Northern Lakes Conference (Wisconsin)

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The Northern Lakes Conference is a high school athletic conference with its membership base in northern Wisconsin. It was founded in 1927 and all members belong to the Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletic Association.

Contents

History

Land O' Lakes Conference (1927-1937)

The Northern Lakes Conference was originally formed in 1927 as Land O' Lakes Conference by eleven schools in northern Wisconsin: Argonne, Crandon, Eagle River, Elcho, Goodman, Hiles, Laona, Suring, Three Lakes, Wabeno and White Lake. [1] Phelps joined the conference after the first season, [2] and in 1929, Mountain entered the league as its thirteenth member. [3] Minocqua became a member of the Land O' Lakes Conference in 1932, [4] but membership stayed at thirteen schools due to Crandon's departure. [5] That number was decreased to eleven the next year, as Mountain and Suring left to join the Marinette & Oconto Conference. [6] Crandon reinstated their membership in the Land O' Lakes in 1934 to put the roster at twelve schools, and the conference subdivided into Northern and Southern Divisions: [7]

Northern DivisionSouthern Division
Eagle RiverArgonne
ElchoCrandon
HilesGoodman
MinocquaLaona
PhelpsWabeno
Three LakesWhite Lake

Name Change and Rural Consolidations (1937-1972)

In 1937, the Land O' Lakes Conference changed its name to the Northern Lakes Conference in order to avoid confusion with another conference of the same name. [8] Membership stayed at twelve schools until the start of World War II, when both Argonne [9] and Hiles [10] closed, with students for both schools being redistricted to Crandon. The conference competed as a ten-member loop until the addition of Woodruff-Arbor Vitae in 1950, bringing the membership roster to eleven schools. [11] In 1951, Goodman accepted an invitation to join the Marinette & Oconto Conference, [12] and Elcho shifted to the Southern Division to make five teams per division: [13]

Northern DivisionSouthern Division
Eagle RiverCrandon
MinocquaElcho
PhelpsLaona
Three LakesWabeno
Woodruff-Arbor VitaeWhite Lake

Divisional play was ended in 1954, [14] and in 1957, the number of schools in the Northern Lakes Conference decreased to eight as White Lake left for membership in the Wolf River Valley Conference [15] and Lakeland Union High School was created from the consolidation of Minocqua and Woodruff-Arbor Vitae. [16] [17] Lakeland Union's tenure in the Northern Lakes Conference turned out to be short-lived, as they only spent one season in the conference before joining with larger schools in the Lumberjack Conference in 1958. [18] Goodman rejoined the conference in 1960 after spending the previous few seasons as members of the disbanded Granite Valley Conference. [19] In 1964, the Northern Lakes Conference added Florence as a new member, who joined after exiting the Big Six Conference in Michigan's upper peninsula. [20]

Minor Adjustments and Cooperative Programs (1972-present)

In 1972, Pembine entered the Northern Lakes from the Michigan-based Skyline Conference [21] and White Lake rejoined after displacement from the defunct Wolf River Valley Conference two years prior. [22] Eagle River High School changed its name to Northland Pines High School in 1974 [23] when they built a new facility to relieve overcrowding, and they would leave the conference two years later for membership in the newly expanded Lumberjack Conference. [24] The Northern Lakes Conference remained a stable ten-school circuit for the next three decades before welcoming the Conserve School in Land o' Lakes into the fold in 2005. [25] Their stay would be relatively short, as they left the conference in 2009. [26] [27] The Northern Lakes Conference would see four programs consolidate into two at the beginning of the 2010s, first with Goodman and Pembine in 2011 [28] and then with Laona and Wabeno the next year. [29] White Lake left the conference for a second time to join the Central Wisconsin Conference in 2021, [30] bringing the membership roster to its current total of nine schools, four of which are part of cooperative programs due to size.

