The WCHA has announced that Tracy Dill has received a two-year contract to continue as the conference’s commissioner.
Dill joined the WCHA office in July 2022 and has served as the conference’s interim commissioner over the past two seasons. His new contract will begin immediately and eliminate the interim status from his title.
“We are pleased to remove the ‘interim’ tag and have Tracy continue to serve in the role as WCHA commissioner,” said Minnesota State director of athletics Kevin Buisman, who also serves as the chair of the WCHA board of directors, in a statement. “Tracy is a seasoned administrator with a broad network of established relationships throughout college athletics and particularly within the sport of hockey, where he is an advocate for supporting and growing the women’s game.
“Tracy has had a profound impact during his time as interim commissioner, especially in the areas of increased corporate partnership and in enhancing the overall student-athlete experience. There are many challenges ahead in a rapidly changing environment for intercollegiate athletics, but I am confident Tracy’s skill set and leadership will allow the WCHA to maintain its standard of excellence in moving forward.”
The WCHA, which is celebrating its 25th season of women’s hockey competition in 2023-24, has established itself as the nation’s premier conference in the NCAA. The WCHA has won 21 national championships and 20 NCAA titles since the league was formed in 1999-00.
Under the leadership of Dill over the past two seasons, WCHA teams have won two NCAA championships and league players have earned All-America honors 10 times along with Ohio State’s Sophie Jaques receiving the Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award in 2023 and Wisconsin’s Casey O’Brien and Kirsten Simms being selected as Kazmaier Award top-three finalists in 2024.
Dill has helped grow the WCHA’s corporate partnership base during his tenure, which includes sponsorship of the league’s annual Final Faceoff tournament with Kwik Trip along with partnerships with Cub Foods, Two Men and A Truck, Krampade, Howies Hockey Tape, Sterling Trophy & Awards, Print Labs and JLG Ice.
The visibility of the league continues to match the excellence of its teams as 15 WCHA games were televised live on FOX9+ in the Twin Cities, which also included coverage in Duluth, Madison, Wisc. and Columbus, Ohio. In 2024, the St. Cloud State vs. Ohio State game was included as part of Bally Sports Hockey Day Minnesota coverage and two games were featured on the Big Ten Network.
The WCHA’s online presence has also grown as B1G+ has offered live streaming off all home WCHA games over the past two seasons along with consistent growth of followers on the league social media platforms and usage of the league’s website – WCHA.com.
“I would like to thank the WCHA membership for allowing me to continue in my role as commissioner of the WCHA. In addition, a big thanks to the current WCHA staff for all their work,” Dill said. “Our 25th anniversary celebration provided an outstanding opportunity to highlight the teams, the student-athletes, coaches, staff, alumni, and the great fans that make the WCHA the best league in women’s college hockey. I’ve enjoyed the challenge of helping to build on the legacy of the WCHA over the past two seasons and I look forward to the continued success of the league.”
Dill has been involved in college athletics as a player, coach, and administrator for more than 40 years. Prior to his time with the WCHA, Dill spent nine years at Bemidji State as the director of intercollegiate athletics. Prior to his tenure at Bemidji State, Dill was at St. Cloud State, another WCHA member school, for more than 28 years in various capacities, including coaching and administration.
