The Wyoming High School Activities Association approved a reclassification starting in the 2018-19 school year that affects volleyball, girls and boys basketball and track and field.
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CASPER – The Wyoming High School Activities Association approved a reclassification starting in the 2018-19 school year that affects volleyball, girls and boys basketball and track and field.
Currently, the 13 biggest schools in Wyoming, according to average daily membership numbers, are in 4A for those sports, with the next 16 teams making up 3A, with 20 teams in 2A and the rest of the schools sliding in to 1A. The new classes starting next year have 16 teams in 4A, 3A and 2A, with the rest of the schools still in 1A.
“Travel was part of it and ease of scheduling, especially for the larger schools,” Mike Lashley, a member of the ad hoc reclassification committee for the WHSAA, said of the change. “By putting 16 in 4A, it’s a lot easier for them to fill a schedule.”
The three biggest schools in 3A now move up to 4A to fill the 16 slots. Three schools from 2A move up to 3A, and one school drops from 2A to 3A. This plan was also adopted to try and help the equity of competition. The bigger schools in 3A and 2A now have to move up, allowing the smaller schools in each of those classes to compete against other programs that are closer in size.
“Normally a proposal upsets the 4A schools and 1A schools, but in this case, the 4A’s were the ones who liked this idea originally,” Lashley said of the reclassification. “The 1A’s like it because it means pretty much nothing. The smaller schools in 2A and 3A liked it, so it got enough votes to pass.”
With the reclassification change, the top three classes now have 16 teams. Recently, activities directors, volleyball and basketball coaches decided which schools to put into which conferences and quadrants.
“By splitting into groups of 16, we can actually split into quadrants,” Lashley said. “The quadrant idea hopefully allows for less travel.
Among the local teams, no one is moving up or down a class, but some of their quadrant opponents change.
Wheatland remains in the 3A for the upcoming school year and will share the southeast quadrant with Torrington, who is in the Bulldogs’ quadrant currently. Burns and Rawlins are set to join the Bulldogs and Blazers in the southeast quadrant. Newcastle and Douglas currently round out the quadrant with Torrington and Wheatland, but the Bearcats and Dogies are moving into the northeast quadrant.
Guernsey-Sunrise, Glendo and Chugwater will all remain in the southeast quadrant in 1A with Lingle-Fort Laramie, Rock River and Hanna-Elk Mountain.
