Dunn-St. Croix Conference

The Dunn-St.Croix Conference is a high school athletic conference with its catchment in western Wisconsin. Founded in 1930, the conference and its member schools belong to the Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletic Association.

History

1930-1944

30km
19miles

   

Location of Original Dunn-St. Croix Conference Members

The Dunn-St. Croix Conference was formed in 1930 by eight small high schools in western Wisconsin: Baldwin, Boyceville, Downing, Elk Mound, Glenwood City, Hammond, Roberts and Woodville. ^[1] The conference was named after the two counties (Dunn and St. Croix) that all eight original member schools were located in. Elk Mound left the conference in 1931 for membership in the Little Eight Conference, ^[2] and the next year, Dunn County Agricultural School and Elmwood became Dunn-St. Croix Conference members. ^[3] Football was added as a sponsored sport in 1934, and four members (Boyceville, Dunn County Aggies, Glenwood City and Roberts) made up the initial roster. Elk Mound returned to the Dunn-St. Croix in 1937 after the Little Eight Conference was folded, ^[4] and the ten member schools subdivided into eastern and western divisions: ^[5]

Eastern Division	Western Division
Boyceville	Baldwin
Downing	Elmwood
Dunn County Aggies	Hammond
Elk Mound	Roberts
Glenwood City	Woodville

In 1938, the Dunn-St. Croix Conference shifted from eleven-player to eight-player football league-wide, ^[6] after the Dunn County Aggies made the switch the year prior. ^[7] Sponsorship of interscholastic football was abandoned by the Dunn-St. Croix Conference during World War II, and would not make its return until several years later.

1944-1960

The Dunn-St. Croix Conference's two-division alignment lasted until 1944, when Downing High School was closed and redistricted to Glenwood City. ^[8] In 1949, the ledger further shrunk to seven schools, as Baldwin and Glenwood City exited for membership in the Middle Border Conference. ^[9] Prescott joined the Dunn-St. Croix Conference in 1951 to bring membership back up to eight schools, ^[10] the same year the conference reinstated eight-player football as a sponsored sport. ^[11] In 1953, the Dunn-St. Croix Conference suspended football sponsorship for a second time, and its members entered the new 856 Conference. ^[12] A ninth school was added to the membership roster in 1955 when Somerset became members after being displaced from the Northwest Border Conference's closing. ^[13] In 1956, Elk Mound became members of the Cloverbelt Conference, ^[14] and Plum City joined from the Bi-County League in 1957 ^[15] to replace Dunn County Agricultural School after its closing. ^[16] The Dunn-St. Croix Conference also reinstated sponsorship of football that year after the 856 Conference ceased operations.

1960-1988

In 1960, the high schools in Hammond and Roberts were combined to form the new St. Croix Central High School, inheriting their predecessors' place in the Dunn-St. Croix Conference. ^[17] The next year, Woodville was merged with Baldwin, and the newly minted Baldwin-Woodville Area High School inherited Baldwin's Middle Border Conference membership. ^[18] They were replaced by Arkansaw from the West Central Conference ^[19] and Elk Mound from the Cloverbelt Conference, ^[20] with the latter making their return to the Dunn-St. Croix after a five-year absence. Football also made the switch from eight-player to eleven-player in 1961, with several schools playing the regulation variant for the first time. ^[21] Arkansaw's time in the Dunn-St. Croix Conference would be short-lived, as they returned to the West Central Conference in 1964. ^[22] The conference accepted two new members in the second half of the 1960s, with Pepin joining from the West Central Conference ^[23] and Colfax moving over from the Middle Border Conference. ^[24] The 1970s began for the Dunn-St. Croix Conference with the exit of Prescott to the Middle Border Conference ^[25] and two new schools joining in 1972: Glenwood City and Spring Valley. ^[26] Both incoming schools came from the Middle Border with Glenwood City making its return to the conference after its exit in 1949. Membership remained stable for five years until 1977, when Somerset exited for membership in the Upper St. Croix Valley Conference. ^[27] They were replaced by two former members returning to the Dunn-St. Croix: Arkansaw (West Central) ^[28] and Prescott (Middle Border). ^[29]