List of Conference Members

Current Members

SchoolLocationAffiliation Enrollment MascotColorsJoined
Crandon Crandon, WI Public239Cardinals  1927, [1] 1934 [7]
Elcho Elcho, WI Public83Hornets  1927 [1]
Florence Florence, WI Public118Bobcats  1964 [20]
Goodman/Pembine Goodman, WI/Pembine, WI Public98Patriots  2011 [28]
Phelps Phelps, WI Public28Fighting Knights  1928 [2]
Three Lakes Three Lakes, WI Public155Bluejays  1927 [1]
Wabeno/Laona Laona, WI/Wabeno, WI Public165Rebels  2012 [29]

Former Members

SchoolLocationAffiliation Enrollment MascotColorsJoinedLeftConference JoinedCurrent Conference
Argonne Argonne, WI PublicN/AOrange  1927 [1] 1942 [9] Closed in 1942 (consolidated into Crandon)
Goodman Goodman, WI Public30Falcons  1927, [1] 1960 [19] 1951, [12] 2011 [28] Marinette & Oconto Northern Lakes (coop with Pembine)
Hiles Hiles, WI PublicN/AUnknownUnknown1927 [1] 1943 [10] Closed in 1943 (consolidated into Crandon)
Laona Laona, WI Public66Fighting Kellys  1927 [1] 2012 [29] Northern Lakes (coop with Wabeno)
Northland Pines Eagle River, WI Public451Eagles  1927 [1] 1976 [24] Lumberjack Great Northern
Suring Suring, WI Public117Eagles  1927 [1] 1933 [6] Marinette & Oconto
Wabeno Wabeno, WI Public99Logrollers  1927 [1] 2012 [29] Northern Lakes (coop with Laona)
White Lake White Lake, WI Public43Lakers  1927, [1] 1972 [22] 1957, [15] 2021 [30] Independent, Central Wisconsin Central Wisconsin
Mountain Mountain, WI PublicN/AMountaineers  1929 [3] 1933 [6] Marinette & Oconto Closed in 1948 (consolidated into Suring)
Minocqua Minocqua, WI PublicN/AIslanders  1932 [4] 1957 [16] [17] Closed (merged into Lakeland Union)
Woodruff-Arbor Vitae Arbror Vitae, WI PublicN/AMuskies  1950 [11] 1957 [16] [17] Closed (merged into Lakeland Union)
Lakeland Union Minocqua, WI Public717Thunderbirds  1957 [16] [17] 1958 [18] Lumberjack Great Northern
Pembine Pembine, WI Public68Panthers  1972 [21] 2011 [28] Northern Lakes (coop with Goodman)
Conserve School Land o' Lakes, WI Private (Nonsectarian)N/ASteelers  2005 [25] 2009 [26] [27] IndependentClosed in 2020

Membership Timeline

Northern Lakes Conference (Wisconsin)

