Sandusky Bay Conference extends invites to 6 Northern Ohio League schools

Two longtime area high school league stalwarts in what has been an ever-changing climate of movements, disbandings and now growth, will soon be joined at the hip.Each formed in the 1940s, the Sandusky Bay Conference and Northern Ohio League — two of Ohio's oldest high school athletic leagues — have withstood the test of time, time and time again over the last few decades, despite even hemorrhaging league members at given periods.But as of Wednesday, time has ran out on one, while the other only gets bigger and stronger.Both leagues announced Wednesday morning via press releases that the SBC has extended invitations to six NOL schools — Bellevue, Norwalk, Sandusky, Shelby, Tiffin Columbian and Willard — for the 2017-18 academic year, bringing an end to a league that formed back in 1944.Already expanding to 15 member schools in 2016-17, this latest development would push the SBC's league membership total to 21 schools.Ontario, the NOL's seventh league school, announced on March 8 that it accepted a bid to join the Mid Ohio Athletic Conference."There's been conversations about this over the years, but I think things really started to pick up in the fall with the SBC looking to expand. And the second step in that expansion was to go to a three-division format," Bellevue Principal and NOL President Nate Artino said. "I know the SBC hasn't released those divisions yet. They're waiting for all the schools to approve that, but it's no secret that we're looking at three different divisions, and I'm not going to get into specifics of who is where … I'll let them release that."But step one was looking at two divisions, which they're going to do next year. Then step two was going to three divisions, which will encompass more of the area," he added. "From Vermilion to Fostoria, then from Oak Harbor to Shelby, it's pretty awesome to think about."On December 10, 2014, the SBC announced it was expanding from seven to 15 member schools in a two-division format for the 2016-17 school year. That would include current Sandusky River League schools — St. Mary Central Catholic, Fremont St. Joseph Central Catholic, Lakota, Old Fort, Fostoria St. Wendelin and New Riegel, along with Tiffin Calvert from the Toledo Area Athletic Conference and Vermilion, which has been competing as an independent.The current SBC consists of Clyde, Edison, Huron, Margaretta, Oak Harbor, Perkins and Port Clinton. The conference went from eight to seven schools at the start of the 2014-15 school year as SMCC ended a 64-year run in the SBC to join the newly-formed SRL.Bellevue, Norwalk, Willard, Bucyrus, Crestline, Galion, Shelby and Upper Sandusky were the original eight members of the NOL."We're sad … 73 years we've been in the NOL," Artino said. "I grew up playing in the NOL at Bellevue in the 1990s. I loved the traditions and rivalries that we created. We'll forever cherish all of those."But on the other hand, we're really excited about the opportunities that exist moving forward for our students in the SBC," he added.Sandusky joined the NOL in 2011 after the Greater Buckeye Conference disbanded. Columbian joined in 1954 when Crestline left, while Ontario came on board in 2013 before the North Central Conference folded in 2014."We're excited about the opportunity," Sandusky Athletic Director Shawn Coakley said. "We believe from Sandusky's point of view that No. 1, it provides some great quality rivalries. And moving forward, we think it has the potential to be one of the premier athletic leagues in all of Ohio. We're excited to be a part of it."Next year's SBC expansion will consist of two divisions that will divide schools by enrollment size. The larger schools will make up the Bay Division, with the River Division consisting of the smaller ones. The divisional lineup will vary depending on the sport, with Margaretta playing in the River Division for football and wrestling, and in the the Bay Division for all other sports. New Riegel and Old Fort do not have football or wrestling.Both the Bay and River Division will operate more-or-less at two separate leagues under a single parent umbrella, and will crown two separate champions in each sport. There will be no forced crossovers in football and inter-divisional games will not count toward conference records.It is believed the three-division format would run similar to the two-divisional one that'll begin in the fall. The SRL schools already competed against the SBC schools in both the wrestling and swimming championships this winter."There's a lot of opportunities there within the conference, not only for athletics, but maybe academic challenges … there's a bunch of different things you can do," Artino said.SBC President William J. Webb, also principal of Clyde High School, declined to go into details as the boards of education of each invited school have yet to formally accept the SBC's invitations.Webb is expected to send out another press release once final word on school commitments and divisional breakdowns become official.Meanwhile, the NOL will be writing its final few chapters as the league will have its farewell tour between now and the fall of 2017."There's been a lot of changes in leagues across the state of Ohio for a handful of years here, including our conference 14 years ago when Bucyrus, Galion and Upper Sandusky left, then you had schools like Fostoria who joined for a little bit," Artino said. "I don't want to say it's the times we're living in, but things change."School districts need change sometimes," he added. "And when there is an opportunity to band together and do something as awesome as what this opportunity presents, it can be a great thing."Northern Ohio League member Bellevue and Sandusky Bay Conference member Perkins compete against each other during an Aug. 28, 2015 football game in Perkins Twp. The two could soon be competing against each other in conference play as the SBC formally invited six NOL schools to join the league for the 2017-18 academic year. Northern League member Sandusky and Sandusky Bay Conference member Perkins compete against each other during a Dec. 11, 2015 game in Perkins Twp. The two will soon be in the same league as the SBC formally invited six NOL schools to join the conference Wednesday.Register photo/ANGELA WILHELM Perkins' Seth Boggs carries the ball in Friday's game against Sandusky.