1988-2002

By 1988, two Dunn-St. Croix members based in Pepin County (Arkansaw and Pepin) saw enrollment dwindle to levels that would make further athletic competition unsustainable. ^[30] The two schools entered into a cooperative agreement under the Pepin/Arkansaw banner that year, ^[31] an arrangement that would last until Arkansaw was folded into Durand's school district in 1992. ^[32] Two years later, Somerset made their return from the Upper St. Croix Valley Conference and Mondovi joined from the Middle Border Conference. ^[33] The Dunn-St. Croix Conference was divided by enrollment into large schools and small schools for most sports that year: ^[34]

Large Dunn-St. Croix	Small Dunn-St. Croix
Elk Mound	Boyceville
Glenwood City	Colfax
Mondovi	Elmwood
Prescott	Pepin
Somerset	Plum City
St. Croix Central	Spring Valley

2002-present

In 2002, Prescott and Somerset both ended their second stints in the Dunn-St. Croix Conference when they both joined the Middle Border Conference, and the conference realigned as a single division. ^[35] The Dunn-St. Croix Conference lost Pepin as members in 2009 when they entered into a cooperative athletic partnership with Alma and joined the Dairyland Conference. ^[36] Elmwood and Plum City consolidated their athletic programs in 2014, with both schools staying in the conference. ^[37] In 2016, St. Croix Central traded affiliations with Durand-Arkansaw, with the latter entering from the Middle Border Conference. ^[38] The membership roster remained stable from 2016 to 2025, when Elk Mound returned to the Cloverbelt Conference. ^[39]

Football (since 2020)

In February 2019, in conjunction with the Wisconsin Football Coaches Association, the WIAA released a sweeping football-only realignment for Wisconsin to commence with the 2020 football season and run on a two-year cycle. ^[40] Four members were retained from the Dunn-St. Croix football roster (Boyceville, Colfax, Glenwood City and Spring Valley), and three new associate members were added (Cadott, Clear Lake and Turtle Lake) along with full members Elmwood/Plum City. ^[41] This alignment was kept intact for the 2022-2023 competition cycle. ^[42] For the 2024-2025 cycle, Cadott was shifted to the Lakeland Conference as football-only members, and the Dunn-St. Croix entered into a mandatory crossover scheduling partnership with the Lakeland. ^[43] In 2026, McDonell Central Catholic and Osseo-Fairchild are set to replace Clear Lake and Turtle Lake, who are transitioning to eight-player football and membership in the North Central Conference. ^{[44] [45]}

List of member schools

Current full members

School	Location	Affiliation	Enrollment	Mascot	Colors	Joined
Boyceville	Boyceville, WI	Public	212	Bulldogs		1930 [1]
Colfax	Colfax, WI	Public	224	Vikings		1967 [24]
Durand-Arkansaw	Durand, WI	Public	307	Panthers		2016 [38]
Elmwood/Plum City	Elmwood, WI/ Plum City, WI	Public	178	Wolves		2014 [37]
Glenwood City	Glenwood City, WI	Public	195	Hilltoppers		1930, [1] 1972 [26]
Mondovi	Mondovi, WI	Public	250	Buffaloes		1994 [33]
Spring Valley	Spring Valley, WI	Public	198	Cardinals		1972 [26]

Current football-only members

School	Location	Affiliation	Enrollment	Mascot	Colors	Joined	Primary Conference
Cadott	Cadott, WI	Public	260	Hornets		2020	Cloverbelt
Clear Lake	Clear Lake, WI	Public	181	Warriors		2020	Lakeland
Turtle Lake	Turtle Lake, WI	Public	129	Lakers		2020	Lakeland

Future football-only members

School	Location	Affiliation	Enrollment	Mascot	Colors	Joining	Primary Conference
McDonell Central Catholic	Chippewa Falls, WI	Private (Catholic)	206	Macks		2026	Cloverbelt
Osseo-Fairchild	Osseo, WI	Public	255	Thunder		2026	Dairyland

