While in the Great Lakes Women's Hockey Association, the Lakers qualified for the GLWHA tournament twice – in 2001, and 2002.

The Mercyhurst women's ice hockey program predates NCAA governance in the sport.

The new CHA women's conference included Mercyhust, Findlay and Wayne State from the GLWHA, and Niagara University.

The ensuing game was one of the most bitterly fought in tournament history, with Harvard prevailing 5–4 in the third overtime period.

Even before attending college, she had won an Olympic gold medal at the 2006 Turin games with Team Canada.

[4] In 2007, Mercyhurst successfully recruited Vicki Bendus, who would win the 2010 Patty Kazmaier Award as the nation's top player, and was a top-10 finalist in the following year.

Her international play meant substantial time off from the Mercyhurst team, making these records all the more impressive.

They were the top ranked team in the USA TODAY/USA Hockey Magazine poll for 14 consecutive weeks and were the unanimous choice with all 19 first-place votes eight times.

Their only loss came in an October home split with Minnesota Duluth[5] until the Nation Championship game against Wisconsin on March 22, 2009, which they lost 5–0.

She won her second gold medal and was named the Most Valuable Player in women's hockey in the Olympic Games.

These teams were led by forward Christine Bestland, a captain for two years, national recognition by USCHO.

Upon Bestland's graduation, Mercyhurst's successes were more modest, despite the leadership of forward Emily Janiga and defenseman Molly Byrne.

In 2015, Mercyhurst failed to earn a berth in the national tournament, while still posting a 23–9–3 record and a regular season conference title.

From 2017 to 2019, the Lakers enjoyed success, but contended with rival CHA program Robert Morris for conference leadership.

Their 3rd place CHA finish was the lowest ranking in Mercyhurst history, but still good enough for the team to stay in the top tier of the conference.