MARSHFIELD, Mass. – The Colonial Hockey Conference (CHC) is excited to announce Nichols College as a league member beginning in the 2017-18 season. Nichols joins the CHC after spending the last eight seasons as members of the New England Hockey Conference (formerly the ECAC Women's East).
 
The Bison join Becker College, Daniel Webster College, Endicott College, Johnson & Wales University, Morrisville State College, Salem State University and SUNY Canton as league members for the 2017-18 season.
 
"The Colonial Hockey Conference is excited to welcome Nichols College as a member for the 2017-18 season, " said CHC Commissioner, Katie Boldvich. "The addition of the Bison solidifies the CHC's membership and adds another established program to the league. We look forward to building new rivalries and strengthening the conference."
 
Nichols College launched its women's ice hockey program in 2008-09 and was a member of the Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) Women's East from 2008-09 until 2014-15. The Bison then joined the New England Hockey Conference prior to the start of last season and will compete in the NEHC for one more season.
 
"This is an exciting day for Nichols College," said Nichols College Director of Athletics Chris Colvin. "We would like to thank the Colonial Hockey Conference for extending an invitation to us, as well as both the ECAC and NEHC for allowing us to launch and build our program from the ground up. Our women's hockey program is on the rise and we feel the CHC is a perfect home for us. We are one year removed from the best season in program history and feel we will be extremely competitive in the CHC."
 
Nichols head coach Wil Brown added, "I'm very excited about the future of our program and there is no better place for us to compete right now than the Colonial Hockey Conference. The travel schedule will benefit our student-athletes and help enhance their overall experience. We look forward to competing for the conference's automatic berth into the NCAA Tournament."
 
The CHC completed its first season as an NCAA Division III single sport conference this year with Stevenson University taking home the league's inaugural title. The league is slated to earn its first automatic-qualification into the NCAA Division III Women's Ice Hockey Championship after fulfilling the mandatory two-year waiting period in 2017-18.