Former full members

School	Location	Affiliation	Enrollment	Mascot	Colors	Joined	Left	Conference Joined	Current Conference
Baldwin	Baldwin, WI	Public	506	Blackhawks		1930 [1]	1949 [9]	Middle Border
Downing	Downing, WI	Public	N/A	Midgets		1930 [1]	1944 [8]	Closed (consolidated into Glenwood City)
Elk Mound	Elk Mound, WI	Public	344	Mounders		1930, [1] 1937, [4] 1961 [20]	1931, [2] 1956, [14] 2025 [39]	Little Eight, Cloverbelt (twice)	Cloverbelt
Hammond	Hammond, WI	Public	N/A	Bluejays		1930 [1]	1960 [17]	Closed (merged into St. Croix Central)
Roberts	Roberts, WI	Public	N/A	Eagles		1930 [1]	1960 [17]	Closed (merged into St. Croix Central)
Woodville	Woodville, WI	Public	N/A	Vikings		1930 [1]	1961 [18]	Closed (merged into Baldwin-Woodville)
Dunn County Agricultural	Menomonie, WI	Public	N/A	Aggies		1932 [3]	1957 [16]	Closed
Elmwood	Elmwood, WI	Public	90	Raiders		1932 [3]	2014 [37]	Dunn-St. Croix (coop with Plum City)
Prescott	Prescott, WI	Public	431	Cardinals		1951, [10] 1977 [29]	1970, [25] 2002 [35]	Middle Border (both times)	Middle Border
Somerset	Somerset, WI	Public	470	Spartans		1955, [13] 1994 [33]	1977, [27] 2002 [35]	Upper St. Croix Valley, Middle Border	Middle Border
Plum City	Plum City, WI	Public	88	Blue Devils		1957 [15]	2014 [37]	Dunn-St. Croix (coop with Elmwood)
St. Croix Central	Hammond, WI	Public	514	Panthers		1960 [17]	2016 [38]	Middle Border
Arkansaw	Arkansaw, WI	Public	N/A	Travelers		1961, [19] 1977 [28]	1964, [22] 1988 [31]	Dunn-St. Croix (coop with Pepin)	Closed in 1992 (merged into Durand-Arkansaw)
Pepin	Pepin, WI	Public	84	Lakers		1966, [23] 1992 [32]	1988, [31] 2009 [36]	Dunn-St. Croix (coop with Arkansaw), Dairyland	Dairyland (coop with Alma)
Pepin/Arkansaw	Pepin, WI/ Arkansaw, WI	Public	N/A	Wildcats		1988 [31]	1992 [32]	Cooperative ended when Arkansaw closed in 1992

Former football-only members

School	Location	Affiliation	Enrollment	Mascot	Colors	Seasons	Primary Conference
Prairie Farm	Prairie Farm, WI	Public	129	Panthers		1939	Lakeland
Tony	Tony, WI	Public	N/A	Tornadoes		1952	Flambeauland
Lake Holcombe	Lake Holcombe, WI	Public	90	Chieftains		1957-1964	Independent
Plum City/Pepin/Arkansaw	Plum City, WI	Public	N/A	Blue Devils		1991	Dunn-St. Croix
Plum City /Pepin	Plum City, WI	Public	172	Blue Devils		1992-1993	Dunn-St. Croix
Unity	Balsam Lake, WI	Public	295	Eagles		2002-2006	Lakeland
Durand-Arkansaw	Durand, WI	Public	307	Panthers		2015	Middle Border

Membership timeline

Full members

 Eastern Division Western Division Large Dunn-St. Croix Small Dunn-St. Croix

Football members

 Large Dunn-St. Croix Small Dunn-St. Croix

Membership map

Dunn-St. Croix Conference

13km
8.1miles

8

7

6

5

4

3

2

1

   

Location of Dunn-St. Croix Conference full members:

