Bracket

INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. – Saint John's hockey visits No. 4 Aurora in the first round of the NCAA Division III Tournament at 1 p.m. Saturday, March 14, at Fox Valley Ice Arena in Geneva, Ill.

The NCAA announced the 14-team field, which consists of 10 automatic berths and four at-large bids, tonight (March 8). 

The game was originally announced as a 7 p.m. puck drop but, due to a scheduling conflict with the USHL's Chicago Steel, Saturday's first-round game will be held in the afternoon. Stay tuned for further details.

Saturday's winner visits No. 7 Endicott (21-3-3 overall) in the NCAA's quarterfinal round on Saturday, March 21, at Bourque Arena in Beverly, Mass. The Gulls and top-ranked Hobart (28-0 overall) received the two first-round byes based on the NCAA's National Power Index (NPI).

The Frozen Four is scheduled for March 27-29 at the Adirondack Bank Center at the Utica Memorial Auditorium in Utica, N.Y.

SJU (17-6-4 overall) won its first MIAC playoff championship (sixth overall) and first trip to the NCAA Tournament (seventh overall) since 2013 with a 4-3 win in overtime over Gustavus Adolphus on March 7 in St. Cloud. The Johnnies were down 3-0 but scored the game's final four goals, including two in the third period.

The Spartans (23-5-1 overall), ranked fourth in the latest USCHO.com Division III poll, fell short in the Northern Collegiate Hockey Association (NCHA) Harris Cup Championship with a 3-1 loss to No. 4 St. Norbert (Wis.) on Saturday. The Spartans were fourth in the NCHA standings, with regular-season losses to the Milwaukee School of Engineering (Wis.), St. Norbert, Lawrence (Wis.) and Trine (Ind.). SJU swept Trine in January – 3-2 and 4-2 – at the Municipal Athletic Complex in St. Cloud.

Aurora reached the NCAA quarterfinals last season with a 3-2 win over Wisconsin-Eau Claire before falling to SUNY Geneseo, 7-4. Saturday will be the Spartans' 12th appearance in the national tournament.