KALAMAZOO, Mich. – When the NCAA selection show aired on Sunday night and Western Michigan heard its named called for a third consecutive season, history was made. 

The Broncos have now made national tournament in three consecutive seasons, which has never happened in program history. Under head coach Pat Ferschweiler (took over in 2021-22), WMU has never missed the big dance. 

Overall, this will be WMU's ninth NCAA Tournament appearance in program history. Western Michigan earned a No. 4 seed in this year's tournament and will square off with Michigan State to open play. The Broncos and Spartans will hit the ice on March 29 at 5 PM in the Maryland Heights region. 

The winner between WMU and MSU will play the winner of the other regional semifinal, which features North Dakota and Michigan. The two regional semifinal winners will battle on March 31 with a trip to the Frozen Four in St. Paul, Minn. on the line. 

The Broncos have 35 wins against the Spartans all-time. Neither team has the edge in neutral-site games, with each program having three victories. The last meeting between the two squads resulted in a 3-1 victory for the Brown and Gold back in 2021. Over the last 10 games, Western Michigan holds a 6-3-1 advantage.  

The Brown and Gold enter tournament play with a 21-15-1 overall record, including 10 wins away from Lawson Arena. The Broncos have had 20-plus wins in each of the last three seasons. 

Ticket information will be available at 11 a.m. on Monday, March 25.