1

Boyceville

2

Colfax

3

Durand-Arkansaw

4

Elmwood

5

Glenwood City

6

Mondovi

7

Plum City

8

Spring Valley

List of state champions

Fall sports

Boys Cross Country

School	Year	Division
Colfax	1998	Division 3
Durand-Arkansaw	2017	Division 3

Girls Cross Country

School	Year	Division
Spring Valley	2012	Division 3

Football

School	Year	Division
Spring Valley	1978	Division 5
Glenwood City	1985	Division 6
St. Croix Central	1988	Division 5
Glenwood City	1997	Division 5
Spring Valley	2000	Division 6
Spring Valley	2001	Division 6
Glenwood City	2012	Division 7

Winter sports

Boys Basketball

School	Year	Division
Colfax	1978	Class C
Spring Valley	1992	Division 4
Glenwood City	2001	Division 3

Boys Wrestling

School	Year	Division
St. Croix Central	1989	Class C
Boyceville	1996	Division 3
Elmwood/Spring Valley	2015	Division 3

Spring sports

Baseball

School	Year	Division
Prescott	1994	Division 2
Elk Mound	1995	Division 3
Plum City	1997	Division 3
Boyceville	2021	Division 4

Softball

School	Year	Division
Elmwood	1977	Single Division
Elmwood	1984	Class C
Pepin	1995	Division 3
Pepin	1998	Division 3

Boys Track & Field

School	Year	Division
Glenwood City	1982	Class C

List of conference champions

Boys Basketball

School	Quantity	Years
Elk Mound	26	1931, 1939, 1944, 1950, 1951, 1952, 1953, 1954, 1955, 1956, 1966, 1981, 1984, 1985, 1986, 1987, 1991, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 2013, 2014, 2016, 2017, 2023
Glenwood City	20	1939, 1940, 1941, 1946, 1947, 1949, 1982, 1983, 1984, 1988, 1989, 1992, 1996, 1997, 1998, 2000, 2001, 2003, 2005, 2006
Colfax	14	1971, 1972, 1973, 1977, 1978, 1979, 1980, 1992, 1995, 1999, 2011, 2012, 2015, 2019
Elmwood	13	1934, 1935, 1936, 1937, 1939, 1940, 1957, 1962, 1964, 1974, 1976, 1993, 2007
Boyceville	11	1932, 1933, 1938, 1942, 1945, 1957, 1961, 1963, 1990, 2001, 2002,
Spring Valley	8	1992, 1997, 1999, 2002, 2008, 2021, 2022, 2025
Baldwin	6	1938, 1941, 1942, 1944, 1945, 1948
St. Croix Central	6	1966, 1967, 1968, 1969, 1970, 2010
Durand-Arkansaw	5	2018, 2020, 2022, 2024, 2025
Prescott	4	1955, 1960, 1967, 2000
Mondovi	3	1998, 2004, 2009
Hammond	2	1947, 1957
Plum City	2	1958, 1965
Roberts	2	1953, 1955
Somerset	2	1975, 2000
Woodville	2	1946, 1959
Dunn County Aggies	1	1948
Elmwood/ Plum City	1	2015
Arkansaw	0
Downing	0
Pepin	0
Pepin/ Arkansaw	0

Girls Basketball

School	Quantity	Years
Colfax	22	1992, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022
Elk Mound	8	1988, 1990, 2000, 2016, 2017, 2023, 2024, 2025
Pepin	6	1979, 1980, 1982, 1983, 1985, 1986
Boyceville	5	1984, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005
Glenwood City	4	1990, 1991, 1992, 2002
Mondovi	4	1995, 1996, 1997, 2008
Spring Valley	4	1987, 1988, 1989, 2002
Durand-Arkansaw	3	2017, 2018, 2019
Plum City	2	1999, 2001
Prescott	2	1978, 1997
Somerset	2	1998, 2001
St. Croix Central	2	1981, 1998
Elmwood	1	1977
Arkansaw	0
Elmwood/ Plum City	0
Pepin/ Arkansaw	0

