of teams in the CHA Women's Division up to five.
The CHA Men's Division folded after the 2009–2010 season, leaving the CHA as a women's-only conference. The fate of the four remaining CHA men's teams was as follows: Niagara and Robert Morris moved to Atlantic Hockey; Bemidji State joined the WCHA; and Alabama-Huntsville continued play as an independent before moving to the WCHA prior to the program being discontinued after the WCHA men's conference folded.
The 2011–12 academic year and season brought many changes to the CHA. Wayne State abruptly ended their women's hockey program, dropping conference membership to only four teams again for the 2011–12 season. The conference announced that Lindenwood University would officially join the CHA for the 2012–2013 season. Lindenwood, then in the process of transitioning its athletic programs from the NAIA to the NCAA, had already been slated to play ten games against CHA opponents in its first season of NCAA competition as an independent program for the 2011–12 season. On March 19, 2012, Niagara announced it was dropping its women's ice hockey program effective immediately; as a result, the Rochester Institute of Technology team was allowed to immediately join the CHA upon its move from D-III to D-I for the 2012–13 season. Penn State, which had announced it would upgrade its men's and women's hockey from club to NCAA Division I status for 2012, was accepted for admission to the CHA for the 2012–13 season. In sum, the CHA continued as a women's-only conference for the 2012–13 season and beyond with a total of six teams consisting of Mercyhurst (original member from 2002); Robert Morris (joined 2005); Syracuse (joined 2008) and new members Penn State, Lindenwood and RIT. A subsequent fundraising drive with the goal of reinstating hockey was successful enough that RMU announced that December that it would reinstate both teams effective in 2023–24. RMU applied for readmission to CHA (as well as its previous men's hockey home of Atlantic Hockey), and was officially reinstated to CHA on March 3, 2022.
On June 6, 2023, it was announced that the CHA would be merging with the Atlantic Hockey Association (AHA), with the two conferences operating under one banner by 2024. Although the two conferences had their own governing boards and bylaws, they had a combined conference staff and a single commissioner from 2010 until their merger. The merged league was unveiled as Atlantic Hockey America on April 30, 2024.
Final members
Conference affiliations reflect those at the time CHA's merger with the Atlantic Hockey Association was finalized.
{| class="wikitable sortable"
|-
! Institution !! Location !! Nickname !! Founded !! Affiliation !! Enrollment !! Joined !! Women's conference championships !! Men's Hockey conference !! Primary Conference !! Colors
|-
| Lindenwood University || St. Charles, Missouri || Lions || 1827 || Private/Presbyterian || 12,213 || 2012 || 0 || Independent || OVC ||
|-
| Mercyhurst University || Erie, Pennsylvania || Lakers || 1926 || Private/Catholic || 4,106 || 2002 || 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, <br>2010, 2011, 2013, 2016, 2018, 2020
|| Atlantic Hockey || PSAC (D-II) ||
|-
| Pennsylvania State University || University Park, Pennsylvania || Nittany Lions || 1855 || Public/State-related || 44,817 || 2012 || 2023 || Big Ten || Big Ten ||
|-
| Robert Morris University || Moon Township, Pennsylvania || Colonials || 1921 || Private/Nonsectarian || 4,895 || 2005<br>2023 || 2012, 2017, 2021 || Atlantic Hockey || Horizon League ||
|-
| Rochester Institute of Technology || Henrietta, New York || Tigers || 1829 || Private/Non-sectarian || 18,063 || 2012 || 2014, 2015 || Atlantic Hockey || Liberty League (D-III) ||
|-
| Syracuse University || Syracuse, New York || Orange || 1870 || Private/Non-sectarian || 19,082 || 2008 || 2019, 2022 ||NECHL (Club) || ACC ||
|}
Announced future members
CHA added one member after the merger was announced, but before it was finalized. This school's membership accordingly transferred to Atlantic Hockey America.
