The 2018 Frozen Fair Women’s DVCHC Championship was one to remember, as both regular-season champions took home the titles with Montclair State winning in Division 2 and Virginia claiming the crown in Division 3. With the win, Montclair State earns an automatic bid to ACHA Division 2 Nationals.

The Red Hawks topped Penn, 7-6, in dramatic fashion in the D2 championship game. The teams played to a 2-2 tie through the first period before Brittany Meneghin’s second goal of the game gave Montclair State a 3-2 lead in the second. The Quakers then scored the next two to head into the third period up, 4-3. Penn pushed its lead to 5-3 early in the third on an Olivia Podos tally, but Montclair State then scored four straight to pull ahead, 7-5, capped by Kristen Iattarelli’s goal with just under six minutes to play. Penn scored a power play goal with 38 seconds left but couldn’t find the equalizer. Meneghin finished with three goals and an assist for the Red Hawks, while Paula Bush added a goal and three helpers. Kayleigh Rahbany had five points (2G, 3A) and Madison Hendry had four (2G, 2A) for the Quakers.

Virginia took a 7-2 victory over IUP to claim the D3 trophy. After Virginia had taken a 3-0 lead in the first period, Heidi Plant scored twice for the Crimson Hawks to make it a one-goal game, but it was all Virginia the rest of the way. Kelly Townsend led the charge with a hat trick, while Abigail Heher and Mazzi Hilliard each finished with a goal and three assists.

After falling behind 2-0, Rowan used a seven-goal third period to come from behind and beat Loyola Maryland, 7-4, for third place in D2. Maggie Ford picked up five points (3G, 2A) for Rowan, while Jessica Chicko (2G, 1A) led the way for Loyola. Saint Joseph’s topped Slippery Rock, 8-2, for third in D3 behind five goals from Erin Dougherty.

The D2 fifth-place game was also a dramatic one, with Villanova snagging a 3-2 victory over Columbia in overtime. The Lions took a 2-1 lead early in the third period before Sarah Jane Graham’s second of the day evened the score at two. Taylor Hallisey then netted the game-winner for Villanova just 25 seconds into overtime.

IUP topped Saint Joseph’s, 6-4, in the D3 semifinals, getting a goal and four assists from Plant and two goals from Rache Kirsch and Gabby Belz. UVA took the other semifinals, 7-2, over Slippery Rock, with multi-point games from Hilliard, Townsend, Heher and Kaethe Walther. UVA and Slippery Rock shared a special moment before the game, with both teams singing the national anthem together.

In the D2 semis, Montclair State pushed past Loyola, 10-5, with six goals from Bush. The Greyhounds got two goals and two assists from both Lindsay Gioioso and Emily Coughlin. Loyola had beaten Columbia, 4-2, in the quarterfinals.

Penn used a pair of 6-0 victories to reach the championship game, topping local rival Villanova in the quarterfinals before blanking Rowan in the semis. Rahbany scored the first four for the Quakers against the Wildcats and added two more and two assists in the win over Rowan.

The DVCHC extends its sincerest thanks to Centre Ice at the Delaware Fairgrounds, our officials and all of the fans that made such an exciting playoff weekend possible! Head over to our Facebook page for photos and videos from the weekend!

Stayed tuned to our site and social media channels for coverage from ACHA Nationals and for information for our All-Star and New Star games on April 14 in Hershey, Pennsylvania.