Southwest Wisconsin Activities League

The Southwest Wisconsin Activities League is a high school athletic conference with its membership concentrated in southwestern Wisconsin. Founded in 1926, all league members (past and present) are affiliated with the Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletic Association.

History

1926-1961

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Location of Original Southwest Wisconsin Athletic League Members

The Southwest Wisconsin Activities League, originally known as the Southwest Wisconsin Athletic League, was formed in 1926 by a group of ten small- to medium-sized high schools in southwestern Wisconsin. ^[1] Original members were Cuba City, Darlington, Dodgeville, Fennimore, Lancaster, Mineral Point, Monroe, Monticello, Mount Horeb and Platteville. Monticello would only be a member during the league's first season, after which they left to become a charter member of the newly formed State Line League. ^[2] A year later, Monroe would make its exit from the SWAL to help form the new Southern Six Conference. ^[3] Conference membership remained at eight until 1935, when Boscobel and Prairie du Chien joined the conference. ^[4] The SWAL maintained this alignment for the next twenty-six years, until expansion caused the league to undergo its first membership split.

1961-1987

The consolidation of rural school districts in southwestern Wisconsin and the resulting creation of larger high schools coincided with the expansion of the Southwest Wisconsin Athletic League. Two newly created high schools joined the conference in 1961, bringing membership to twelve: Iowa-Grant High School in Livingston and West Grant High School in Patch Grove. ^[5] Three years later, Muscoda High School and River Valley High School in Spring Green joined, bringing membership to fourteen. In 1967, Muscoda merged with Blue River of the Kickapoo Valley League to form the new Riverdale High School, inheriting their predecessor's affiliation with the SWAL. ^[6] Membership was also subdivided into North and South Sections that year: ^[7]

North Section	South Section
Boscobel	Cuba City
Fennimore	Darlington
Iowa-Grant	Dodgeville
Prairie du Chien	Lancaster
River Valley	Mineral Point
Riverdale	Mount Horeb
West Grant	Platteville

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Location of Southwest Wisconsin Athletic League Members (1969-1971)

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Location of Southwest Wisconsin Athletic League Members (1971-1987)

West Grant left the conference in 1969 to join the Black Hawk League and were replaced by Viroqua (formerly of the South Central Conference). ^[8] In 1970, Richland Center High School was accepted for the 1971-72 school year as the SWAL's fifteenth member school. ^[9] They were placed in the league's North Section, with Iowa-Grant shifting to the South Section to accommodate the expansion:

North Section	South Section
Boscobel	Cuba City
Fennimore	Darlington
Prairie du Chien	Dodgeville
Richland Center	Iowa-Grant
River Valley	Lancaster
Riverdale	Mineral Point
Viroqua	Mount Horeb
	Platteville

The SWAL never competed in this new alignment, though. Soon after Richland Center joined, the schools in the league's South Section left to form the new Southern Eight Conference. ^[10] The remaining schools in the SWAL's North Section continued as a seven-member circuit for sixteen years.

1987-2005

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Location of Southwest Wisconsin Athletic League Members (1987-2005)

In 1987, the Southern Eight Conference merged with the SWAL to create a fourteen-member conference. ^[11] All original Southern Eight members (with the exception of Mount Horeb, who left the Southern Eight in 1983) rejoined the league, with Southwestern High School in Hazel Green making their SWAL debut. Viroqua also left the SWAL to join the Coulee Conference that year. With conference expansion came subdivision by enrollment into large (Division 1) and small school (Division 2) divisions:

SWAL Division 1	SWAL Division 2
Cuba City	Boscobel
Dodgeville	Darlington
Lancaster	Fennimore
Platteville	Iowa-Grant
Prairie du Chien	Mineral Point
Richland Center	Riverdale
River Valley	Southwestern

With the exception of Cuba City and Boscobel swapping divisions in 2003, ^[12] this divisional alignment remained intact for the next eighteen years before the SWAL split its membership for a second time.

