Mid-Continent League
Encyclopedia
The Mid-Continent League, (MCL), is a league of member schools of the Kansas State High School Activities Association
. The league was formed in 1947 by six high schools in small towns in northwest Kansas
. Today, the league consists of nine schools, none of which are above Class 3A in enrollment. The current members of the MCL have all been in the league since at least the 1977-78 school year, and three schools--Hill City, Plainville and Stockton--have been in the league continuously since its formation.
The MCL is known for its highly competitive football
teams. MCL schools have won 22 state championships, eight by the Smith Center Redmen. The Redmen won five consecutive Class 2-1A state championships from 2004 through 2008 and won 79 consecutive games before losing the 2009 championship game to Centralia in overtime. In 1985, the MCL became the first, and through 2008 only, league to produce three state football champions in the same season: Norton (4A), Plainville (3A) and Victoria (2-1A).
Hill City and Stockton switched to Eight-man football
in 2008 due to declining enrollment. Under KSHSAA bylaws, a school may play 8-man football if it has 100 students or fewer in grades 9, 10 and 11 when it is classified in September of odd-numbered years. Osborne and Trego will switch to 8-man in 2010.
Wrestling
is a sport which draws great interest throughout the MCL. League schools have 16 state championships, 11 by the Norton Community Bluejays, including the 2010 and 2011 Class 3-2-1A titles, and three in a row from 2007-09 by Smith Center.
The MCL also sponsors basketball
, volleyball
, cross country
, golf
(boys only) and tennis
(girls only). It also holds non-athletic competition in music, speech and debate and quiz bowl.
NOTE: Victoria won the 8-man Division II state championship in 2006 after it left the MCL.
NOTE: Norton was a member of the Northwest Kansas League prior to the 1977-78 school year.
Kansas State High School Activities Association
The Kansas State High School Activities Association is the organization which oversees interscholastic competition in the state of Kansas at the high school level. It oversees both athletic and non-athletic competition, and sponsors championships in several sports and activities.The KSHSAA was...
. The league was formed in 1947 by six high schools in small towns in northwest Kansas
Kansas
Kansas is a US state located in the Midwestern United States. It is named after the Kansas River which flows through it, which in turn was named after the Kansa Native American tribe, which inhabited the area. The tribe's name is often said to mean "people of the wind" or "people of the south...
. Today, the league consists of nine schools, none of which are above Class 3A in enrollment. The current members of the MCL have all been in the league since at least the 1977-78 school year, and three schools--Hill City, Plainville and Stockton--have been in the league continuously since its formation.
The MCL is known for its highly competitive football
American football
American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
teams. MCL schools have won 22 state championships, eight by the Smith Center Redmen. The Redmen won five consecutive Class 2-1A state championships from 2004 through 2008 and won 79 consecutive games before losing the 2009 championship game to Centralia in overtime. In 1985, the MCL became the first, and through 2008 only, league to produce three state football champions in the same season: Norton (4A), Plainville (3A) and Victoria (2-1A).
Hill City and Stockton switched to Eight-man football
Eight-man football
Eight-man football is a type of American football, generally played by small high schools. Rules and formations vary greatly among states and even among different organizations, but the one constant is eight players from each team on the field at one time, as opposed to eleven-man football, which...
in 2008 due to declining enrollment. Under KSHSAA bylaws, a school may play 8-man football if it has 100 students or fewer in grades 9, 10 and 11 when it is classified in September of odd-numbered years. Osborne and Trego will switch to 8-man in 2010.
Wrestling
Scholastic wrestling
Scholastic wrestling, sometimes known in the United States as Folkstyle wrestling, is a style of amateur wrestling practised at the high school and middle school levels in the United States. This wrestling style is essentially Collegiate wrestling with some slight modifications. It is currently...
is a sport which draws great interest throughout the MCL. League schools have 16 state championships, 11 by the Norton Community Bluejays, including the 2010 and 2011 Class 3-2-1A titles, and three in a row from 2007-09 by Smith Center.
The MCL also sponsors basketball
Basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams of five players try to score points by throwing or "shooting" a ball through the top of a basketball hoop while following a set of rules...
, volleyball
Volleyball
Volleyball is a team sport in which two teams of six players are separated by a net. Each team tries to score points by grounding a ball on the other team's court under organized rules.The complete rules are extensive...
, cross country
Cross country running
Cross country running is a sport in which people run a race on open-air courses over natural terrain. The course, typically long, may include surfaces of grass and earth, pass through woodlands and open country, and include hills, flat ground and sometimes gravel road...
, golf
Golf
Golf is a precision club and ball sport, in which competing players use many types of clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a golf course using the fewest number of strokes....
(boys only) and tennis
Tennis
Tennis is a sport usually played between two players or between two teams of two players each . Each player uses a racket that is strung to strike a hollow rubber ball covered with felt over a net into the opponent's court. Tennis is an Olympic sport and is played at all levels of society at all...
(girls only). It also holds non-athletic competition in music, speech and debate and quiz bowl.
