Ohio Heritage Conference
Boys Girls
Catholic Central 88 97
Cedarville 92 81
Greeneview 171 187
Mechanicsburg 125 106
Northeastern 211 191
Southeastern 105 97
Triad 151 107
West Liberty-Salem 164 149
Central Buckeye Conference
Kenton Trail Division
Boys Girls
Bellefontaine 338 334
Kenton Ridge 298 258
Shawnee 339 304
Stebbins 450 392
Tecumseh 421 426
Tippecanoe 333 351
Mad River Division
Benjamin Logan 269 247
Graham 274 293
Greenon 274 240
Indian Lake 248 231
Northwestern 233 229
Urbana 273 250
SPRINGFIELD — With enrollment numbers dwindling at Northeastern High School in the late 1990s, Athletic Director Jim Murray knew his school needed a change if it wanted to compete.
As the smallest school in the then eight-team Central Buckeye Conference, Murray had kicked around the idea of finding a new league for the Jets, and he was getting plenty of support around the school district.
“Enrollment is what was driving it,” Murray said. “People from around the area said, ‘Jim, we’ve got to do something about this. We’ve got to level the playing field. It’s not fair for our 450 kids to go against a school with 600 or 700 kids.’ ”
Murray started phoning other athletic directors around the area, including Southeastern’s Kirk Martin.
At the time, Southeastern was the smallest school in the Kenton Trace Conference.
It was also the northern-most school in the seven-team league, which had just added Blanchester, that necessitated several hour-long bus trips.
“We talked about it, wondering if that could lead to anything,” Martin said.
That’s how the ball got rolling for the Ohio Heritage Conference.
The league’s creation disrupted four other conferences: the CBC, the KTC, the Southwestern Rivers Conference and the West Central Ohio Conference.
“That creates some hard feelings,” Martin said. “It’s not a comfortable thing.”
Miss the boat
Northeastern was the first school to reveal its intentions to join a new conference. The school announced it was leaving the CBC in 1999 with hopes of creating a new league.
“The big thing was to find enough people,” Murray said. “We hashed it around, and people seemed to be willing.”
Murray sought out Mechanicsburg, Triad and West Liberty-Salem from the WCOC, which had fallen to seven teams with Fairbanks’ departure for the Buckeye Athletic Conference.
Catholic Central also decided to leave the SRC. It was the smallest and southern-most team in the league, making both competition in some sports and travel a problem.
“It’s one of those things where as momentum builds, someone says ‘We don’t want to miss the boat for our school,’ ” Martin said.
The key to get the conference up and running were Cedarville and Greeneview, Murray said. With Southeastern already leaving the KTC, Greeneview and Cedarville soon followed.
“We thought with the size of their school, they’d be interested in staying there, but the rivalry with Cedarville and Southeastern was the attraction there,” Martin said. “We were really thrilled to know that was something they thought was important, too.”
At the Meadows Restaurant in Springfield on April 27, the new league was born with eight members, which would begin play during the 2001-02 school year.
“Everything just fell into place,” Murray said.
The league’s geography, within the News-Sun’s coverage area, translated into less travel, a better bottom line, more media coverage and enhanced rivalries.
“I don’t think all eight of us were as happy to be a part of the league when it started,” Martin said. “But I think all of them understood where the rivalries and the allegiances fell. Obviously, based upon the fact, 10 years later, that those eight schools are still together, and others knock on the door wanting to expand on that, I’d like to think all eight schools think this is a really good move.”
Why wait?
With the OHC plans confirmed in April of 1999, several area schools, like Graham, were left to find a new conference. With Central leaving for the OHC and Milton-Union heading to the Southwestern Buckeye League, the SRC was left with six schools. “It was an excellent, excellent conference,” said former Graham AD and current CBC Commissioner Mike Ludlow. “If you look back, for a period of two or three years, somebody won a state championship every season. The competition was just outstanding, and it was very well-organized.”
They had plans to stay together, but Versailles made plans to join the Midwest Athletic Conference, leaving five schools.
“It’s too bad because all we needed to do was replace one school,” Ludlow said. “We were actively trying to do that.”
Lehman Catholic eventually declared it was looking for a new league, and it quickly became survival of the fittest.
“It’s a domino effect,” Ludlow said. “Once they started that, it becomes self-preservation with each school.”
Four of the SRC schools — Graham, Tippecanoe, Benjamin Logan and Miami East — hoped to join a 12-team CBC, which had picked up Indian Lake from the WCOC.
“We figured if we were going to make changes, we should go ahead and make them,” said Kenton Ridge Athletic Director Kris Spriggs. “There was no reason in trying to reinvent the wheel twice.”
It took a year, but on Feb. 7, 2000, the CBC expanded to a 12-team, two-division format.
“The principals were very vehement about wanting everyone to play everybody,” Ludlow said. “ There were concerns, especially from Miami East, about being competitive with some of the bigger schools. Getting the divisions and the schedules ironed out, it was a pretty difficult process. It took a long time. There were a couple times I thought it was going to fall apart.”
Since then, Miami East left the league in 2006 to join the Cross County Conference. The CBC picked up Stebbins, which left the now-defunct Mid-Miami League.
“It all worked out great in the long run,” Ludlow said. “With that many people involved there were a lot of negotiations and change. Change is not easy for a lot of people.”
THEN
Southwestern Rivers Conference — Graham, Catholic Central.
Central Buckeye Conference — Northeastern, Greenon, Tecumseh, Shawnee, Kenton Ridge, Northwestern, Urbana.
Western Ohio League — South, North.
West Central Ohio Conference — West Liberty-Salem, Mechanicsburg, Triad.
Kenton Trace Conference — Southeastern, Cedarville, Greeneview.
NOW
Central Buckeye Conference — Mad River Division: Greenon, Northwestern, Urbana, Graham. Kenton Trail Division: Shawnee, Tecumseh, Kenton Ridge.
OHC — West Liberty-Salem, Mechanicsburg, Triad, Southeastern, Greeneview, Cedarville, Catholic Central, Northeastern.
Greater Western Ohio Conference — Central Division: Springfield.
Metro Buckeye Conference — Emmanuel Christian, Yellow Springs.
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