List of State Champions

Fall Sports

None

Winter Sports

Boys Basketball
SchoolYearDivision
Florence1989Class C

Spring Sports

Girls Track & Field
SchoolYearDivision
Florence1996Division 3

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References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 "The Lowdown (see Land O' Lakes League)". Rhinelander Daily News. 28 December 1927. p. 5. Retrieved 28 January 2025.
  2. 1 2 "Crandon Leads League". Rhinelander Daily News. 28 January 1929. p. 6. Retrieved 28 January 2025.
  3. 1 2 "Crandon Five Facing Eagle Netters Next". Rhinelander Daily News. 23 January 1930. p. 6. Retrieved 28 January 2025.
  4. 1 2 "The Lowdown (see Land O' Lakes)". Rhinelander Daily News. 19 March 1932. p. 5. Retrieved 28 January 2025.
  5. ↑ "Lakes League Opens Season". Rhinelander Daily News. 7 December 1932. p. 2. Retrieved 28 January 2025.
  6. 1 2 3 "Marinette-Oconto Loop to Meet at Wausaukee". Green Bay Press-Gazette. 15 March 1933. p. 9. Retrieved 28 January 2025.
  7. 1 2 "Leaders Play in Lakes Loop". Rhinelander Daily News. 18 December 1934. p. 6. Retrieved 29 January 2025.
  8. ↑ "Highlights in Sports". Rhinelander Daily News. 22 September 1937. p. 6. Retrieved 28 January 2025.
  9. 1 2 "Argonne High School Closed". Green Bay Press-Gazette. 24 September 1942. p. 11. Retrieved 28 January 2025.
  10. 1 2 "Hiles News". Forest Republican. 23 September 1943. p. 8. Retrieved 29 January 2025.
  11. 1 2 "Play Opens Tonight in Northern Lakes Loop". Rhinelander Daily News. 15 September 1950. p. 6. Retrieved 29 January 2025.
  12. 1 2 "M-O Loop Admits Granite Valley Schools, Goodman". Green Bay Press-Gazette. 19 April 1951. p. 43. Retrieved 24 January 2025.
  13. ↑ "White Lake Keeps Division Lead". Rhinelander Daily News. 15 December 1951. p. 6. Retrieved 29 January 2025.
  14. ↑ "Minocqua Looms as Likely Winner of NLC Crown". Rhinelander Daily News. 21 December 1954. p. 10. Retrieved 29 January 2025.
  15. 1 2 "Prep Cage Standings (see Northern Lakes and Wolf River Valley)". Wisconsin State Journal. 2 March 1958. p. 24. Retrieved 29 January 2025.
  16. 1 2 3 4 "School Progress Satisfactory in County - Paulson". Rhinelander Daily News. 18 November 1955. p. 8. Retrieved 29 January 2025.
  17. 1 2 3 4 "Registration Set for Lakeland High". Rhinelander Daily News. 4 September 1957. p. 3. Retrieved 29 January 2025.
  18. 1 2 "Lakeland Cagers Expected to Do Well in New Loop". Rhinelander Daily News. 18 November 1958. p. 8. Retrieved 29 January 2025.
  19. 1 2 "Wabeno Favored to Retain Crown in NLC Basketball". Rhinelander Daily News. 16 November 1960. p. 6. Retrieved 29 January 2025.
  20. 1 2 Crandall, Ray (27 March 1964). "In This Corner". Escanaba Daily Press. p. 9. Retrieved 29 January 2025.
  21. 1 2 "Jets Sail Past Pembine, 64-50". Escanaba Daily Press. 18 November 1972. p. 8. Retrieved 29 January 2025.
  22. 1 2 Kloppenburg, Dick (13 April 1972). "Poor Richard's Sports Almanac". Wausau Daily Herald. p. 19. Retrieved 29 January 2025.
  23. ↑ "School bonds approved". Wausau Daily Herald. 17 July 1974. p. 26. Retrieved 29 January 2025.
  24. 1 2 "Papers, Apaches Shifted to Lumberjack". Wisconsin Rapids Daily Tribune. 27 June 1975. p. 6. Retrieved 29 January 2025.
  25. 1 2 Stapleton, Arnie (12 December 2005). "'Stormin' Norman' slows down". La Crosse Tribune. pp. B-1, B-4. Retrieved 29 January 2025.
  26. 1 2 "Standings and Statistics (see Northern Lakes)". Green Bay Press-Gazette. 8 January 2009. p. 16. Retrieved 29 January 2025.
  27. 1 2 "Standings, Statistics (see Northern Lakes)". Green Bay Press-Gazette. 7 January 2010. p. 19. Retrieved 29 January 2025.
  28. 1 2 3 4 "Goodman-Pembine Basketball History". MaxPreps. 29 January 2025. Retrieved 29 January 2025.
  29. 1 2 3 4 "Wabeno/Laona Basketball History". MaxPreps. 29 January 2025. Retrieved 29 January 2025.
  30. 1 2 "White Lake Basketball History". MaxPreps. 29 January 2025. Retrieved 29 January 2025.
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