West Coast Hockey Conference
 | |
| League | ACHA |
|---|---|
| Founded | 2010 |
| Sports fielded |
|
| Divisions | 2 & 3 |
| No. of teams | 21 |
| Region | West |
| Most recent champion(s) | Northern Arizona (4th title) |
| Most titles | CSUN / NAU (4) |
| Official website | Official website |
The West Coast Hockey Conference (WCHC) is an ACHA Division 2 and 3 club hockey league which began play in the Fall of 2010. The six charter schools were Arizona State, Cal State Fullerton, Long Beach State, Loyola Marymount, Northern Arizona and San Diego State.
History
[edit]The first game in conference history was played on October 1, 2010. San Diego State hosted Long Beach State and won 4-3. At the end of the regular season Arizona State was crowned the conference's first champion.[1] For the conference's second season and beyond a playoff will be held to determine the conference champion.
UNLV became the seventh member of the conference on April 16, 2011.[2]
After the 2011-12 season Arizona State, San Diego State and UNLV became independent once again leaving the conference with four teams for the next two seasons.
Cal State Northridge became the fifth member of the conference on February 25, 2014.[3]
Northern Arizona left to become independent once again after the 2014-15 season and Arizona State's Pac-8 team transferred over to keep the conference membership at five.[4]
Arizona State left to become independent after one season and San Diego State rejoined the conference for 2016-17.[5]
Chapman became the sixth conference member for the 2017-18 season.[6]
The WCHC announced on May 14, 2018 UC San Diego, UC Santa Barbara and the University of San Diego were approved as members and San Diego State left to join the Pac-8 conference bringing the conference total to eight.[7]
The conference reached a new high in members with the addition of Cal State Bakersfield and UC Irvine for the 2019-20 season.[8] In an effort to even out the skill level two tiers were created. Cal State Fullerton, Cal State Northridge, Long Beach State, Loyola Marymount and UC Santa Barbara were placed in the top tier with the remaining five teams placed in the second tier. All top tier teams automatically qualified for the playoffs and the top two teams in the second tier qualified as well.
Cal Lutheran became a new member for the 2020-21 season while UC San Diego left the conference. CLU replaced UCSD in Tier II keeping total membership at ten.
After the 2021-22 season the WCHC expanded even further with Arizona State and Northern Arizona rejoining the conference and Grand Canyon, Santa Clara, Santa Rosa Junior College, UC Davis, UCLA and UC Santa Cruz becoming new members. San Diego also left which brought membership to a record 17 schools. With so many new schools the WCHC was divided into three tiers. Tier I consisted of six teams Arizona State, Grand Canyon, Long Beach State, Loyola Marymount, Northern Arizona and UCLA. Tier II South consisted of seven teams Cal Lutheran, Cal State Bakersfield, Cal State Fullerton, Cal State Northridge, Chapman, UC Irvine and UC Santa Barbara. Tier II North consisted of four teams Santa Clara, Santa Rosa Junior College, UC Davis and UC Santa Cruz.
Fresno State joined for the 2023-24 season in Tier II North while Santa Rosa Junior College is not fielding a team.
Three teams joined for the 2024-25 season while Fresno State left the conference. The University of San Diego brought their team back while the University of New Mexico and Park University-Gilbert became two new teams to join the conference. The WCHC also allowed Arizona State, Grand Canyon, Loyola Marymount and Northern Arizona to bring their Division 3 teams into the conference. The new Division 2 Tier will consist of nine teams Arizona State, Cal State Fullerton, Cal State Northridge, Grand Canyon, Loyola Marymount, New Mexico, Northern Arizona, UCLA and UC Santa Barbara. The top eight teams will qualify for the playoffs. The Division 3 Tier will consist of 12 teams split into three regions. Santa Clara, UC Davis and UC Santa Cruz will play in the North. Cal Lutheran, Long Beach State, Loyola Marymount, San Diego and UC Irvine will play in the South. Arizona State, Grand Canyon, Northern Arizona and Park-Gilbert will play in the Desert. Again the top eight teams will qualify for the playoffs.