2005-present

In 2005, six members of SWAL Division 1 (Dodgeville, Lancaster, Platteville, Prairie du Chien, Richland Center and River Valley) left the league to form the new Southwest Wisconsin Conference. The original league's name was changed to its current name (the Southwest Wisconsin Activities League) as part of the breakup, and the eight remaining members (Boscobel, Cuba City, Darlington, Fennimore, Iowa-Grant, Mineral Point, Riverdale and Southwestern) have maintained a stable eight-school circuit to the present day. ^[13]

Football (since 2005)

Football membership in the Southwest Wisconsin Activities League has mirrored its all-sport membership for most of its history, with the exception of a two-year period where Riverdale played as independents from 1985 to 1986. ^{[14] [15]} After the SWC/SWAL split in 2005, the same eight members played as a football conference until the 2016 season, when Riverdale was shifted to the Ridge & Valley Conference to play with schools more in line with its size. ^[16] Boscobel and Southwestern were moved to the Six Rivers Conference for the 2019 season, ^[17] and three associate members replaced them: Aquinas (Mississippi Valley), Lancaster (SWC) and Luther (Coulee). ^[18] That same year, the WIAA and WFCA collaborated to realign Wisconsin's high school football conferences, starting with the 2020 season. ^[19] The plan for that season was to move Belleville and Parkview/Albany into the SWAL from the Capitol South and Trailways Large to replace Iowa-Grant's exit to the Six Rivers Conference, who would serve as the SWAL's scheduling partner. ^[20] Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, the SWAL and SWC decided to join forces and their football season to the spring 2021 alternate season approved by the WIAA as an option for schools who didn't want to compete in the regular fall 2020 season. ^[21] The original realignment was finally implemented for the fall 2021 football season and remained in place for the 2022-2023 competition cycle with the exception of Lancaster's return to the SWC as football members. ^[22] In 2024, Parkview/Albany was realigned to the Trailways Conference for football, with the Benton/Scales Mound/Shullsburg and Southwestern/East Dubuque cooperative programs joining to take their place. The Abundant Life Christian/St. Ambrose Academy joint program in Madison was also slated to join after a proposed transition to eleven-player football, but backed out before the season started to remain in the eight-player division. ^[23] An eighth member is planned to join the SWAL for the 2026-2027 alignment cycle, as New Glarus is set to join the football roster from the Southwest Wisconsin Conference. ^[24]

List of member schools

Current members

School	Location	Affiliation	Enrollment	Mascot	Colors	Joined
Boscobel	Boscobel, WI	Public	212	Bulldogs		1935 [4]
Cuba City	Cuba City, WI	Public	273	Cubans		1926, [1] 1987 [11]
Darlington	Darlington, WI	Public	280	Redbirds		1926, [1] 1987 [11]
Fennimore	Fennimore, WI	Public	223	Golden Eagles		1926 [1]
Iowa-Grant	Livingston, WI	Public	204	Panthers		1961, [5] 1987 [11]
Mineral Point	Mineral Point, WI	Public	245	Pointers		1926, [1] 1987 [11]
Riverdale	Muscoda, WI	Public	202	Chieftains		1967 [6]
Southwestern	Hazel Green, WI	Public	162	Wildcats		1987 [11]

Current football-only members

School	Location	Affiliation	Enrollment	Mascot	Colors	Joined	Primary Conference
Belleville	Belleville, WI	Public	279	Wildcats		2020	CYTBN (2025)
Benton/ Scales Mound/ Shullsburg	Benton, WI	Public	235	Knights		2024	Six Rivers, Northwest Upstate Illini (IHSA)
Southwestern/ East Dubuque	Hazel Green, WI	Public	342	WarCats		2024	SWAL, Northwest Upstate Illini (IHSA)

Future football-only members

School	Location	Affiliation	Enrollment	Mascot	Colors	Joining	Primary Conference
New Glarus	New Glarus, WI	Public	323	Glarner Knights		2026	CYTBN (2025)