Football

School	Quantity	Years
Elk Mound	17	1970, 1985, 1986, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1992, 1993, 1995, 1999, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2009, 2012, 2017, 2018
Spring Valley	14	1972, 1973, 1974, 1975, 1978, 1981, 2000, 2001, 2015, 2018, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2024
Glenwood City	13	1938, 1939, 1940, 1979, 1983, 1984, 1985, 1994, 1996, 1997, 1998, 2005, 2007
Mondovi	10	1997, 1998, 1999, 2001, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2013, 2018, 2019
St. Croix Central	10	1965, 1966, 1968, 1969, 1976, 1987, 1988, 2006, 2011, 2014
Boyceville	9	1936, 1937, 1942, 1951, 1952, 1962, 1967, 1999, 2023
Elmwood	9	1941, 1957, 1960, 1961, 1963, 1966, 1971, 1977, 1982
Prescott	4	1979, 1980, 1996, 2000
Somerset	4	1957, 1958, 1959, 1995
Colfax	3	1984, 1998, 2006
Dunn County Aggies	2	1934, 1935
Durand-Arkansaw	1	2016
Lake Holcombe	1	1964
Baldwin	0
Cadott	0
Clear Lake	0
Elmwood/ Plum City	0
Hammond	0
Pepin	0
Pepin/ Arkansaw	0
Plum City	0
Plum City/ Pepin	0
Plum City/ Pepin/ Arkansaw	0
Prairie Farm	0
Roberts	0
Tony	0
Turtle Lake	0
Unity	0
Woodville	0