- University of Delaware Fightin' Blue Hens, joining in 2025
Former (Women's Division) members
- University of Findlay Oilers, 1999–2004 (dropped program)
- Quinnipiac University Bobcats, 2004–2005 (moved to ECAC)
- Wayne State University Warriors, 2002–2011 (dropped program
Champions
{| class="wikitable sortable"
! Year
! Winning team
! Losing team
! Score
! Location
! class=unsortable| Reference
|-
| 2003 || style=";" | Mercyhurst Lakers women's ice hockey| || style=";" | Findlay Oilers women's ice hockey| || 1–0 || Detroit, Michigan ||
|-
| 2004 || style=";" | Mercyhurst Lakers women's ice hockey| || style=";" | Niagara Purple Eagles women's ice hockey| || 3–1 || Lewiston, New York ||
|-
| 2005 || style=";" | Mercyhurst Lakers women's ice hockey| || style=";" | Niagara Purple Eagles women's ice hockey| || 4–1 || Erie, Pennsylvania ||
|-
| 2006 || style=";" | Mercyhurst Lakers women's ice hockey| || style=";" | Niagara Purple Eagles women's ice hockey| || 6–2 || Detroit, Michigan ||
|-
| 2007 || style=";" | Mercyhurst Lakers women's ice hockey| || style=";" | Wayne State Warriors women's ice hockey| || 4–1 || Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania ||
|-
| 2008 || style=";" | Mercyhurst Lakers women's ice hockey| || style=";" | Wayne State Warriors women's ice hockey| || 2–1 || Lewiston, New York ||
|-
| 2009 || style=";" | Mercyhurst Lakers women's ice hockey| || style=";" | Wayne State Warriors women's ice hockey| || 6–1 || Erie, Pennsylvania ||
|-
| 2010 || style=";" | Mercyhurst Lakers women's ice hockey| || style=";" | Syracuse Orange women's ice hockey| || 3–1 || Detroit, Michigan ||
|-
| 2011 || style=";" | Mercyhurst Lakers women's ice hockey| || style=";" | Syracuse Orange women's ice hockey| || 5–4 || Syracuse, New York ||
|-
| 2012 || style=";" | Robert Morris Colonials women's ice hockey| || style=";" | Mercyhurst Lakers women's ice hockey| || 3–2 || Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania ||
|-
| 2013 || style=";" | Mercyhurst Lakers women's ice hockey| || style=";" | Syracuse Orange women's ice hockey| || 5–4 || Erie, Pennsylvania ||
|-
| 2014 || style=";" | RIT Tigers women's ice hockey| || style=";" | Mercyhurst Lakers women's ice hockey| || 2–1 || Erie, Pennsylvania ||
|-
| 2015 || style=";" | RIT Tigers women's ice hockey| || style=";" | Syracuse Orange women's ice hockey| || 2–1 || Erie, Pennsylvania ||
|-
| 2016 || style=";" | Mercyhurst Lakers women's ice hockey| || style=";" | Syracuse Orange women's ice hockey| || 4–3 || Buffalo, New York ||
|-
| 2017 || style=";" | Robert Morris Colonials women's ice hockey| || style=";" | Syracuse Orange women's ice hockey| || 2–0 || Buffalo, New York ||
|-
| 2018 || style=";" | Mercyhurst Lakers women's ice hockey| || style=";" | Syracuse Orange women's ice hockey| || 5–3 || Buffalo, New York ||
|-
| 2019 || style=";" | Syracuse Orange women's ice hockey| || style=";" | Robert Morris Colonials women's ice hockey| || 6–2 || Buffalo, New York ||
|-
| 2020 || style=";" | Mercyhurst Lakers women's ice hockey| || style=";" | Robert Morris Colonials women's ice hockey| || 2–1 || Buffalo, New York ||
|-
| 2021 || style=";" | Robert Morris Colonials women's ice hockey| || style=";" | Syracuse Orange women's ice hockey| || 1–0 || Erie, Pennsylvania ||
|-
| 2022 || style=";" | Syracuse Orange women's ice hockey| || style=";" | Mercyhurst Lakers women's ice hockey| || 3–2 || Syracuse, New York ||
|-
| 2023 || style=";" | Penn State Nittany Lions women's ice hockey| || style=";" | Mercyhurst Lakers women's ice hockey| || 2–1 || State College, Pennsylvania ||
|-
| 2024 || style=";" | Penn State Nittany Lions women's ice hockey| || style=";" | Mercyhurst Lakers women's ice hockey| || 1–0 || State College, Pennsylvania ||
|}
NCAA postseason women's hockey history
Prior to the 2014–15 season, The CHA did not have an automatic bid to the NCAA tournament for its conference tournament champion. At that time, with membership having remained stable at six teams (Mercyhurst, Robert Morris, Syracuse, Lindenwood, RIT, and Penn State) for two consecutive seasons, the autobid was granted.
In the table below, all NCAA appearances prior to 2015 were at-large selections.
{| class=wikitable
<caption>NCAA tournament</caption>
|-
! Year
! CHA Rep.
