The Sandusky Bay Conference is a high school athletic conference in the Sandusky Bay area of north central

Ohio Ohio () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Of the fifty U.S. states, it is the 34th-largest by area, and with a population of nearly 11.8 million, is the seventh-most populous and tenth-most densely populated. The sta ...

. It is affiliated with the

Ohio High School Athletic Association The Ohio High School Athletic Association (OHSAA) is the governing body of athletic programs for junior and senior high schools in the state of Ohio. The OHSAA governs eligibility of student athletes, resolves disputes, organizes levels of compe ...

Members

The SBC has 22 full members schools located within

Erie Erie (; ) is a city on the south shore of Lake Erie and the county seat of Erie County, Pennsylvania, United States. Erie is the fifth largest city in Pennsylvania and the largest city in Northwestern Pennsylvania with a population of 94,831 a ...

Huron Huron may refer to: People * Wyandot people (or Wendat), indigenous to North America * Wyandot language, spoken by them * Huron-Wendat Nation, a Huron-Wendat First Nation with a community in Wendake, Quebec * Nottawaseppi Huron Band of Potawatomi ...

Ottawa Ottawa (, ; Canadian French: ) is the capital city of Canada. It is located at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River in the southern portion of the province of Ontario. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the core ...

, Sandusky, &

Seneca Seneca may refer to: People and language * Seneca (name), a list of people with either the given name or surname * Seneca people, one of the six Iroquois tribes of North America ** Seneca language, the language of the Seneca people Places Extrat ...

counties. The schools range in size from Division 3 to Division 7. The reasonably short travel distances and limited range of sizes promotes tight competition throughout all sanctioned sports and a long history of membership with several rivalries. Several member schools have won state championships.

Member school details

Athletic competition

The conference was established in 1948 and offers competition in the following sports: *

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding tea ...

; boys *

bowling Bowling is a target sport and recreational activity in which a player rolls a ball toward pins (in pin bowling) or another target (in target bowling). The term ''bowling'' usually refers to pin bowling (most commonly ten-pin bowling), though ...

; boys & girls *

cross-country Cross country or cross-country may refer to: Places * Cross Country, Baltimore, a neighborhood in northwest Baltimore, Maryland * Cross County Parkway, an east–west parkway in Westchester County, NY * Cross County Shopping Center, a mall in Yo ...

; boys & girls *

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...

; boys & girls *

cheerleading Cheerleading is an activity in which the participants (called cheerleaders) cheer for their team as a form of encouragement. It can range from chanting slogans to intense physical activity. It can be performed to motivate sports teams, to ente ...

; boys & girls *

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

; boys *

golf Golf is a club-and-ball sport in which players use various clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a course in as few strokes as possible. Golf, unlike most ball games, cannot and does not use a standardized playing area, and coping wi ...

; boys & girls *

soccer Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 players who primarily use their feet to propel the ball around a rectangular field called a pitch. The objective of the game is ...

; boys & girls *

softball Softball is a game similar to baseball played with a larger ball on a smaller field. Softball is played competitively at club levels, the college level, and the professional level. The game was first created in 1887 in Chicago by George Hanc ...

; girls *

swimming Swimming is the self-propulsion of a person through water, or other liquid, usually for recreation, sport, exercise, or survival. Locomotion is achieved through coordinated movement of the limbs and the body to achieve hydrodynamic thrust that r ...

; boys & girls *Diving; boys & girls *

tennis Tennis is a racket sport that is played either individually against a single opponent ( singles) or between two teams of two players each ( doubles). Each player uses a tennis racket that is strung with cord to strike a hollow rubber ball ...

; boys & girls *

track & field Track and field is a sport that includes athletic contests based on running, jumping, and throwing skills. The name is derived from where the sport takes place, a running track and a grass field for the throwing and some of the jumping events ...

; boys & girls *

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. It has been a part of the official program of the Summ ...

; girls *

wrestling Wrestling is a series of combat sports involving grappling-type techniques such as clinch fighting, throws and takedowns, joint locks, pins and other grappling holds. Wrestling techniques have been incorporated into martial arts, combat ...

; boys

Former members

Former members who are returning to the SBC with the 2016 and 2018 expansions are outlined in those sections.

League history

1940s

*1948: The SBC is formed with inaugural members Danbury, Elmore, Genoa, Gibsonburg, Oak Harbor, Port Clinton & Fremont St. Joseph CC. *1949: Port Clinton leaves and is replaced by Clyde.

1950s

*1950: Sandusky St. Mary CC joins. *1956: Genoa leaves to help form the

Northern Lakes League The Northern Lakes League (NLL), is an OHSAA high school athletic conference that was formed in 1956 and comprises eight high schools in Northwest Ohio. Current members Future members On April 9, 2021, invitations were extended to four schools ...

