Cougars women's hockey join ACHA

The ACC Cougars women's hockey team will compete in the American Collegiate Hockey Association Women's Division 2 starting September 2016

The Assiniboine Community College Cougars women’s hockey team are making history, having recently been accepted into the American Collegiate Hockey Association (ACHA).

The team will compete in the women’s Division 2 starting this fall.

More than 430 college and university affiliated hockey programs are members of and compete in the ACHA (Men’s Division 1, 2, 3; Women’s Division 1, 2). The Cougars will compete against 32 other teams, primarily those in the north-west region including North Dakota State University, Minot State University, Rainy River Community College, and Lakehead University.

“This is a really exciting opportunity for the players and the future of Cougars women’s hockey,” said Beth Clark, Athletics Manager. “Playing against other universities and colleges instills a greater sense of pride in the school. And everyone loves a Canada versus USA rivalry on the ice!”

The team was granted a provisional membership and won’t be eligible for playoffs in its first year but is considered a full-time member.

ACC is the second Canadian school to join the league after Lakehead University (Thunder Bay, Ontario) joined in October 2015.

Aside from Canadian Interuniversity Sport (CIS) hockey, the ACHA is the only other national title affiliated with post-secondary education that a women’s hockey team can compete for in Canada. Outside of CIS schools, ACC is the only post-secondary institution between Thunder Bay, Ontario and Alberta that offers women’s hockey.

“It’s been our goal to play in this league since we started the program,” said head coach Terry Arksey. “We have played some of these teams in the past and are excited and confident going into this season.”

“Being accepted into the ACHA is huge, not only for the team but for the whole school. It’s an exciting time to be an ACC Cougar!” says returning agribusiness student and forward Amanda Boland. “This will help us grow into a stronger, more competitive team that will show everyone what ACC is made of.”

The Cougars women’s hockey program has achieved success in the last three years at the senior women’s level, winning western Canadian and provincial titles. The team has competed in exhibition games as a club team since the program began in 2007. This is the first full-time membership for the team in any league.

To compete in the ACHA, student athletes must be enrolled in courses full-time and maintain a minimum grade point average.

The schedule is in development and will be released at a later date.

All teams competing in Division 2 women’s hockey in the ACHA can be found online here