Former members

School	Location	Affiliation	Enrollment	Mascot	Colors	Joined	Left	Conference Joined	Current Conference
Dodgeville	Dodgeville, WI	Public	375	Dodgers		1926, [1] 1987 [11]	1971, [10] 2005 [13]	Southern Eight, SWC	Southwest Wisconsin
Lancaster	Lancaster, WI	Public	295	Flying Arrows		1926, [1] 1987 [11]	1971, [10] 2005 [13]	Southern Eight, SWC	Southwest Wisconsin
Monroe	Monroe, WI	Public	742	Cheesemakers		1926 [1]	1928 [3]	Southern Six	Rock Valley
Monticello	Monticello, WI	Public	98	Ponies		1926 [1]	1927 [2]	State Line	Six Rivers
Mount Horeb	Mount Horeb, WI	Public	792	Vikings		1926 [1]	1971 [10]	Southern Eight	Badger
Platteville	Platteville, WI	Public	513	Hillmen		1926, [1] 1987 [11]	1971, [10] 2005 [13]	Southern Eight, SWC	Southwest Wisconsin
Prairie du Chien	Prairie du Chien, WI	Public	343	Blackhawks		1935 [4]	2005 [13]	Southwest Wisconsin
West Grant	Patch Grove, WI	Public	N/A	Falcons		1961 [5]	1969 [8]	Black Hawk	Closed in 1995 (merged into River Ridge) [25]
Muscoda	Muscoda, WI	Public	N/A	Indians		1964 [7]	1967	Closed in 1967 (merged into Riverdale)
River Valley	Spring Green, WI	Public	389	Blackhawks		1964 [7]	2005 [13]	Southwest Wisconsin
Viroqua	Viroqua, WI	Public	339	Blackhawks		1969 [8]	1987	Coulee
Richland Center	Richland Center, WI	Public	418	Hornets		1971 [9]	2005 [13]	Southwest Wisconsin

Former football-only members

School	Location	Affiliation	Enrollment	Mascot	Colors	Seasons	Primary Conference
Aquinas	La Crosse, WI	Private (Catholic)	307	Blugolds		2019	Mississippi Valley
Lancaster	Lancaster, WI	Public	295	Flying Arrows		2019-2021	Southwest Wisconsin
Luther	Onalaska, WI	Private (Lutheran, WELS)	228	Knights		2019	Coulee
Parkview/ Albany	Orfordville, WI	Public	318	Vikings		2020-2023	Trailways/Six Rivers

Membership timeline

Full members

 North Section South Section SWAL Division 1 SWAL Division 2

Football members (since 2005)

Membership map

Southwest Wisconsin Activities League

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8

7

6

5

4

3

2

1

   

Location of SWAL full members:

1

Boscobel

2

Cuba City

3

Darlington

4

Fennimore

5

Iowa-Grant

6

Mineral Point

7

Riverdale

8

Southwestern

List of state champions

Fall sports

Boys Cross Country

School	Year	Division
Dodgeville	1967	Small Schools
Fennimore	1974	Class C
Fennimore	1977	Class C
Fennimore	1978	Class C
Fennimore	1979	Class C
Fennimore	1980	Class C
Fennimore	1981	Class C
Fennimore	1991	Division 3
Iowa-Grant	2000	Division 3
Boscobel	2003	Division 3
Darlington	2011	Division 3
Darlington	2012	Division 3
Darlington	2013	Division 3
Darlington	2014	Division 3
Darlington	2015	Division 3
Darlington	2016	Division 3

Girls Cross Country

School	Year	Division
Prairie du Chien	1975	Single Division
Fennimore	1980	Class C
Fennimore	1981	Class C
Fennimore	1981	Class C
Cuba City/Southwestern	1997	Division 2
Fennimore	2001	Division 3
Boscobel	2002	Division 3
Boscobel	2004	Division 3
Dodgeville/Mineral Point	2005	Division 2
Dodgeville/Mineral Point	2006	Division 2
Boscobel	2007	Division 3
Dodgeville/Mineral Point	2010	Division 2
Dodgeville/Mineral Point	2011	Division 2
Dodgeville/Mineral Point	2012	Division 2
Darlington	2016	Division 2
Boscobel	2021	Division 3
Dodgeville/Mineral Point	2021	Division 2

