Badger Lutheran Conference

The Badger Lutheran Conference is a former high school athletic conference in Wisconsin. Consisting entirely of Lutheran high schools, it existed from 1961 to 1964.

History

50km
31miles

   

Location of Badger Lutheran Conference Members

The Badger Lutheran Conference was created in 1961 by four Lutheran high schools in the eastern half of Wisconsin: Fox Valley Lutheran in Appleton, Lakeside Lutheran in Lake Mills, Manitowoc Lutheran and Winnebago Lutheran in Fond du Lac. ^[1] All four original members were affiliated with the Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod, and the conference only sponsored basketball during its history. This was one of the factors leading to the short life span of the Badger Lutheran Conference, the other being long travel distances to other schools. In 1964, Lakeside Lutheran left the conference to join the Madison Suburban Conference, which cut their travel distances significantly. ^[2] The other three schools disbanded the conference shortly afterwards, with Winnebago Lutheran joining the Fox Valley Tri-County League, ^[3] Manitowoc Lutheran becoming members of the Kettle Moraine Conference and Fox Valley Lutheran competing as independents before joining the Midwest Prep Conference in 1965. ^[4]

Conference membership history

School	Location	Affiliation	Enrollment	Mascot	Colors	Joined	Left	Conference Joined	Current Conference
Fox Valley Lutheran	Appleton, WI	Private (Lutheran, WELS)	752	Foxes		1961 [1]	1964 [2]	Independent	Bay (2025)
Lakeside Lutheran	Lake Mills, WI	Private (Lutheran, WELS)	506	Warriors		1961 [1]	1964 [2]	Madison Suburban	Capitol
Manitowoc Lutheran	Manitowoc, WI	Private (Lutheran, WELS)	227	Lancers		1961 [1]	1964 [2]	Kettle Moraine	Big East
Winnebago Lutheran	Fond du Lac, WI	Private (Lutheran, WELS)	319	Vikings		1961 [1]	1964 [2]	Fox Valley Tri-County	Wisconsin Flyway

Membership timeline

References

1. "Lutheran High Cagers Might Fool Opponents". Two Rivers Reporter. 16 November 1961. p. 25. Retrieved 26 February 2025.
2. Simon, Henry (9 February 1964). "Travel Distance Cited as Big Reason for Break-Up of the BLC". Appleton Post-Crescent. pp. B2. Retrieved 26 February 2025.
3. Simon, Henry (9 February 1964). "Travel Distance Cited as Big Reason for Break-Up of the BLC". Appleton Post-Crescent. pp. B2. Retrieved 19 December 2024.
4. UPI (23 January 1965). "Fox Valley Lutheran Joins Midwest Prep Athletic Conference". Sheboygan Press. p. 18. Retrieved 6 January 2025.