Women’s Wrestling one step closer to NCAA sponsorship

DIII Management Council recommends two new emerging sports

The NCAA Division III Management Council recommended that women’s wrestling be granted emerging sport status. Several steps remain before women’s wrestling is actually added to the emerging sports list. None seem to be insurmountable, however.

  1. NCAA Committee on Women’s Athletics recommends naming women’s wrestling an emerging sport – June 2019
  2. NCAA Management Councils recommend granting emerging sport status – DIII & DII (July 25, 2019), DI still to come
  3. DI, DII, DIII Presidents Councils to meet next month to decide whether or not to support the recommendation – August 2019
  4. If supported, entire membership of each division will vote at the 2020 NCAA Convention on whether or not to add women’s wrestling to the emerging sports list – January 2020
  5. If the membership votes to approve, women’s wrestling would be added to the emerging sports list on August 1, 2020

Once a sport is placed on the emerging sports list, that sport has ten years to either gain championships status or demonstrate steady progress toward that goal. Championship status requires 40 varsity programs. Currently, women’s wrestling is just over halfway to the 40 team goal. Equestrian, rugby, and water polo are currently on the emerging sports for women list. Acrobatics & Tumbling is at the same point in the process as women’s wrestling.

These are the DIII schools that either currently sponsor women’s wrestling or have announced plans to do so beginning in 2019 or 2020:

Adrian (MI)
Augsburg (MN)
Carthage (WI)
Delaware Valley (PA)
Ferrum (VA)
Fontbonne (MO
Iowa Wesleyan (IA)
Lakeland (WI)
MacMurray (IL)
New Jersey City (NJ)
North Central (IL)
Pacific (OR)
Schreiner* (TX)
Stevens Point (WI)

* Schreiner’s men’s team that competes in the NCWA instead of Division III
* Westminster announced the addition of women’s wrestling in the summer of 2017 but does not appear to have competed yet

Other NCAA schools that sponsor (or will sponsor) the sport include East Stroudsburg, Emmanuel, Gannon, King, Life, Lock Haven, McKendree, Presbyterian,Simon Fraser, and Tiffin

2019 WCWA National Championship Results