Football

School	Year	Division
Darlington	1987	Division 5
Darlington	1990	Division 5
Darlington	1991	Division 5
Lancaster	1993	Division 4
Darlington	1995	Division 4
Lancaster	2000	Division 4
Lancaster	2001	Division 4
Lancaster	2002	Division 4

Girls Volleyball

School	Year	Division
Richland Center	1987	Class B
Iowa-Grant	1989	Class C
Platteville	1994	Division 2
Dodgeville	1995	Division 3
Dodgeville	1996	Division 3
Iowa-Grant	1997	Division 3
Dodgeville	1999	Division 3

Winter sports

Boys Basketball

School	Year	Division
Dodgeville	1964	Single Division
Darlington	1990	Class C
Cuba City	1991	Division 3
Cuba City	1998	Division 3
Mineral Point	2024	Division 4

Girls Basketball

School	Year	Division
Cuba City	1990	Class B
Cuba City	1991	Division 3
Prairie du Chien	1991	Division 2
Cuba City	1993	Division 3
Cuba City	2005	Division 3
Cuba City	2006	Division 3
Cuba City	2007	Division 3
Cuba City	2010	Division 3
Cuba City	2014	Division 4
Cuba City	2015	Division 4
Mineral Point	2016	Division 4
Mineral Point	2022	Division 4
Cuba City	2025	Division 4

Gymnastics

School	Year	Division
Platteville/Belmont	1994	Division 2
Cuba City/Southwestern	1995	Division 2
Cuba City/Southwestern	1996	Division 2
Cuba City/Southwestern	1999	Division 2
Cuba City/Southwestern	2000	Division 2

Boys Wrestling

School	Year	Division
River Valley	1982	Class B
River Valley	1984	Class B
River Valley	1989	Class B
Lancaster	1990	Class B
Riverdale	1990	Class C
Riverdale	1992	Class C
Riverdale	1997	Division 3
Mineral Point	2002	Division 3
Mineral Point	2003	Division 3
Iowa-Grant	2004	Division 3
Mineral Point	2007	Division 3
Mineral Point	2008	Division 3
Mineral Point	2009	Division 3
Fennimore	2016	Division 3
Fennimore	2019	Division 3
Mineral Point	2021	Division 3
Fennimore	2022	Division 3
Fennimore	2023	Division 3
Fennimore	2024	Division 3
Mineral Point	2025	Division 3

Spring sports

Baseball

School	Year	Division
Boscobel	1987	Class C
Prairie du Chien	1993	Division 2
Cuba City	2022	Division 3

Boys Golf

School	Year	Division
River Valley	1997	Division 2
Cuba City	2012	Division 3
Mineral Point	2024	Division 3

Softball

School	Year	Division
River Valley	1985	Class B
River Valley	1986	Class B
Mineral Point	2013	Division 3
Dodgeville	2021	Division 3

Boys Track & Field

School	Year	Division
Platteville	1929	Class B
Platteville	1957	Class B
Mineral Point	1961	Class C
Mineral Point	1962	Class C
Platteville	1988	Class B
Boscobel	1989	Class C
Platteville	1989	Class B
Lancaster/Potosi	1998	Division 2
Fennimore	2009	Division 3

Girls Track & Field

School	Year	Division
Prairie du Chien	1975	Class B
Prairie du Chien	1976	Class B
Prairie du Chien	1977	Class B
Prairie du Chien	1978	Class B
Richland Center	1983	Class B
Dodgeville/Mineral Point	2015	Division 2