. *1957: Danbury leaves. *1958: Elmore leaves and is replaced by Tiffin Calvert and Carey. *1959: Gibsonburg leaves.

1960s

*1960: Lakota & Mohawk join. *1963: Carey leaves and is replaced by Margaretta & Gibsonburg, who rejoins after a four-year absence. *1966: Tiffin Calvert leaves. *1968: Huron & Fostoria St. Wendelin join.

1970s

*1972: Gibsonburg, Lakota & Oak Harbor leave to form the

Suburban Lakes League The Suburban Lakes League (SLL) was an OHSAA athletic league with 7 member schools located in northwest Ohio. The league was formed in 1972 by former members of the Northern Lakes League, Sandusky Bay Conference, and the Lakeshore Conference. ...

. St. Wendelin also leaves the league. They are replaced by Sandusky Perkins & Tiffin Calvert, who rejoins the league.

1980s

*1980: Port Clinton leaves the Great Lakes League and rejoins after a 31-year absence. *1986: St. Joseph CC & Tiffin Calvert leave to help form the

Midland Athletic League The Midland Athletic League was an OHSAA athletic league located in northwest Ohio that was formed in 1985. Mark King was the last commissioner. The league folded following the 2013-14 school year as its members found new league homes. The last d ...

. They are replaced by Edison, who left the

Firelands Conference The Firelands Conference is an Ohio High School Athletic Association (OHSAA) athletic league located in north-central Ohio. The league was formed in the 1960–61 school year and is named for the Firelands area of the old Western Reserve, whe ...

, and by Oak Harbor, who returns from the SLL.

2010s

*2013: On February 1, St. Mary CC announced they would be forming a new league called the

Sandusky River League The Sandusky River League was an OHSAA-sponsored league that began athletic play in the 2014-15 school year. The league sponsored football, cross country, volleyball, golf, basketball, wrestling, baseball, softball, and track & field. The follow ...

in 2014-15 with Calvert (who instead joined the TAAC), Lakota, New Riegel, Old Fort & St. Joseph CC. St. Wendelin would join them later. This league's intent was to have 8 football-playing members and 2-3 non-football schools. This league will ultimately give a home to the remaining MAL schools. *2014: On December 10, the SBC announced plans to expand. Invitations were accepted by Lakota, New Riegel, Old Fort, Fremont St. Joseph Central Catholic, Sandusky St. Mary Central Catholic & Fostoria St. Wendelin Catholic (all of which now play in the

), Tiffin Calvert, a former member of the SBC now a member of the TAAC, and Vermilion, currently a member of the West Shore Conference. *2016: On March 16, Clyde principal William J. Webb and the

Northern Ohio League The Northern Ohio League (NOL) was an OHSAA athletic league in north central Ohio that began competition in 1944 and disbanded in 2017 after six of its seven members joined the Sandusky Bay Conference. All-time members League History 1940s *The ...

announced that the NOL will merge into the SBC for the 2017-18 school year. Bellevue, Norwalk, Sandusky, Shelby, Tiffin Columbian, and Willard will become the league's newest members. *2017: Both Gibsonburg and Danbury announced that they would leave the TAAC and return to the SBC for the 2018-2019 school year. In April 2017, St. Wendelin announced that it would close in June following the 2016-2017 school year. :::In July 2017, North Union announced they would be leaving the

Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference The Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference is an OHSAA athletic league whose members are located in the Ohio counties of Crawford, Marion, and Richland. The league was established in the fall of 1990. Current members Former members Membership Time ...

to join the Central Buckeye Conference. This prompted the MOAC to invite Shelby as a replacement, which they accepted. The Whippets would spend only one year in the SBC. *2019: In August 2017 Hopewell-Loudon announced that they would leave the

Blanchard Valley Conference The Blanchard Valley Conference is an Ohio High School Athletic Association affiliated athletic league located in Hancock County, Ohio, Hancock, Putnam County, Ohio, Putnam, and Wood County, Ohio, Wood Counties in northwest Ohio. Its name derives f ...

for the Sandusky Bay Conference in the 2019-2020 school year after being offered an invitation to replace Shelby.

2020s

*2021: On May 20, 2021, the school board at Woodmore announced they were going to accept the Sandusky Bay Conference's invitation to join their league for the 2023-24 school year. It is speculated that Woodmore will play in the SBC's River Division with schools of similar enrollment size. :::On May 26, 2021, the school board at Oak Harbor announced they would be leaving the SBC and accepting the

Northern Buckeye Conference The Northern Buckeye Conference (NBC) is an OHSAA high school athletic conference that began athletic competition in 2011 with 8 high schools from Northwest Ohio's Ottawa and Wood counties as members. Members Former members History 2010s Th ...

