FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE FIELD IS SET FOR 2018 WCHA POSTSEASON TOURNAMENT Best-of-three quarterfinal round series held at host sites Feb. 23-25; 2018 WCHA Final Faceoff held at on March 3-4

BLOOMINGTON, Minn. – Feb. 18, 2018 – With the regular season complete, the field has been set for the 2018 postseason tournament in the Women’s League of the Western Collegiate Hockey Association (WCHA). Nationally top-ranked Wisconsin, the back-to-back-to-back WCHA regular season champion, is the tournament’s top seed and receives an automatic bye into the 2018 WCHA Final Faceoff, held March 3 and 4 at Ridder Arena in Minneapolis. The League’s other six teams will vie to join the Badgers by winning a best-of-three WCHA Quarterfinal series, held at the home sites of the No. 2-4 seeds the weekend of Feb. 23-25.

The winner of the 2018 WCHA Final Faceoff receives the League’s automatic bid into the National Collegiate Women’s Hockey Championship.

Pairings, locations and start times for the Friday-Sunday, Feb. 23-25 best-of-three WCHA Quarterfinals (* denotes if necessary):

No. 7 Minnesota State at No. 2 Ohio State (OSU Ice Rink; Columbus, Ohio) • Game 1 (Friday, Feb. 23): 6:07 p.m. ET • Game 2 (Saturday, Feb. 24): 3:07 p.m. ET • *Game 3 (Sunday, Feb. 25): 3:07 p.m. ET

No. 6 St. Cloud State at No. 3 Minnesota (Ridder Arena; Minneapolis, Minn.) • Game 1 (Friday, Feb. 23): 7:07 p.m. CT • Game 2 (Saturday, Feb. 24): 4:07 p.m. CT • *Game 3 (Sunday, Feb. 25): 4:07 p.m. CT

No. 5 Bemidji State at No. 4 Minnesota Duluth (AMSOIL Arena; Duluth, Minn.) • Game 1 (Friday, Feb. 23): 2:07 p.m. CT • Game 2 (Saturday, Feb. 24): 2:07 p.m. CT • *Game 3 (Sunday, Feb. 25): 2:07 p.m. CT

Nationally sixth-ranked Ohio State, which set program single-season records with 21 overall wins and 14 WCHA victories, is hosting a playoff series for the first time in 11 years as the tournament’s No. 2 seed. The Buckeyes will welcome Minnesota State, which posted a 4-1 home victory over OSU on Feb. 9 (OSU still won the season series, 3-1).

Minnesota, ranked No. 7 in the national polls with its 21st-consecutive 20-win season, hosts a St. Cloud State team that went 5-4-3 in the season’s second half and was 6-6-5 in its last 17 games (UMN won the season series, 3-0-1). – MORE –

Minnesota Duluth, which played in the 2017 Final Faceoff championship game, hosts Bemidji State. Four of the five regular season meetings between the Bulldogs and Beavers (including one nonconference game) were one-goal contests, with BSU winning three (the teams split their four-game League set).

2018 WCHA Final Faceoff The premier conference tournament in women’s college hockey, the 2018 WCHA Final Faceoff will be held March 3-4, 2018 at Ridder Arena in Minneapolis. Annually featuring a collection of the nation’s highest-ranked programs and best players, the WCHA’s four remaining teams will compete for the league’s playoff championship and an automatic berth to the 2018 NCAA tournament.

The league’s top event and the best weekend of the year for college hockey fans, the three-day 2018 WCHA Final Faceoff is a celebration of the sport’s past, present and future.

Saturday, March 3, 2018 (Semifinals streamed live on WCHA.com) • Semifinal Game #1 (No. 1 Wisconsin vs. No. 4 remaining seed) – 2:07 p.m. CT • Semifinal Game #2 (No. 2 remaining seed vs. No. 3 remaining seed) – 5:07 p.m. CT

Sunday, March 4, 2018 (Championship Game televised live on FOX Sports North) • Championship Game – 2:07 p.m. CT

3-Game, All-Tournament Packages • $35 – Reserved Chairback seating • $25 – General Admission (Adult) • $20 – General Admission (Seniors/Students/Youth) • $10 – General Admission (Groups of 10+)

Single-Session Packages (either for Saturday’s semifinals or Sunday’s Championship Game only) • $20 – Reserved Chairback seating • $15 – General Admission (Adult) • $10 – General Admission (Seniors/Students/Youth) • $10 – General Admission (Groups of 10+)

Ticket packages for the 2018 WCHA Final Faceoff are available for purchase directly through the Gopher Sales & Service Department; in-person at 3M Arena at Mariucci (during regular office hours of 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. CT, Monday-Friday) or during all Gopher Women’s Hockey games, via phone at 612-624-8080 (Option 2) or online here. Certain fees may apply.

About the Western Collegiate Hockey Association (WCHA) The Women’s League of the Western Collegiate Hockey Association has won a record 16 national championships in 18 seasons since its inception in 1999 (including 15 of a possible 17 NCAA titles), while producing seven Patty Kazmaier Award winners, 95 All-Americans and numerous Olympic and national team members. The seven-team Division 1 conference consists of: (Beavers), the (Golden Gophers), the University of Minnesota Duluth (Bulldogs), Minnesota State University (Mavericks), (Buckeyes), St. Cloud State University (Huskies) and the University of Wisconsin (Badgers). For more information, visit www.wcha.com.

MEDIA CONTACT MORE INFORMATION Matt Hodson Website: wcha.com Assoc. Commissioner, Marketing & Communications Twitter: @wcha_whockey E: [email protected] Instagram: @wcha_whockey O: 952.681.7668 Facebook: facebook.com/wchawomenshockey M: 612.801.2808 – WCHA –