Summer Sports

Baseball

School	Year	Division
Platteville	1967	Single Division

List of conference champions

Boys Basketball

School	Quantity	Years
Cuba City	23	1929, 1938, 1949, 1953, 1957, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1992, 1993, 1995, 1998, 1999, 2004, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2020, 2022
Platteville	22	1927, 1919, 1930, 1931, 1932, 1937, 1939, 1942, 1943, 1944, 1945, 1946, 1950, 1954, 1955, 1956, 1961, 1965, 1966, 1967, 1968, 1997
Prairie du Chien	16	1938, 1942, 1944, 1945, 1947, 1948, 1975, 1976, 1977, 1978, 1981, 1986, 1987, 2000, 2001, 2002
Mineral Point	15	1934, 1935, 1941, 1988, 1991, 1992, 1999, 2000, 2003, 2014, 2015, 2018, 2022, 2024, 2025
Dodgeville	14	1940, 1947, 1952, 1958, 1959, 1963, 1964, 1968, 1969, 1993, 1994, 2003, 2004, 2005
Darlington	13	1960, 1961, 1990, 1994, 1996, 2005, 2010, 2011, 2017, 2019, 2021, 2023, 2024
Fennimore	9	1935, 1951, 1987, 1992, 1993, 1997, 1998, 2002, 2006
Richland Center	6	1973, 1974, 1979, 1980, 1984, 1996
Iowa-Grant	4	1969, 1989, 1995, 2016
Lancaster	4	1932, 1962, 1966, 1988
Mount Horeb	4	1928, 1933, 1936, 1958
Viroqua	4	1972, 1982, 1983, 1985
Boscobel	3	1941, 1999, 2000
Southwestern	2	2000, 2001
River Valley	1	1970
Riverdale	1	1971
Monroe	0
Monticello	0
Muscoda	0
West Grant	0

Girls Basketball

School	Quantity	Years
Cuba City	26	1988, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2017, 2020, 2023, 2024, 2025
Mineral Point	14	1989, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1997, 1999, 2003, 2016, 2017, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2025
Prairie du Chien	9	1978, 1981, 1983, 1985, 1986, 1994, 1995, 1998, 1999
Richland Center	9	1984, 1987, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005
Fennimore	6	1980, 1981, 1991, 1992, 2011, 2012
Darlington	5	1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2018
Southwestern	4	1990, 1994, 1996, 2002
Iowa-Grant	2	1988, 1995
Boscobel	1	1988
Lancaster	1	2005
River Valley	1	1986
Riverdale	1	1982
Viroqua	1	1979
Dodgeville	0
Platteville	0

Football

School	Quantity	Years
Darlington	38	1929, 1932, 1933, 1946, 1949, 1950, 1951, 1952, 1956, 1957, 1958, 1960, 1962, 1970, 1987, 1989, 1990, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2004, 2005, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2021, 2022, 2023
Platteville	19	1927, 1928, 1933, 1936, 1938, 1939, 1942, 1943, 1944, 1964, 1967, 1969, 1987, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2004
Prairie du Chien	17	1935, 1940, 1941, 1947, 1961, 1971, 1973, 1975, 1976, 1977, 1978, 1979, 1981, 1983, 1984, 1985, 1988
Lancaster	16	1926, 1930, 1931, 1937, 1947, 1948, 1953, 1965, 1989, 1990, 1994, 1997, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002
Cuba City	10	1935, 1959, 1961, 1998, 2003, 2007, 2009, 2012, 2017, 2024
Dodgeville	5	1934, 1951, 1958, 1963, 2003
Fennimore	7	1928, 1970, 1972, 1982, 1992, 2006, 2008
Mineral Point	6	1934, 1967, 1991, 2017, 2018, 2019
River Valley	5	1966, 1973, 1979, 1980, 1981
Boscobel	4	1940, 1954, 1955, 1968
Iowa-Grant	4	1988, 1993, 2005, 2009
Richland Center	4	1974, 1986, 1990, 1991
Mount Horeb	3	1945, 1948, 1966
Viroqua	3	1974, 1975, 1979
Southwestern	1	2006
Aquinas	0
Belleville	0
Benton/ Scales Mound/ Shullsburg	0
Luther	0
Monroe	0
Monticello	0
Muscoda	0
Parkview/ Albany	0
Riverdale	0
West Grant	0
Southwestern/ East Dubuque	0

