# 2018 NCAA National Collegiate women's ice hockey tournament

The 2018 NCAA National Collegiate Women's Ice Hockey Tournament involves eight schools in single-elimination play to determine the national champion of women's NCAA Division I college ice hockey. The quarterfinals will be played at the campuses of the seeded teams on Saturday, March 10, 2018. The Frozen Four will be played on March 16 and 18, 2018 at Ridder Arena in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The University of Minnesota will host the tournament. This will be the fourth time that Ridder Arena will host the Frozen Four and the sixth time it has been played in Minneapolis. This will be the second year that the Big Ten Network will air the Championship Game live and the first year the semifinals will be aired live on BTN.

## Qualifying teams

In the fourth year under this qualification format, the winners of all four Division I conference tournaments received automatic berths to the NCAA tournament. The other four teams were selected at-large. The top four teams were then seeded and received home ice for the quarterfinals.
| Seed | School | Conference | Record | Berth type | Appearance | Last bid |
| 1 | Clarkson | ECAC | 33–4–1 | Tournament champion | 7th | 2017 |
| 2 | Wisconsin | WCHA | 30–4–2 | At-large bid | 12th | 2017 |
| 3 | Colgate | ECAC | 32–5–1 | At-large bid | 1st | Never |
| 4 | Boston College | Hockey East | 30–4–3 | At-large bid | 10th | 2017 |
| | Minnesota | WCHA | 24–10–3 | Tournament champion | 16th | 2017 |
| | Ohio State | WCHA | 23–10–4 | At-large bid | 1st | Never |
| | Northeastern | Hockey East | 19–16–3 | Tournament champion | 2nd | 2016 |
| | Mercyhurst | CHA | 18–14–4 | Tournament champion | 12th | 2016 |

## Bracket

Quarterfinals held at home sites of seeded teams
| National Quarterfinals March 10 | National Quarterfinals March 10 | National Quarterfinals March 10 | National Semifinals March 16 | National Semifinals March 16 | National Semifinals March 16 | National Championship March 18 | National Championship March 18 | National Championship March 18 |
| 1 | Clarkson | 2* | | | | | | |
| | Mercyhurst | 1 | | | | | | |
| | Mercyhurst | 1 | 1 | Clarkson | 1* | | | |
| | | | | Ohio State | 0 | | | |
| 4 | Boston College | 0 | | Ohio State | 0 | | | |
| | Ohio State | 2 | | | | | | |
| | Ohio State | 2 | | | | 1 | Clarkson | 2* |
| | | | | | | 3 | Colgate | 1 |
| 2 | Wisconsin | 4 | | | | | | | 3 | Colgate | 1 |
| | Minnesota | 0 | | | | | | |
| | Minnesota | 0 | 2 | Wisconsin | 3 | | | |
| | | | 3 | Colgate | 4** | | | |
| 3 | Colgate | 3 | 3 | Colgate | 4** | | | |
| | Northeastern | 1 | | | | | | |
Championship Game Officials: Referee Scott Roth, Shane Paskey Linesmen: Mike Mueller, Glendon Seal
Note: * denotes overtime period(s)

## Media
### Television

Big Ten Network televised the semifinals and championship during their multi-year contract to carry the event.

#### Broadcast assignments

Women's Frozen Four and Championship
* Dan Kelly, Sonny Watrous, and Allison Hayes (BTN)

## Tournament awards
### All-Tournament Team

* G: Shea Tiley*, Clarkson
* D: Savannah Harmon, Clarkson
* D: Olivia Zafuto, Colgate
* F: Loren Gabel, Clarkson
* F: Élizabeth Giguère, Clarkson
* F: Breanne Wilson-Bennett, Colgate
* Most Outstanding Player