College Hockey East

College Hockey East
Established 1971 as WPIHA 2002 as CHE;
previously was WPCHA and WPIHA
Members 10
Sport ACHA Division 2/3 hockey
Region Northeast
States 2 - Pennsylvania, New York
Headquarters Pittsburgh, PA
Commissioner Jamison Roth

College Hockey East (CHE) is a mixed ACHA Division 2 and Division 3 league for universities in the Western Pennsylvania region.

History

The league began in 1971 under the name Western Pennsylvania Intercollegiate Hockey Association (WPIHA). The WPIHA renamed the Western Pennsylvania Collegiate Hockey Association (WPCHA) a couple of years later, and this name lasted until the end of the 2002 season when the league was renamed to College Hockey East, reflecting the growth of the league outside of Pennsylvania. Historically, membership in CHE has been fluid, with many teams coming and going over the years. Some programs have become more prominent, whereas others have folded completely or scaled back dramatically. However, under the current leadership, CHE has established itself as a premier ACHA D-3 conference, and members are more committed to staying. Pittsburgh-Johnstown has the longest continuous tenure in CHE, followed by IUP's second team and St. Vincent; the three of them joined CHE in the mid-to-late 1990s. The other teams have joined since 2000 or have had some interruption in their membership. The CHE has produced two ACHA Division 3 National Championship teams. In 2002 Robert Morris beat Wyoming 3-2 to become the first. In 2008 California (PA) beat San Diego State 7-3 to become the second.

Teams

North Division

School Location Founded Affiliation Nickname Colors
California University of Pennsylvania California, PA 1852 Public (Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education) Vulcans          
Fredonia State University Fredonia, NY 1826 Public (State University of New York) Blue Devils          
Penn State Behrend Erie, PA 1948 Public (Pennsylvania State University) Nittany Lions          
Robert Morris University Moon Township, PA 1921 Private/Non-Sectarian Colonials          

South Division

School Location Founded Affiliation Nickname Colors
Penn State Altoona Altoona, PA 1939 Public (Pennsylvania State University) Nittany Lions          
University of Pittsburgh-Johnstown Johnstown, PA 1927 Public (University of Pittsburgh) Ice Cats          
Saint Vincent College Latrobe, PA 1846 Private/Roman Catholic Bearcats          

East Division

School Location Founded Affiliation Nickname Colors
Saint Francis University Loretto, PA 1847 Private/Roman Catholic (Franciscan) N/A          
Allegheny College Meadville, PA 1815 Private/non-sectarian Gators          
Carnegie Mellon University Pittsburgh, PA 1900 Private/non-sectarian Tartans          
Case Western Reserve University Cleveland, OH 1967 Private Spartans          
Edinboro University of Pennsylvania Edinboro, PA 1857 Public Fighting Scots          
Wheeling Jesuit University Wheeling, WV 1954 Private/Roman Catholic(Jesuit) Cardinals          
West Virginia University (2) Morgantown, WV 1867 Public Mountaineers          
College of Wooster Wooster, OH 1866 Private Fighting Scots          

Former teams

Currently in the Tri-State Collegiate Hockey League (ACHA D-2)
Currently in College Hockey Mid-America (ACHA D-1)
Elsewhere in the ACHA

Conference Champions

See also

References

    External links

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