2017 U SPORTS #CHAMPSZN SEEDING SUNDAY:                                                                                 
UBC named No.1 seed for women's hockey championship

TORONTO (U SPORTS) – The UBC Thunderbirds have been named tournament favourites for the upcoming 2017 U SPORTS Championship, part of #CHAMPSZN. The seedings were announced Sunday.

CHAMPIONSHIP WEBSITE:  http://en.usports.ca/championships/wice/index  

The seedings were announced Sunday for four U SPORTS Championships this week in men's hockey, women's hockey, men's volleyball and women's volleyball.

The Queen's Gaels will host the 2017 U SPORTS Women's Hockey Championship, organizing the national competition for the first time in program history.

The hockey tournament gets under way Thursday at the Strathcona Paper Centre in Napanee, Ont. The championship game is scheduled for 7 p.m. ET on Sunday.

All games will be webcast on USPORTS.LIVE.

NOTES: Complete championship preview will follow on Tuesday. The 2017 U SPORTS All-Canadian Awards gala is set for Wednesday evening.

2017 U SPORTS Women's Hockey Championship
(Strathcona Paper Centre, Napanee, Ont.) 

Competing for their first Golden Path Trophy in program history, the No.1 UBC Thunderbirds (Canada West champions) are joined in Napanee, Ont., by the No.2 Guelph Gryphons (OUA champions), No.3 Saint Mary's Huskies (AUS champions), No.4 McGill Martlets (RSEQ champions), No.5 StFX X-Women (AUS finalists), No.6 Alberta Pandas (Canada West finalists), No.7 Concordia Stingers (RSEQ finalists) and No.8 Queen's Gaels (Hosts).

Quarterfinals on Thursday include McGill vs. StFX in the 3 p.m. ET opener, followed by UBC vs. host Queen's at 7 p.m. ET. The action continues Friday, with Saint Mary's vs. Alberta at 11 a.m. ET and Guelph vs. Concordia at 3 p.m. ET.

The Thunderbirds (23-4-1 regular season) were seeded No.1 for the first time after capturing their second straight Canada West championship, and third in the last five seasons. After losing Game 1 of the best-of-three final to Alberta 2-0, UBC rallied to take the final two games of the series, capped off by a 1-0 shutout on home ice.

SEEDING:

Team (playoff finish: regular season record / playoff record)

1. UBC Thunderbirds (Canada West champions: 23-4-1 / 4-2)
2. Guelph Gryphons (OUA champions: 20-3-1 / 5-1)
3. Saint Mary's Huskies (AUS champions: 18-3-3 / 4-2)
4. McGill Martlets (RSEQ champions: 16-4-0 / 4-1)
5. StFX X-Women (AUS finalists: 16-8-0 / 5-3)
6. Alberta Pandas (Canada West finalists: 21-4-3 / 3-2)
7. Concordia Stingers (RSEQ finalists: 10-9-1 / 2-2)8. Queen's Gaels (Hosts: 14-8-2 / 1-2)     

SCHEDULE & RESULTS (All times ET)

Wednesday, March 15

6:30 p.m. 2017 U SPORTS Women's Hockey All-Canadian Awards

Thursday, March 16

3:00 p.m. Quarter-final 1: No.4 McGill vs. No.5 StFX (USPORTS.LIVE)
7:00 p.m. Quarter-final 2: No.1 UBC vs No.8 Queen's (USPORTS.LIVE) 

Friday, March 17

11:00 a.m. Quarter-final 3: No.3 Saint Mary's vs No.6 Alberta (USPORTS.LIVE)
3:00 p.m. Quarter-final 4: No. 2 Guelph vs. No. 7 Concordia (USPORTS.LIVE)
7:00 p.m. Consolation 1: Loser QF 1 vs. Loser QF 2 (USPORTS.LIVE) 

Saturday, March 18

11:00 a.m. Consolation 2: Loser QF 3 vs. Loser QF 4 (USPORTS.LIVE)
3:00 p.m. Semifinal 1: Winner QF 1 vs. Winner QF 2 (USPORTS.LIVE)
7:00 p.m. Semifinal 2: Winner QF 3 vs. Winner QF 4 (USPORTS.LIVE) 

Sunday, March 19

11:00 a.m. 5th-place game (USPORTS.LIVE)
3:00 a.m. Bronze (USPORTS.LIVE)
7:00 p.m. Final (USPORTS.LIVE)