College Hockey America (CHA) is a women's college ice hockey conference in the United States. It participates in the NCAA's Division I as a hockey-only conference. The conference is made up of six teams, with three in Pennsylvania; two in New York, and one in Missouri.
The Lindenwood Lions and Lady Lions are the intercollegiate athletic teams of Lindenwood University, located in St. Charles, Missouri. The school is primarily a member of the NCAA Division II Great Lakes Valley Conference, although women's ice hockey and gymnastics and men's volleyball compete in NCAA Division I. The Lions joined the NCAA and the Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association (MIAA) in the summer of 2013, after completing the transition process from the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) and the Heart of America Athletic Conference (HAAC). On October 4, 2018, Lindenwood announced it would be leaving the MIAA for the Great Lakes Valley Conference effective July 1, 2019.
Penn State Nittany Lions women's ice hockey is a college ice hockey program that has represented Penn State University in National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I and College Hockey America (CHA) since the 2012–13 season. The program was preceded by a club team that competed at the American Collegiate Hockey Association (ACHA) Division 1 level, primarily as a member of Eastern Collegiate Women's Hockey League (ECWHL). Penn State plays its home games at Pegula Ice Arena in University Park, Pennsylvania.
Kelley Steadman is an American retired ice hockey player, currently serving as assistant coach in the Mercyhurst Lakers women's ice hockey program. She won two IIHF World Women's Championship gold medals as a member of the United States’ women's national team, in 2011 and 2013. Her post-collegiate and professional career was played with the Boston Blades of the Canadian Women's Hockey League (CWHL), Tornado Dmitrov of Russia's Women's Hockey League (ZhHL), and with the Buffalo Beauts during the inaugural and second season of the National Women's Hockey League (NWHL).
The Lindenwood Lady Lions represent Lindenwood University. The 2011–12 Lindenwood Lady Lions ice hockey season was the team's 9th season and their 1st season as a member of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). The team was coached by Vince O’Mara and they played their home games at Lindenwood Ice Arena. For the 2011–12 season, Lindenwood competed as an NCAA Division I independent program.
The 2011–12 NCAA Division I women's ice hockey season began in October, 2011, and ended with the 2012 NCAA Division I Women's Ice Hockey Tournament's championship game in March, 2012.
The 2011–12 College Hockey America women's ice hockey season marked the continuation of the annual tradition of competitive ice hockey among College Hockey America members.
Bailey Bram Mitchell is a Canadian retired ice hockey player. As a member of Team Canada, she won a silver medal at the 2018 Winter Olympics and five IIHF Women's World Championship medals, one gold and four silver, from 2012 to 2017.
The Lindenwood Lady Lions women's ice hockey team represents Lindenwood University located in St. Charles, Missouri. The Lady Lions currently participate in the NCAA Division I competition as a member of College Hockey America (CHA). The team played with no conference affiliation as an Independent program for its first season of NCAA competition. During the 2011–12 season, Lindenwood was accepted into College Hockey America (CHA) beginning in the 2012–2013 season. Prior to 2011 the university was a member of the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA), because the organization does not sponsor women's ice hockey, the program competed in the American Collegiate Hockey Association at the ACHA DI level.
Nicole Hensley is an American women’s ice hockey player. She is currently a member of the Professional Women's Hockey Players' Association.
The Syracuse Orange women represented Syracuse University in CHA women's ice hockey during the 2014-15 NCAA Division I women's ice hockey season. The Orange finished conference play in second place, and advanced to the CHA Tournament Final, before losing to RIT 2-1 in double overtime.
The Robert Morris Colonials women represented Robert Morris University in CHA women's ice hockey during the 2014-15 NCAA Division I women's ice hockey season. The Colonials finished conference play in fourth place, and were eliminated in the first round of the CHA Tournament by RIT. The RMU women were among the best in the nation in blocked shots
The Syracuse Orange women represented Syracuse University in CHA women's ice hockey during the 2015-16 NCAA Division I women's ice hockey season. The Orange finished conference play in second place, and advanced to the CHA Tournament Final, before losing to the Mercyhurst 4-3 in overtime. It was the second consecutive year that the Orange took the championship into overtime. Senior Melissa Piacentini was named CHA Player of the Year, while Nicole Renault was the CHA Defenseman of the Year.
The Lindenwood Lady Lions women represented Lindenwood University in CHA women's ice hockey during the 2015-16 NCAA Division I women's ice hockey season. The Lady Lions finished conference play in fifth place, and were eliminated in the first round of the CHA Tournament Final by Robert Morris.
Rebecca Vint is a Canadian-born women's ice hockey player. Having played with the Robert Morris Colonials women's ice hockey program, Vint graduated as the program's all-time leading scorer, with 73 goals and 134 points. She most recently played with the NWHL’s Buffalo Beauts in the 2017–18 season. Vint previously played with the CWHL's Brampton Thunder and participated in the 3rd CWHL All-Star Game.
The Lindenwood Lady Lions women represented Lindenwood University in CHA women's ice hockey during the 2016-17 NCAA Division I women's ice hockey season.
The Lindenwood–Belleville Lynx women's ice hockey team represented Lindenwood University – Belleville in Women's Division 1 of the American Collegiate Hockey Association (ACHA) and in Women's Midwest College Hockey (WMCH), following a successful stint in the Western Women's Collegiate Hockey League (WWCHL). The team was founded for the 2014–15 season, as part of a rapid expansion of LU–B's athletic department, and quickly became one of the ACHA's top programs. The Lynx claimed three regular season conference championships and one playoff title, and qualified for five ACHA National Tournaments, highlighted by a second-place finish in 2019.
The Lindenwood Lady Lions women represent Lindenwood University in CHA women's ice hockey during the 2017-18 NCAA Division I women's ice hockey season.
The Lindenwood Lady Lions women represented Lindenwood University in CHA women's ice hockey during the 2018-19 NCAA Division I women's ice hockey season. The team struggled with their record, with nine newcomers, and a team made up of very young players.
The Lindenwood Lady Lions women represented Lindenwood University in CHA women's ice hockey during the 2019-20 NCAA Division I women's ice hockey season. The Lady Lions welcomed a new head coach, Shelley Looney, and new members of the coaching staff, notably alumnus goaltender Nicole Hensley. Both Looney and Hensley are Olympic gold medalists. The team also moved to a new facility, the Centene Community Ice Center, in St. Louis suburb Maryland Heights. Inexperience and injuries led to a disappointing start to Looney's tenure.
