Women’s Division II Releases First Ranking of 2021-22 Season
TROY, Mich. – Nov. 19, 2021 – The American Collegiate Hockey Association’s Women’s Division II (W2) today announced the first official rankings the 2021-2022 season. The results are based on games played and reported within the first ranking period that ended on Sunday, Nov. 14, 2021.
This season, W2 will run six ranking periods based on a computer ranking system. There are three changes to W2 rankings this season based on divisional voting at the 2021 Annual Meeting:
- The maximum goal differential factored into the computer ranking was reduced to four
- Instead of a 1-0 loss, forfeits are now entered as 4-0 losses in the rankings
- W2 is now made up of four regions: Northeast, Southeast, Central and West
The 2022 ACHA National Championships will take place in St. Louis, Missouri in March 2022, and will include 16 W2 teams. The tournament was expanded to include four more teams based on the division’s growth in recent years.
Details About the Rankings & Invitations to Nationals
The following rankings are based on the first 158 games of the season. This ranking excludes teams that have played less than three games. Additionally, several teams have declared they will not attend the 2022 National Championships. In the interest of helping all teams understand where their opponents rank, these teams are included below but have been crossed out. A full list of teams opting out is listed at the end of this release. Invitations to Nationals will be extended to the top teams in each region.
Heading into the 2021-22 season, the division voted to allocate a certain number of invitations to each region based on the number of teams in the region, with the stipulation that the landscape may change and therefore mid-season modifications may be needed. Given fluctuating team numbers, and the number of teams opting to sit out of Nationals, the number of Nationals invitations per region is subject to change.
RANKING #1
NORTHEAST REGION (5 invitations)
- Northeastern University
- Assumption University
- University of New Hampshire
- Boston College
- University of Vermont
- Merrimack College
- Providence College
- Saint Anselm’s College
- University of Connecticut
- Boston University
- Paul Smiths College
- Bentley University
- Union College
SOUTHEAST REGION (5 invitations)
- University of Delaware
- Rowan University
- United States Naval Academy
- Loyola University Maryland
- Villanova University
- Liberty University
- West Virginia University
- University of Pittsburgh
- University of Pennsylvania
- University at Buffalo
- Mercyhurst University
- Towson University
- University of Maryland
- Montclair State University
- West Chester University
- Brockport State University
- Rochester Institute of Technology
CENTRAL (3 invitations)
- Lake Superior State University
- Adrian College
- Northern Michigan University
- Ohio State University
- Michigan State University
- Central Michigan University
- Miami University
- Loyola University Chicago
- Bowling Green State University
WEST REGION (3 invitations)
- Dakota College
- North Dakota State University
- University of Wisconsin-La Crosse
- Iowa State University
- University of Wisconsin Eau Claire
The following three conferences with at least six W2 ACHA member teams will be offered an automatic bid for their top team to the 2022 W2 National Championships: Central Collegiate Women’s Hockey Association (CCWHA), Women’s Delaware Valley Collegiate Hockey Conference (DVCHC) and the Independent Women’s Club Ice Hockey League (IWCHL).
The following teams have declared they will not attend the 2022 National Championships: Assumption College, Bentley University, Boston University, California University of Pennsylvania, George Washington University, Merrimack College, Rochester Institute Technology, Saint Anselm’s College, University of Connecticut, University of Nebraska Lincoln, University of Notre Dame. Any team that does not withdraw their intention to attend Nationals in advance, and ultimately turns down an invitation, is subject to disqualification from future National tournaments.
The final date that games will count towards W2 rankings this season is Sunday, Feb. 27, 2022. The ACHA Women’s Division II National Championships will begin Tuesday, March 15, 2022. The championship game will be held Saturday, March 19, 2022.
The second W2 ranking period will end on Dec. 14, 2021. Follow the W2 schedule and standings here.
