The Rhode Island Rams women's ice hockey team represents the University of Rhode Island (URI) in Women's Division 1 of the American Collegiate Hockey Association (ACHA). Since the team's 1999 inauguration, the Rams have been one of the most successful programs in intercollegiate women's ice hockey, winning nine regular season and nine playoff titles in the 15-year existence of the Eastern Collegiate Women's Hockey League, both ECWHL records. The Rams have also qualified for 12 of the 18 ACHA National Tournaments held for women's teams, a number that trails only Massachusetts, Michigan and Michigan State. Highlighting Rhode Island's 12 ACHA tournament bids are eight semifinal appearances, including five in a row from 2004 through 2008. The team's present coach, Ashley Pagliarini, was a standout defenseman at URI from 2004 through 2009 and is just the second head coach in team history, taking over for program founder Beth McCann for the 2014–15 season. History Early years (1999–2003) The first women's teams at URI, typical of a new program, lost more games than they won, posting a 6–33–1 mark from the inaugural 1999–2000 season through 2001–02. For the team's first four years, it primarily used the West Warwick Ice Rink in West Warwick, Rhode Island - roughly a half hour drive from campus - as its home facility. Early schedules featured a mix of top club programs of the day, as well as junior varsity teams from NCAA Division I schools and NCAA Division III teams. Rhode Island's 2000–01 schedule, for example, included future ECWHL opponents Boston University, Massachusetts and Penn State from the first category, alongside the JV team from Brown and DIII's Salve Regina. The Rams' sole victory that year came against the Providence Lady Reds program. In the 2001–02 season, URI became a member of the ACHA Women's Division (later ACHA Women's Division 1) in its second year of existence, as the organization provided much-needed structure, regulation and a national championship tournament for non-varsity women's college hockey. The Rams' 5–12–0 record in 2001–02 merited a final ranking of fourth in the East Region (at the time, the ACHA was split into three regions, with the top two from each receiving national tournament bids, along with two wild card selections). An improved team in 2002–03 achieved its first winning mark at 10–7–3, boosting the program to a near-miss for the ACHA National Tournament at third in the East Region. The