The 2010–11 NCAA Division I women's ice hockey season began in October, ending with the 2011 NCAA Division I Women's Ice Hockey Tournament's championship game in March, 2011. The Frozen Four was hosted by Mercyhurst College at Louis J. Tullio Arena in Erie, Pennsylvania. Offseason May 26: 2010 Winter Olympian Karen Thatcher has been named an assistant coach at Colgate. June 2, 2010: The University of Connecticut men's and women's ice hockey teams will play outdoor games at Rentschler Field on Sunday, Feb. 13. This event will be part of the "Whalers Hockey Fest". The UConn men's team will take on Sacred Heart. The women's team will face the Providence Friars women's ice hockey program in a Hockey East game. June 2, 2010: 2010 Canadian Olympic gold medallists Catherine Ward and Marie-Philip Poulin have tentatively agreed to join the Boston University Terriers. June 7: Yale Bulldogs head coach Hilary Witt will leave the program at the end of June. Witt coached the Bulldogs for eight seasons and is the program's most victorious coach, accumulating 96 wins during her tenure. June 7: Mandi Schwartz was recently diagnosed for a second time with acute myeloid leukemia. Schwartz will require a cord-blood or blood-marrow donor. June 7: Olympic silver medallist Julie Chu has been named as an assistant coach. Previously, Chu was assistant coach for the University of Minnesota Duluth women's hockey team that won the 2008 NCAA National Championship. August 27: Mercyhurst Lakers player Meghan Agosta was announced as a finalist for the Women's Sports Foundation's 2010 Sportswoman of the Year Team Award. It is awarded to the top female athlete (NCAA, Olympic, professional) who has demonstrated exceptional play in helping her team win a championship. September 13: The Minnesota-Duluth Bulldogs visit the White House and are honored in a Rose Garden ceremony with President Barack Obama as the 2010 NCAA National Champions. September 17: Terrence M. and Kim Pegula from Boca Raton, Florida have donated $88 million to Penn State University for a multi-purpose arena. The arena will mean that Penn State will add an NCAA Division I men's hockey program and a Division I women's hockey program. PSU plans to play as an independent for two years starting in 2012. The new arena was scheduled to open in April 2014. Season outlook Preseason polls USA Today/USA Hockey Women's Rankings Exhibition CIS Exhibition Other News and notes October October 1: Mercyhurst