Members
[edit]Former members
[edit]| School | Current Division (Conference) |
|---|---|
| Cal State Bakersfield | No longer have a program |
| Chapman | ACHA D-2 (Independent) |
| Fresno State | ACHA D-2 (Independent) |
| San Diego State | ACHA D-1 (Independent) |
| Santa Rosa Junior College | ACHA D-2 (Independent) |
| UC San Diego | ACHA D-2 (Independent) |
| UNLV | ACHA D-1 (WCHL) |
Team histories
[edit]- Cal Lutheran started their program in the mid-1980s and played in the Pacific Collegiate Hockey Association until disbanding in the mid-1990s. CLU re-established their program in 2013.
- Cal State Fullerton also previously played in the PCHA until disbanding in 2005. The Titans re-established their program for the 2008-09 season, played that year in Division 3 and then moved up to Division 2 for the 2009-10 season.
- Cal State Northridge founded the PCHA in 1972 along with UCLA and Cal Tech. The Matadors moved up to Division 2 for the 2012-13 season after making the Division 3 National Tournament in 2010 and 2012.
- Long Beach State also previously played in the PCHA. In the late 1990s The Beach moved up to Division 2.
- Loyola Marymount originally had a team from 1930 to 1942.[9] The Lions re-established their program in 2006.
- UC Irvine also previously played in the PCHA until disbanding in 2010. The Anteaters re-established their program for the 2019-20 season.
- UC Santa Barbara started their program in 2010. The Gauchos also previously played in the PCHA.
Tournament champions
[edit]| Year | Champion | Runner-Up | Host |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | Northern Arizona | UCLA | UCLA |
| 2023 | Grand Canyon | UCLA | UCLA |
| 2022 | Loyola Marymount (Regular season) | - | - |
| 2021 | Not played due to the COVID-19 Pandemic | CSU Bakersfield | |
| 2020 | Cal State Northridge | Loyola Marymount | Chapman |
| 2019 | Cal State Northridge[10] | Long Beach State | Cal State Fullerton |
| 2018 | Cal State Northridge | Long Beach State | Loyola Marymount |
| 2017 | Cal State Northridge | San Diego State | Cal State Northridge |
| 2016 | Arizona State-Maroon | Cal State Northridge | Loyola Marymount |
| 2015 | Northern Arizona | Cal State Fullerton | Northern Arizona |
| 2014 | Northern Arizona | Long Beach State | Long Beach State |
| 2013 | Northern Arizona | Loyola Marymount | Cal State Fullerton |
| 2012 | UNLV | Northern Arizona | UNLV |
| 2011 | Arizona State (Regular Season) | - | - |
Note: 2022 tournament cancelled
ACHA Division 2 Nationals teams
[edit]The WCHC has sent five teams to the Division 2 National Tournament.
2016 Host City: West Chester, PA
- Arizona State-Maroon
Liberty (L 4-1)
William Paterson (L 5-1)
Lindenwood (L 9-1)
2015 Host City: Salt Lake City, UT
NYU (L 3-1)
Liberty (W 5-2)
Grand Valley State (L 7-2)
2014 Host City: Marlborough, MA
- Northern Arizona (Finished 9th)
New Hampshire (L 3-1)
Liberty (L 6-2)
Grand Valley State (W 6-2)
2012 Host City: Fort Myers, FL
- Arizona State (Finished 5th)
New Hampshire (W 7-1)
Maryland-Baltimore County (W 5-4 OT)
Michigan State (T 2-2)
- Northern Arizona (Finished 16th)
Grand Valley State (L 8-2)
Penn State (L 9-0)
Siena College (L 3-1)
References
[edit]- ^ "LMU Ice Hockey - Home Page". Archived from the original on 2006-05-17.
- ^ "WCHC - Home Page". Archived from the original on 2011-02-08.
- ^ "ACHA Nationals and CSUN Added | West Coast Hockey Conference".
- ^ "ASU Maroon Joins the WCHC | West Coast Hockey Conference".
- ^ "SDSU Joins WCHC for 16-17 Season | West Coast Hockey Conference".
- ^ "Chapman University Joins WCHC | West Coast Hockey Conference".
- ^ "WCHC welcomes three new schools | West Coast Hockey Conference".
- ^ "UC Irvine, CSU Bakersfield Added to League | West Coast Hockey Conference".
- ^ "LMU Ice Hockey - History". Archived from the original on 2006-05-17.
- ^ D2, ACHA Men's (2019-02-10). "West Coast Hockey Conference CHAMPIONS • California State University, Northridge Matadors • #ACHA #WCHCpic.twitter.com/y4SaddWJbt". @achamensd2. Retrieved 2019-02-13.
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