References

1. "S.W. Wisconsin League Books Grid, Cage Games". Wisconsin State Journal. September 21, 1926. p. 17. Retrieved December 10, 2024.
2. "Eight Schools Organize New Sports League". The Capital Times. October 14, 1927. p. 12. Retrieved December 10, 2024.
3. "11 Tilts Booked in New Circuit". The Stoughton Courier. September 17, 1928. p. 6. Retrieved December 10, 2024.
4. "Southwest League Adds Two Teams". Wisconsin State Journal. March 1, 1935. p. 11. Retrieved December 10, 2024.
5. Cornelius, Lew (September 2, 1961). "Iowa-Grant, West Grant Join SWAL". The Capital Times. p. 13. Retrieved December 10, 2024.
6. "Riverdale School Dist. Meets Monday; Will Elect Nine-Member Board". The Boscobel Dial. August 17, 1967. p. 6. Retrieved May 12, 2025.
7. "SWAL Divided Into Two Sections; Muscoda, River Valley Are Added". The Boscobel Dial. September 10, 1964. p. 12. Retrieved December 10, 2024.
8. "SWAL Split Into Two Sections With Addition of Viroqua High". The Boscobel Dial. January 30, 1969. p. 12. Retrieved December 10, 2024.
9. "Richland Center Joins Big SWAL". La Crosse Tribune. March 24, 1970. p. 12. Retrieved December 10, 2024.
10. "New Conference Is Southern Eight". Wisconsin State Journal. December 18, 1970. p. 22. Retrieved December 12, 2024.
11. "SWAL, Southern Eight combined as one league". The Boscobel Dial. December 18, 1986. p. 17. Retrieved December 10, 2024.
12. Jackson, Lauren (January 23, 2003). "Move to SWAL 1 called a 'moot' point". The Boscobel Dial. p. 1. Retrieved December 10, 2024.
13. Hernandez, Rob (August 28, 2005). "Off and Running (and Blocking)". Wisconsin State Journal. p. 24. Retrieved December 10, 2024.
14. Lamm, Michael (August 28, 1985). "Prairie du Chien aims to defend league title". La Crosse Tribune. p. 17. Retrieved June 30, 2025.
15. "Iowa-Grant gets big boost in small SWAL". Wisconsin State Journal. August 30, 1987. pp. 65 (Football '87 insert). Retrieved June 30, 2025.
16. Martin, Erin (October 15, 2015). "Riverdale approves football conference change". SWNews4u.com. Retrieved June 30, 2025.
17. Krebs, Adam (August 9, 2019). "Realignment looms as practice begins". The Monroe Times. Retrieved June 30, 2025.
18. "WIAA approves football-only realignment plan for southwest Wisconsin schools". SWNews4u.com. May 2, 2018. Retrieved June 30, 2025.
19. "Revised Football-Only Conference Plan Released". Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletic Association. February 9, 2019. Retrieved June 30, 2025.
20. "WFCA/WIAA Football-Only Realignment Proposal" (PDF). Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletic Association. February 6, 2019. Retrieved June 30, 2025.
21. "Football - Teams - 2020 Spring Alternate Regular Season (see COVID Spring-Large and COVID Spring-Small standings)". Wisconsin Sports Network. Retrieved June 30, 2025.
22. "Proposed Football Only Conference Alignment - 11-Player" (PDF). Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletic Association. February 11, 2021. Retrieved June 30, 2025.
23. "2024-25 Conference Realignment Plan – 11-Player Football" (PDF). Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletic Association. December 14, 2023. Retrieved June 30, 2025.
24. "2026 - 27 Conference Realignment – 11-Player Football" (PDF). Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletic Association. December 10, 2024. Retrieved June 30, 2025.
25. "News from around the area (Lancaster)". The Boscobel Dial. October 20, 1994. p. 12. Retrieved December 10, 2024.

External links

• Southwest Wisconsin Activities League (official site)