Everything You Need To Know About The NCAA Women's Wrestling Championships
Everything You Need To Know About The NCAA Women's Wrestling Championships
Here is what the 2026 NCAA Championship format means for women’s wrestling.
The NCAA approved its format for the inaugural 2026 NCAA Women’s Freestyle Wrestling Championships. NCAA Division I, II, and III programs will compete at the NCAA Championships.
There are 112 NCAA programs that offer women’s college wrestling, with the following breakdown.
Division I: 6
Division II: 36
Division III: 70
Division I and II programs offer athletic scholarships, and Division III programs do not.
The 2025 National Collegiate Women’s Wrestling Championships — a precursor to the 2026 NCAA Women’s Wrestling Championships — allowed a maximum of 15 national qualifiers per team, with 32-woman brackets for each of the 10 weight classes (320 total).
The NCAA rejected the recommendation of 210 national qualifiers and established that the championships will include 180 participants in 10 weights (18 per category), with a maximum of one qualifier per weight per school.
Under the new format, each team can send a maximum of 10 wrestlers per region. There will be six regions, with three qualifiers from each region, two weeks before the NCAA Championships.
The 2026 Women’s Wrestling Championships will be held at Xtream Arena in Coralville, Iowa.
Below is a graph charting the maximum number of qualifiers for the national championships since NCAA programs hosted their championships for the first time in 2020.
Below is a breakdown of what the 2026 NCAA Championship format means for women’s wrestling.
A Split Seems Inevitable
Division III programs do not offer athletic scholarships and are at a competitive disadvantage against their D1 and D2 counterparts. Offering a maximum of 18 qualifiers for 112 programs exacerbates the gap, especially since D3 programs constitute 62.5 percent of the women’s college programs.
Women's college wrestling is likely headed toward an athletic scholarship (D1 & D2) and a non-athletic scholarship division (D3). If so, the breakdown of teams would look like this:
D1/D2: 42
D3: 70
North Central College — a D3 school in Naperville, Illinois — will be most affected by a possible split. The Cardinals won the 2023 National Collegiate Women’s Wrestling Championships and finished second to the University of Iowa in 2024 and 2025.
Top Teams Will Have Tough Decisions
Powerhouse teams like Iowa, North Central, Grand Valley State, and McKendree have deep teams with multiple high-level options at most weights. For example, the Hawkeyes had four national title contenders at 110 pounds during the 2025 season, including Nyla Valencia, who was injured for the second consecutive year.
National champions Ava Bayless and Emilie Gonzalez battled teammate Val Solorio for two spots at the 2025 National Collegiate Women’s Wrestling Championships. Under the new NCAA format, Iowa coach Clarissa Chun would have to choose between Bayless, Gonzalez, Solorio, and, if she’s healthy, Valencia, leaving a national champion and two high-level wrestlers at home.
NAIA Coaches Will Use The New NCAA Format For Recruiting
NAIA coaches are likely rehearsing their recruiting pitches after the NCAA Championship format was announced.
Every NAIA team can qualify up to 12 wrestlers, and all 12 can score team points at the national championships. The NAIA also offers 210 national qualifiers compared to 180 for the NCAA.
Unlike men’s wrestling, NAIA women’s wrestling has comparable talent to the NCAA. Of the 10-member Senior Women’s Freestyle World Team, three compete or competed for an NAIA institution.
NAIA head coaches will tell high schoolers something like this: “The NCAA has fewer qualifiers than we do, and you could still wrestle at the NAIA Championships even if you’re not the starter. It could be you!”
The Allure Of The NCAA Championships Is Real
Becoming an NCAA champion is the goal for many athletes, and attending an NCAA institution makes it a reality. NCAA programs — especially Iowa and Lehigh — have a recognized brand that is appealing to young wrestlers.
Oklahoma State, Columbia, and Tarleton State adding women’s programs will completely change the game.
Becoming an NCAA-sanctioned sport was the goal, even if 180 qualifiers is far less than 320, when 210 or 240 qualifiers is a better and more equitable number. The National Collegiate Women’s Wrestling Championships were run by those deeply invested and involved with wrestling. Handing it off to the NCAA was a necessary step.
Remember, the NCAA pays for each national qualifier and coach to attend the NCAA Championships.
Change Happens Fast
College athletics change by the minute. We could be in for a wild ride. Check the transfer portal often.