Section 6: Scoring
Team Scoring (NCAA Standard)
NCAA team scoring at the championship typically follows the 10-8-6-5-4-3-2-1 scale:
- 1st place: 10 points
- 2nd place: 8 points
- 3rd place: 6 points
- 4th place: 5 points
- 5th place: 4 points
- 6th place: 3 points
- 7th place: 2 points
- 8th place: 1 point
Relay events typically score double (20-16-12-10-8-6-4-2). Some conference meets use different scoring scales (e.g., 10-8-6-5-4-3-2-1 for individual + double for relays; or 10-deep with different distribution).
Individual Event Result
- Sprints / hurdles / middle distance / distance running: lowest time wins (FAT to 0.01 second)
- Horizontal jumps / vertical jumps / pole vault: highest mark wins (best of trials)
- Throws: longest valid throw wins (best of trials)
- Combined events: highest total score across all events wins (scored per World Athletics tables)
- Relays: lowest team time wins
Tiebreakers
- Track events: photo finish; same time = co-place
- Field events with same mark: second-best mark is the tiebreaker; if still tied, third-best, and so on
- High jump / pole vault: fewer misses at the winning height; then fewer total misses; if still tied, jump-off (extra attempts at progressively higher/lower heights)
Team Championship
The team with the highest total team score across all scoring events wins the team championship (men's team and women's team championships are awarded separately; combined-gender team championships are sometimes awarded by major conferences but not the NCAA championship).