! Opponent
! Result
|-
| 2005
| Mercyhurst
| Harvard
| L 5–4
|-
| 2006
| Mercyhurst
| Wisconsin
| L 2–1
|-
| 2007
| Mercyhurst
| Minnesota Duluth
| L 3–2
|-
| 2008
| Mercyhurst
| Minnesota Duluth
| L 5–4
|-
| rowspan=3 | 2009
| rowspan=3 | Mercyhurst
| St. Lawrence
| W 3–1
|-
| Minnesota
| W 5–4 (Frozen Four)
|-
| Wisconsin
| L 5–0 (National Championship)
|-
| rowspan=2 | 2010
| rowspan=2 | Mercyhurst
| Boston University
| W 4–1
|-
| Cornell
| L 3–2 (Frozen Four)
|-
| 2011
| Mercyhurst
| Boston University
| L 2–4
|-
| 2012
| Mercyhurst
| Wisconsin
| L 3–1
|-
| rowspan=2 | 2013
| rowspan=2 | Mercyhurst
| Cornell
| W 4–3
|-
| Boston University
| L 1–4 (Frozen Four)
|-
| rowspan=2 | 2014
| rowspan=2 | Mercyhurst
| Cornell
| W 3–2
|-
| Clarkson
| L 1–5 (Frozen Four)
|-
| 2015
| RIT
| Minnesota
| L 2–6
|-
| 2016
| Mercyhurst
| Wisconsin
|L 0–6
|-
|2017
|Robert Morris
|Wisconsin
|L 0–7
|-
|2018
|Mercyhurst
|Clarkson
|L 1–2
|-
|2019
|Syracuse
|Wisconsin
|L 0–4
|-
|2020
| colspan="3" |Canceled
|-
|2021
|Robert Morris
|Northeastern
|L 1–5
|-
|2022
|Syracuse
|Quinnipiac
|L 0–4
|-
|2023
|Penn State
|Quinnipiac
|L 2–3
|-
|2024
|Penn State
|St. Lawrence
|L 0–1
|}
Men's Division history
The CHA was founded in 1999 with only a men's division. Three of the seven charter members, Alabama–Huntsville, Bemidji State, and Findlay, had recently moved up from Division II, while Air Force, Army, and Niagara were formerly independent. Wayne State was a charter member, and began sponsoring varsity hockey in 2000.
Niagara went undefeated in conference play in 1999–2000, winning the conference tournament and gaining an at-large invitation to the NCAA tournament. (The conference did not gain an automatic bid until the 2003 tournament.) Army spent only one season in the league before leaving for the MAAC. Findlay dropped its hockey programs following the 2003–2004 season, to be replaced by Robert Morris, which began play in 2004–2005. After Air Force left for Atlantic Hockey in 2006 and Wayne State dropped its program in 2008, the conference was left with only four teams. The CHA sought to add new programs to its men's league, hoping to draw interest from some of the top club teams in the country, including Kennesaw State University.
On January 29, 2009, Niagara University announced that it and Robert Morris University were moving to Atlantic Hockey beginning in the 2010–11 season. Bemidji State applied again to the Western Collegiate Hockey Association for inclusion and was accepted, along with the University of Nebraska-Omaha of the Central Collegiate Hockey Association. Alabama-Huntsville applied to the CCHA following the announced departure of Nebraska-Omaha and was denied. As a result, Alabama-Huntsville began competing as an independent team beginning with the 2010–11 season. The CHA men's division dissolved in 2010.
Member schools
There were eight member schools in total during the eleven men's seasons. The conference began in the 1999–2000 season with seven teams, and ended in 2009–2010 with four.
{| class="sortable wikitable"
! Institution !! Location !! Nickname !! Membership !! Men's championships !! Subsequent<br />Conference !! Current<br />Conference !! Colors
|-
| || Huntsville, Alabama || Chargers || 1999–2010 || 2007, 2010 || align=center | Independent || align=center | dropped program ||
|-
| Bemidji State University || Bemidji, Minnesota || Beavers || 1999–2010 || 2005, 2006, 2009 || align=center| WCHA ||
|-
| University of Findlay || Findlay, Ohio || Oilers || 1999–2004 || – ||align=center colspan=2| dropped program first team, second team and rookie team. Additionally they voted to award 4 individual trophies to an eligible player at the same time. The CHA also awarded an 'Easton Three-Star Player of the Year', given to the player with the highest point total with respect to their being named a star of a game, and a Most Valuable Player in Tournament which was voted on at the conclusion of the conference tournament. All awards, with the exception of the Three-Star Player of the Year, were awarded every year of the conference's existence.
All-Conference teams
{| class="wikitable"
|-
!Award
!Inaugural year
|-
|First Team
|1999–2000
|-
|Second Team
|1999–2000
|-
|Rookie Team
|1999–2000
|}
Individual awards
{| class="wikitable"
|-
!Award
!Inaugural year
|-
|Player of the Year
|1999–2000
|-
|Rookie of the Year
|1999–2000
|-
|Coach of the Year
|1999–2000
|-
|Student-Athlete of the Year
|1999–2000
|-
|Easton Three-Star Player of the Year
|2004–05
|-
|Most Valuable Player in Tournament
|2000
|}
See also
- NCAA women's ice hockey tournament (National Collegiate division)