For the fifth and sixth time in history, Missouri Western State University, partnered with the St. Joseph Sports Commission will host the 2023 & 2024 NCAA Division II Women's Basketball National Championship at the St. Joseph Civic Arena.  The 2023 event will take place March 21 & 22 with the quarterfinals and semifinals only with the National Championship Game being held at the Division I site in Dallas, Texas.  In 2024, all seven games will be contested in St. Joseph over the date of March 26, 27 & 29.
 
"We are honored to bring the Division II Women's Elite Eight back to St. Joseph," said Tournament Director and Sports Commission Chair Brett Esely.  "St. Joseph has a great tradition of hosting NCAA events as our proximity, venues, hospitality and people take great pride in creating a great experience for all involved. The previous four opportunities were highly memorable and we look forward to providing another true, championship experience right here in our own community!"
 
This will mark the fifth & sixth time the Elite Eight has been held at Civic Arena as the venue previously hosted the championship in 2003, 2004, 2010 & 2011.
 
"Missouri Western Athletics appreciates the opportunity the NCAA has awarded us to host two Division II Women's Basketball Elite Eights," said Missouri Western vice president for intercollegiate athletics Dr. Josh Looney. "St. Joseph is a community filled with basketball tradition and bringing national basketball events to our city has been one of the athletic department's community engagement priorities. Returning this championship to St. Joseph is a result of the partnership of the St. Joseph Sports Commission and the leadership of Chairman Brett Esely."  

 
As a whole, this will be the 16 & 17th NCAA Championship hosted in St. Joseph as in addition to the above, other events have included:
 
Division II Men's Basketball Regional - 1995
Division II Women's Basketball Regional - 1994, 1995, 2007
Division II Women's Basketball Finals - 2003, 2004, 2010, 2011
Division II Softball Finals - 2011
Division II Football Playoffs - 2011, 2012 
Division II Women's Golf – 2013, 2021
Division II Men's Golf – 1997, 2005
 
Previous Champions of Elite Eight's held in St. Joseph include:
 
2003 – South Dakota State
2004 – California (PA.)
2010 – Emporia State
2011 – Clayton State
 
As a whole, this is the third time for this specific NCAA championship bid process, which created the largest host site announcement ever, spanning 86 championships across a four-year cycle. Previously, selection announcements varied by sport. This process now gives the NCAA and host sites more time to plan each championship experience.
 
Bidding for 86 of 90 NCAA championships began in August 2019 and more than 3,000 bid applications were ultimately submitted. Each sport committee, per division, selected the host sites it believed would provide the ultimate experience for the respective student-athletes, resulting in more than 450 total championship event sites being awarded. More than 54,000 student-athletes compete in NCAA championships each year. The four championships not included in the process due to preexisting site arrangements are: Division I baseball, Division I football, Division I softball and Division III women's ice hockey.
 
More information regarding the championship will be released as the event nears closer.  For information about all NCAA Championships, visit ncaa.com.