2016-17 NESCAC Women's Season

This is the 2016-17 New England Small College Athletic Conference Women's hockey season.

Membership Changes
none, but Amherst College had announced that it was abandoning its nickname the "Lord Jeffs". The nickname had become a source of division within the campus community as Lord Jefferson Amherst was a British general who openly supported giving the Native American poplulation blankets infested with smallpox during the French and Indian War. The school's teams are presently playing without a nickname.

Format
The tournament is single elimination format. The top 8 teams qualify for the tournament. The quarterfinal round matches up 1 vs 8, 2 vs 7, 3 vs 6, 4 vs 5. The teams are re-seeded for the semifinals with the top seed playing the bottom seed and the other two teams pairing off. The semifinal winners meet for the conference championship and the conference's automatic bid to the 2017 NCAA Division III Women's Ice Hockey Tournament.

Quarterfinals

 * Middlebury Panthers defeated Wesleyan Cardinals 4-1
 * Connecticut College Camels defeated Williams Ephs 5-2
 * Bowdoin Polar Bears defeated Hamilton Continentals 1-0 (ot)
 * Amherst College defeated Trinity Bantams 2-0

Semifinals

 * Middlebury Panthers vs Bowdoin Polar Bears 4-1
 * Amherst College defeated Connecticut College Camels 2-0

Final

 * Middlebury Panthers defeated Amherst College 4-1