References

1. "Schedule 12 Tilts at Elk Mound High". Dunn County News. November 27, 1930. p. 20. Retrieved April 14, 2025.
2. "Little Eight Cards Games; Keeps Title". Eau Claire Leader-Telegram. October 1, 1931. p. 8. Retrieved April 14, 2025.
3. "Rivalry is Keen in Little League". Dunn County News. December 8, 1932. p. 9. Retrieved April 14, 2025.
4. "Dunn-St. Croix Is Set For Basketball". Dunn County News. October 28, 1937. p. 12. Retrieved April 14, 2025.
5. "Roberts, Baldwin Share Loop First". Dunn County News. January 13, 1938. p. 8. Retrieved April 14, 2025.
6. "Dunn-St. Croix League Starts 8-Man Football". Eau Claire Leader-Telegram. September 24, 1938. p. 8. Retrieved July 17, 2025.
7. "Aggies Sponsor 8-Man Football Team System". Eau Claire Leader-Telegram. September 22, 1937. p. 8. Retrieved July 17, 2025.
8. "Announce Closing of Downing High School". Eau Claire Leader-Telegram. April 15, 1944. p. 2. Retrieved April 14, 2025.
9. "Sports Sidelines". Eau Claire Leader-Telegram. April 11, 1948. p. 11. Retrieved April 14, 2025.
10. "Elk Mound, Elmwood, Roberts Gain Wins". Eau Claire Daily Telegram. December 8, 1951. p. 10. Retrieved April 14, 2025.
11. "Boyceville 11 Added to Leader Banquet Squads". Eau Claire Leader-Telegram. November 30, 1951. p. 10. Retrieved July 17, 2025.
12. "Heavy Slate Marks Area Grid Activity". Eau Claire Leader-Telegram. September 16, 1953. p. 19. Retrieved July 17, 2025.
13. "The Records (see Dunn-St. Croix standings)". Eau Claire Leader-Telegram. November 29, 1955. p. 14. Retrieved April 14, 2025.
14. "Elk Mound Invited To Join Cloverbelt". Chippewa Herald-Telegram. February 16, 1956. p. 1. Retrieved April 14, 2025.
15. "Seven Circuits See Action in Prep Grid Slate Tonight". Eau Claire Leader-Telegram. September 13, 1957. p. 11. Retrieved April 14, 2025.
16. "Final Class (photo inset caption)". Eau Claire Leader-Telegram. May 30, 1957. p. 3. Retrieved April 14, 2025.
17. "Four Games Today Start Dunn-St. Croix Title Race". Eau Claire Leader-Telegram. September 9, 1960. p. 13. Retrieved April 14, 2025.
18. "River Falls Rated Favorite in Middle Border Conference". Eau Claire Leader-Telegram. September 13, 1961. p. 11. Retrieved April 14, 2025.
19. "Dunn-St. Croix Opens Friday; Boyceville to Defend Crown". Eau Claire Leader-Telegram. November 16, 1961. p. 13. Retrieved April 14, 2025.
20. "Mounders to Play in Dunn-St. Croix". Eau Claire Leader-Telegram. February 26, 1961. p. 3. Retrieved April 14, 2025.
21. Hoffman, Arnie (December 16, 1960). "Let's Talk Sports (see Holcombe to 11-Man Football)". Chippewa Herald-Telegram. p. 7. Retrieved July 17, 2025.
22. "Taylor Five Falls 54-44 to Fairchild". La Crosse Tribune. December 12, 1964. p. 5. Retrieved April 14, 2025.
23. "Young Elk Mound Team May Surprise". Eau Claire Leader-Telegram. November 6, 1966. p. 16. Retrieved April 14, 2025.
24. "Dunn-St. Croix Opens Today, Has New Team, New Favorite". Eau Claire Leader-Telegram. September 1, 1967. p. 14. Retrieved April 14, 2025.
25. "Mondovi, Prescott Newcomers in Middle Border Grid Race". Eau Claire Leader-Telegram. September 2, 1970. pp. C4. Retrieved April 14, 2025.
26. "Elmwood Faces New Conference Challenge". Eau Claire Leader-Telegram. August 31, 1972. pp. B2. Retrieved April 14, 2025.
27. "Spring Valley again team to beat in D-SC". Eau Claire Leader-Telegram. September 1, 1977. pp. 3B. Retrieved April 14, 2025.
28. "Travelers to enter Dunn-SC basketball". Eau Claire Leader-Telegram. November 17, 1977. p. 15. Retrieved April 14, 2025.
29. "Middle Border campaign opens; Dairyland has key game". Eau Claire Leader-Telegram. September 8, 1977. pp. 3B. Retrieved April 14, 2025.
30. "Arkansaw, Pepin to form group to study joint athletic programs". Eau Claire Leader-Telegram. January 26, 1988. p. 10. Retrieved April 14, 2025.
31. "Elk Mound rolls past Elmwood". Chippewa Herald-Telegram. August 27, 1988. p. 14. Retrieved April 14, 2025.
32. Rupnow, Chuck (May 4, 1992). "Last waltz: School's prom is history". Eau Claire Leader-Telegram. p. 1. Retrieved April 14, 2025.
33. "Football, tennis teams excel". Dunn County News. January 2, 1994. p. 16. Retrieved April 14, 2025.
34. Mattson, Doug (November 18, 1994). "Mondovi looking good in the 'new' D-SC". Winona Daily News. pp. 2B. Retrieved July 17, 2025.
35. "WIAA approves conference realignment". Chippewa Herald-Telegram. April 8, 2001. p. 13. Retrieved April 14, 2025.
36. Brommerich, David L. (April 5, 2009). "Pepin, Alma enter co-op". Eau Claire Leader-Telegram. pp. B3. Retrieved April 14, 2025.
37. "Elmwood/Plum City Basketball History". MaxPreps. Retrieved April 14, 2025.
38. "Durand-Arkansaw Basketball History". MaxPreps. February 17, 2025. Retrieved April 14, 2025.
39. "EMSD will join Cloverbelt Conference in 2025-26". DeWitt Media. November 1, 2023. Retrieved April 14, 2025.
40. "Revised Football-Only Conference Plan Released". Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletic Association. February 9, 2019. Retrieved July 17, 2025.
41. "WFCA/WIAA Football-Only Realignment Proposal" (PDF). Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletic Association. February 6, 2019. Retrieved July 17, 2025.
42. "Proposed Football Only Conference Alignment - 11-Player" (PDF). Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletic Association. February 11, 2021. Retrieved July 17, 2025.
43. "2024-25 Conference Realignment Plan – 11-Player Football" (PDF). Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletic Association. December 14, 2023. Retrieved July 17, 2025.
44. "2026 - 27 Conference Realignment – 11-Player Football" (PDF). Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletic Association. December 10, 2024. Retrieved July 17, 2025.
45. "2026 - 27 Conference Realignment – 8-Player Football" (PDF). Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletic Association. December 10, 2024. Retrieved July 17, 2025.

External links

• Dunn-St.Croix Conference (official website)