The College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin got its third women's wrestling program last season, when Augustana hit the mat for the first time. Augustana athletics photo by Saniya Berry

The College Conference of Illinois & Wisconsin will begin sponsoring women’s wrestling in 2022-23 as the league’s 26th sport, according to an announcement from executive director Maureen Harty on Tuesday. The CCIW will become the first NCAA Division III conference to sponsor women’s wrestling.

Five schools will participate in CCIW women’s wrestling this winter when core members Augustana, Carthage and North Central are joined by Aurora and Lakeland. Women's wrestling was selected for the NCAA Emerging Sports for Women program in 2020.

“This is an important step for the CCIW and the sport of women’s wrestling,” Harty said. “We have seen tremendous growth in the sport over the last several years. Being the first Division III conference to sponsor the sport shows we are committed to providing these student-athletes a competitive conference experience. We are excited to have Aurora and Lakeland join us on this journey to grow women’s wrestling at the Division III level and in the Midwest."

Aurora and Lakeland now compete in the CCIW as associate members in three sports – men’s wrestling, women’s wrestling and women’s bowling.

The CCIW will be just the third NCAA Division III conference to sponsor at least 26 sports when competition for the 2022-23 academic year began earlier this month.

The recent announcement marks the fifth time the CCIW has added sponsored sports since the 2014-15 academic year. Men’s and women’s lacrosse were introduced prior to the 2015 season, men’s volleyball was sponsored beginning in 2020 and women’s bowling began competition in 2021.