Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1305106
Penn State has been selected to host
seven national or regional championship
events, as the NCAA announced site se-
lections for championships from 2023-
26 on Oct. 14.
Three national championships will be
contested at Penn State venues, with the
2023 men's gymnastics championships,
the 2025 men's and women's fencing
championships and the 2026 women's
ice hockey Frozen Four all set for Uni-
versity Park.
In addition, Penn State will be the host
school for men's hockey regionals in
2022, '23 and '25. Those events will take
place in Allentown, Pa. The Nittany
Lions will also play host to a women's
gymnastics regional in 2025.
"We are thrilled to have the opportu-
nity to host seven NCAA championship
events in the 2023-26 cycle," athletic di-
rector Sandy Barbour said. "To give our
student-athletes an opportunity to
compete in an NCAA event in their
home venue and in front of our passion-
ate and amazing fans is an honor. We are
also excited to continue our relationship
with the PPL Center in Allentown to
bring NCAA Men's Hockey Regionals to
the state of Pennsylvania."
In 2023, Penn State will host the
men's gymnastics championships at
Rec Hall for the first time since the 2013
season. The championships will take
place April 14-15. Rec Hall, which has a
storied history involving men's gym-
nastics, will host the championship
event for the ninth time, the most of
any venue in the nation. The Nittany
Lions, whose 12 NCAA titles are tied for
the most by any Division I program,
won NCAA titles at their home venue in
1960 and 2007.
The upcoming hockey regionals will be
played for the third time in Allentown.
In partnership with the PPL Center,
Penn State hosted both the 2018 and '19
Midwest regionals and were set to host
the 2020 Allentown Regional before it
was canceled due to the COVID-19 pan-
demic.
The PPL Center opened in September
2014 and is the home of the Lehigh Val-
ley Phantoms of the American Hockey
League. The facility has a hockey capac-
ity of 8,420, with a standing room ca-
pacity of more than 9,000.
Pegula Ice Arena will serve as the site
for the 2026 NCAA Women's Frozen
Four. Penn State is set to host its :rst
Frozen Four in 2022 at Pegula Ice Arena.
The fencing championships will be
coming to University Park for the :