In just under six weeks, Lindenwood University and the St. Louis Sports Commission will host the 2017 National Collegiate Athletic Association Women’s Hockey Frozen Four.

This will mark the first time Lindenwood has ever hosted an NCAA championship, as well as the first time one has ever come to St. Charles, according to Lindenwood.edu. The games will take place on March 17-19 at the Family Arena.

“It means a lot to Lindenwood to be hosting this, just because the best women’s college hockey teams in all of the country will be coming here,” said Michael Morgan, director of Event Management. “People will see what kind of event we put on, and it’s going to be top-of-the-line. I think Lindenwood will gain a lot of respect in how we run this championship.”

Morgan said that he thinks this event will be good not just for the university and the city, but the whole area.

“I think the St. Louis area is really trying to grow the game of hockey, and this is going to be huge, especially for women’s hockey,” said Morgan. “It’s putting a good light on women’s hockey. I think that it’s a sport that’s emerging, one that’s not in front of people’s minds a lot in this area.”

[perfectpullquote align=”right” cite=”Mike Morgan” link=”” color=”#f8de91″ class=”” size=”24″]“Not many schools in the Midwest have anything like it, especially in Division II.”[/perfectpullquote]

Morgan said that he hopes to see the area come out for the event, watch the Frozen Four and decide that they want to watch hockey at that level again. The night before the first games, Lindenwood will be hosting a banquet on campus for the visiting teams.

“The banquet will showcase the campus, especially the spectacular Scheidegger Center,” Morgan said. “Not many schools in the Midwest have anything like it, especially in Division II.”

Morgan expects the visiting teams to be surprised with the high quality of Lindenwood’s facilities and campus.

The dinner banquet is to include a show and interviews with coaches as well as having speakers. He said he hopes to see the community come out and get involved as well, bringing some young hockey players in the area to come see the college players.

Lindenwood has been preparing for the event since the university was selected to host the tournament in December 2013. For more information or to purchase tickets, click here.