East Central Conference
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The East Central Conference is a high school athletic conference of teams in the East Central Wisconsin area. The ECC was founded in 1970 and originally disbanded in 2007. The conference was revived for the 2015-2016 school year, the result of a realignment within the Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletic Association.
Members
[edit]Current members
[edit]| School | Mascot & Colors | Year joined | Former conference | Enrollment |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Berlin HS | Indians | 1970, 2015 | Eastern Valley | 474 |
| Kettle Moraine Lutheran HS | Chargers | 2015 | Wisconsin Flyway | 553 |
| Kewaskum HS | Indians | 2015 | Eastern Wisconsin | 572 |
| Plymouth HS | Panthers | 2015 | Eastern Wisconsin | 746 |
| Ripon HS | Tigers | 1970, 2015 | Eastern Valley | 484 |
| Waupun HS | Warriors | 2004, 2015 | Eastern Wisconsin | 573 |
| Winneconne HS | Wolves | 1970, 2015 | Eastern Valley | 551 |
Former Members
[edit]| Team & Mascot | School | Year Joined/Left | Current Conference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Campbellsport Cougars | Campbellsport HS | 2015-2021 | Flyway |
| Hortonville Polar Bears | Hortonville HS | Charter Member, Left in 1999 | Fox Valley Association |
| Horicon Marshmen | Horicon HS | 1999–2006 | Trailways |
| Laconia Spartans | Laconia HS | 1999–2006 | Flyway |
| Little Chute Mustangs | Little Chute HS | 1974–1999 | Northeastern |
| Lomira Lions | Lomira HS | 1999–2006 | Flyway |
| Markesan Hornets | Markesan HS | 1999–2006 | Trailways |
| Mayville Cardinals | Mayville HS | 1999–2006 | Flyway |
| North Fond du Lac Orioles | North Fond du Lac HS | 1999–2006 | Flyway |
| New London Bulldogs | New London HS | Charter Member, Left in 1979 | Bay |
| Omro Foxes | Omro HS | Charter Member | Flyway |
| Oakfield Oaks | Oakfield HS | 1999-2006 | Trailways |
| Oshkosh Lourdes Knights | Lourdes HS | 1999–2006 | Trailways |
| St. Mary's Springs Ledgers | St. Mary's Springs Academy | 1999–2006 | Flyway |
| Waupaca Comets | Waupaca HS | Charter Member, left in 1999 | Northeastern |
| Wautoma Hornets | Wautoma HS | 1979–2006, (football: 1979-1994, 2000-2006) | South Central |
| Weyauwega-Fremont Indians | Weyauwega-Fremont HS | Charter Member, left in 1973 | Central Wisconsin 8 |
| Winnebago Lutheran Vikings | Winnebago Lutheran Academy | 1999-2007 | Flyway |
History
[edit]1970–2007
[edit]The ECC was founded in 1970 with Berlin, Hortonville, New London, Omro, Ripon, Waupaca, Weyauwega and Winneconne as the original members. In 1973, Weyauwega left for the Central Wisconsin Conference (CWC) and was replaced by former CWC member Little Chute the following year. In 1979, New London left to join the Bay Conference in exchange for former CWC member Wautoma. In 1995, Waupun joined for football only as Wautoma transferred to the Flyway Conference for football. In 1999, Hortonville, Little Chute and Waupaca joined the newly formed Valley 8 Conference, while Waupun became a full-time member. That year, Laconia and Markesan also joined the conference. In 2001, the ECC merged with the Flyway Conference. The conference was briefing named the East Central-Flyway Conference and consisted of two divisions: the Rivers and the Lakes. The conference was restructured again in 2006 as the Flyway Conference split with the ECC. The conference was fully disbanded in 2007 with four of the remaining ECC teams joining former Valley 8 Conference teams to form the Eastern Valley Conference.
Revival 2015–present
[edit]During the realignment of several conferences within northeastern Wisconsin, eight schools were joined to form a new conference. Members included: Berlin, Campbellsport, Kewaskum, Kettle Moraine Lutheran, Plymouth, Ripon, Waupun and Winneconne. The members choose to name the new conference the East Central Conference as several members were once part of the original ECC. In 2021 It was presented by Berlin and Ripon to request moving the two schools to the nearby South Central Conference due to declining enrollment and finishing near the bottom in most sports. It was also requested by Winneconne to move the growing school to the Bay Conference as long as West De Pere left as it requested to leave. Both request were denied by the WIAA Task force due to no solution to move Plymouth, Kewaskum, Kettle Moraine Lutheran and Waupun. In December 2023 a similar request was filed on the likes of Berlin, Ripon and Winneconne, however Kettle Moraine Lutheran requested to move the growing school to the Metro Classic and Kewaskum and Plymouth to the North Shore and sending Waupun to the Capitol Conference. After some deliberation the final decision was moving Berlin and Ripon to the South Central, Waupun to the Capitol and Kettle Moraine Lutheran, Kewaskum and Plymouth would form a new conference with Sheboygan South, Port Washington, West Bend East and West Bend West. [1]
East Central-Flyway Lakes/Rivers Division
[edit]In 2001, the conference merged with the Wisconsin Flyway Conference to form the East Central-Flyway. At that time, the conference was split into two divisions: the Lakes and the Rivers. The divisions were in place until 2006 when several teams moved to different conferences.
Lakes
- Berlin
- Omro
- Oshkosh Lourdes
- Laconia
- Markesan
- Ripon
- Waupun
- Wautoma
- Winneconne
Rivers
- Horicon
- Lomira
- North Fond du Lac
- St. Mary's Springs
- Winnebago Lutheran Academy
- Mayville
- Oakfield
- Central Wisconsin Christian
- St. Lawrence Seminary
Mayville played in the Lakes for Football along with Springs for a few years. Markesan & Laconia also played in the Rivers only for Football only but in the lakes for all other Sports.