DURHAM, N.H. -- Hockey excitement is building on the University of New Hampshire campus as the Wildcats prepare to play for the NCAA championship next week in St. Paul, Minn.

New Hampshire, 30-6-3, plays cross-border rival Maine, 25-10-7, on Thursday afternoon in one semifinal. Minnesota, 30-8-4, and Michigan, 28-10-5, play in the other.

The winners will meet in the Frozen Four on April 6.

In Durham, where the team averaged 6,463 fans for home games at the 6,501-seat Whittemore Arena, big-screen televisions were being set up at the Memorial Union Building for students to watch the game on ESPN2, with the title game on ESPN. They also can watch at the Hamel Recreation Center.

Plans also were being made for a campus bonfire after the championship game, and there was to be a send-off celebration and pep rally for the team Tuesday afternoon. A welcome home parade and celebration also was planned for Monday night, April 8.

University and Durham police planned to be present around the campus and in town during and after the games to make sure any celebrations don't get out of control.

The athletic staff arranged for a charter flight for 128 fans to fly to St. Paul on Wednesday and return after the championship game. The package, which included airfare, hotel and tickets, sold out within hours, said Mark LaBarbera, senior associate director of athletics.

UNH and Maine already have played four times this season with the Wildcats holding a 2-1-1 edge, including a 3-1 victory in the Hockey East tournament final March 16, the first time it has won the tournament. The Wildcats earned a trip to the Frozen Four by beating Cornell 4-3 a week later in the regional final. Maine earned a trip by beating Harvard in overtime and Boston University, both by 4-3 scores.

New Hampshire and Maine met in the 1999 Frozen Four final in Anaheim, Calif., and Maine won 3-2 in overtime. This will be the sixth time the Wildcats have reached the final four, losing in the semifinals four other times.