Current members
| School School District |
Mascot | Colors | Year joined MCL | Enrollment | KSHSAA Kansas State High School Activities Association The Kansas State High School Activities Association is the organization which oversees interscholastic competition in the state of Kansas at the high school level. It oversees both athletic and non-athletic competition, and sponsors championships in several sports and activities.The KSHSAA was... Classification |
Kansas county |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ellis USD 388 |
Railroaders | 1951 | 148 | 2A | Ellis Ellis County, Kansas Ellis County is a county located in Northwest Kansas, in the Central United States. As of the 2010 census, the county population was 28,452. Its county seat and most populous city is Hays... |
|
| Hill City USD 281 |
Ringnecks | 1947 (charter member) | 120 | 2A (8-man football) |
Graham Graham County, Kansas Graham County is a county located in northwest Kansas, in the Central United States. As of the 2010 census, the county population was 2,597. Its county seat and most populous city is Hill City... |
|
| Norton Community USD 211 |
Bluejays | 1977 | 241 | 3A | Norton Norton County, Kansas Norton County is a county located in the U.S. state of Kansas. As of the 2010 census, the county population was 5,671... |
|
| Osborne USD 392 |
Bulldogs | 1947 (charter member) 1976 (rejoined) |
114 | 2A (8-man football) |
Osborne Osborne County, Kansas Osborne County is a county located in the U.S. state of Kansas. As of the 2010 census, the county population was 3,858. The largest city and county seat is Osborne.-19th century:... |
|
| Phillipsburg USD 325 |
Panthers | 1951 | 215 | 3A | Phillips Phillips County, Kansas Phillips County is a county located in the U.S. state of Kansas. As of the 2010 census, the county population was 5,642... |
|
| Plainville USD 270 |
Cardinals | 1947 (charter member) | 123 | 2A | Rooks Rooks County, Kansas Rooks County is a county located in the U.S. state of Kansas. As of the 2010 census, the county population was 5,181. The county seat is Stockton and the largest city is Plainville. The county was named for Private John C... |
|
| Smith Center USD 237 |
Redmen Lady Red |
1977 | 157 | 2A | Smith Smith County, Kansas Smith County is a county located in the U.S. state of Kansas. The county's population was 3,853 for the 2010 census. Its county seat is Smith Center. It is named in memory of Maj. J. Nelson Smith, who was part of the 2nd Colorado Cavalry, killed in action at the Battle of Westport on October 21,... |
|
| Stockton USD 271 |
Tigers | 1947 (charter member) | 89 | 1A (8-man football) |
Rooks Rooks County, Kansas Rooks County is a county located in the U.S. state of Kansas. As of the 2010 census, the county population was 5,181. The county seat is Stockton and the largest city is Plainville. The county was named for Private John C... |
|
| Trego Community (WaKeeney WaKeeney, Kansas WaKeeney is a city in and the county seat of Trego County, Kansas, United States. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 1,862.-History:... ) USD 208 |
Golden Eagles | 1953 | 122 | 2A (8-man football) |
Trego Trego County, Kansas Trego County is a county located in the U.S. state of Kansas. As of the 2010 census, the county population was 3,001... |
|
Former members
| School | Year joined MCL | Year left MCL | Current League |
|---|---|---|---|
| Downs | 1947 | 1951 | School consolidated in 2003 |
| Palco | 1947 | 1971 | Northern Plains |
| Victoria | 1974 | 2005 | Central Prairie |
Football
- 1971 - Stockton (2A)
- 1980 - Plainville (3A)
- 1981 - Victoria (2A)
- 1982 - Smith Center (3A)
- 1983 - Osborne (3A)
- 1985 - Norton (4A), Plainville (3A), Victoria (2-1A)
- 1986 - Norton (4A), Smith Center (3A)
- 1987 - Stockton (2-1A)
- 1988 - Victoria (2-1A)
- 1992 - Stockton (2-1A)
- 1993 - Stockton (2-1A)
- 1995 - Stockton (2-1A)
- 1999 - Smith Center (3A)
- 2004 - Smith Center (2-1A), Victoria (8-man Division I)
- 2005 - Smith Center (2-1A)
- 2006 - Smith Center (2-1A)
- 2007 - Smith Center (2-1A)
- 2008 - Smith Center (2-1A)
NOTE: Victoria won the 8-man Division II state championship in 2006 after it left the MCL.
Wrestling
- 1959 - Norton
- 1962 - Norton
- 1965 - Norton
- 1968 - Norton (A-B)
- 1970 - Norton (3-2-1A)
- 1973 - Norton (3A)
- 1987 - Phillipsburg (3-2-1A)
- 1988 - Plainville (3-2-1A)
- 1992 - Plainville (3-2-1A)
- 1993 - Stockton (3-2-1A)
- 2004 - Norton (3-2-1A)
- 2005 - Norton (3-2-1A)
- 2006 - Norton (3-2-1A)
- 2007 - Smith Center (3-2-1A)
- 2008 - Smith Center (3-2-1A)
- 2009 - Smith Center (3-2-1A)
- 2010 - Norton (3-2-1A)
- 2011 - Norton (3-2-1A)
NOTE: Norton was a member of the Northwest Kansas League prior to the 1977-78 school year.
Basketball
- 1970 Hill City boys 2A
- 1976 Hill City girls 2A
- 1978 Hill City boys 2A
- 1981 Stockton boys 2A
- 1983 Norton girls 4A
- 1998 Hill City boys 2A
- 2000 Osborne girls 2A
- 2002 Osborne girls 2A
- 2003 Norton Boys 3A
- 2006 Trego Boys 2A