's invitation to replace Woodmore. :::On July 19, 2021, St. Mary CC announced that they would be playing football in the

Northern 8 Football Conference The Northern 8 Football Conference is an 8-man football conference that began competition in the fall of and is made up of 8-man teams from high schools located in Ohio. Members History The Northern 8 was created in October 2019 when Stryker ...

for the 2021 and 2022 seasons, with the intention to return to 11-man football at some point.

2016 Expansion

The first wave of expansion will begin with the 2016-17 school year and will consist of two divisions that will divide schools by size. The larger schools will make up the Bay Division, and the smaller schools will make up the River Division. The divisional lineup will vary depending on the sport, with Margaretta playing in the River Division for football & wrestling, and in the Bay Division for all other sports. New Riegel & Old Fort do not have football. The two divisions will operate more-or-less as 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.

2017 Expansion

On March 16, 2016, both Clyde principal William J. Webb and NOL president Nate Artino (Bellevue principal) announced that six of the NOL schools were invited to join the SBC for the 2017-18 school year. Mr. Webb declined to disclose details on divisional breakdowns until all six school boards had approved the league switch. On March 17, 2016, Norwalk Director of Student Activities Josh Schlotterer advised the divisional breakdown would be based on enrollment and some schools would slide between divisions for football and all other sports as there are three non-football members.

2018 Expansion

On March 16, 2017, SBC Executive Secretary/Treasurer Gregg Hedden announced that Danbury Local Schools would be joining the conference, effective in 2018, adding that Danbury would be a member of the River Division. On March 20, SBC Executive Secretary/Treasurer Gregg Hedden announced that Gibsonburg Local Schools would be joining the River Division, effective 2018. Their school board voted unanimously to join at the fall of 2018 sports season. Gibsonburg leaves the Toledo Athletic Area Conference. This adds Gibsonburg as the 9th Member of the River Division. After a school board meeting in August 2017, Hopewell-Loudon agreed to join the River Division for the 2019-2020 school year.

League Timeline

DateFormat = yyyy ImageSize = width:1000 height:auto barincrement:25 Period = from:1948 till:2035 TimeAxis = orientation:horizontal PlotArea = right:30 left:0 bottom:50 top:5 Colors = id:barcolor id:line value:black id:bg value:white id:darkred value:rgb(0.5,0,0) PlotData= width:20 textcolor:black shift:(5,-5) anchor:from fontsize:m bar:1 color:powderblue from:1948 till:1957 text:Danbury (1948-1957) bar:1 color:red from:2018 till:end text:Danbury (2018-) bar:2 color:powderblue from:1948 till:1958 text:Elmore (1948-1958) bar:2 color:yellow from:2023 till:end text:Woodmore (2023-) bar:3 color:powderblue from:1948 till:1956 text:Genoa (1948-1956) bar:4 color:powderblue from:1948 till:1959 text:Gibsonburg (1948-1959) bar:4 color:powderblue from:1963 till:1972 text:Gibsonburg (1963-1972) bar:4 color:red from:2018 till:end text:Gibsonburg (2018-) bar:5 color:powderblue from:1948 till:1972 text:Oak Harbor (1948-1972) bar:5 color:powderblue from:1986 till:2016 text:Oak Harbor (1986-2023) bar:5 color:darkblue from:2016 till:2017 bar:5 color:green from:2017 till:2023 text:Oak Harbor bar:6 color:powderblue from:1948 till:1949 text:Port Clinton (1948-1949) bar:6 color:powderblue from:1980 till:2016 text:Port Clinton (1980-) bar:6 color:darkblue from:2016 till:2017 bar:6 color:green from:2017 till:end text:Port Clinton bar:7 color:powderblue from:1948 till:1986 text:St Joseph CC (1948-1986) bar:7 color:darkred from:2016 till:2017 bar:7 color:red from:2017 till:end text:St Joseph CC (2016-) bar:8 color:powderblue from:1949 till:2016 text:Clyde (1949-) bar:8 color:darkblue from:2016 till:2017 bar:8 color:blue from:2017 till:end text:Clyde bar:9 color:powderblue from:1950 till:2014 text:St Mary CC (1950-2014) bar:9 color:darkred from:2016 till:2017 bar:9 color:red from:2017 till:end text:St Mary CC (2016-) bar:10 color:powderblue from:1958 till:1966 text:Calvert (1958-1966) bar:10 color:powderblue from:1972 till:1986 text:Calvert (1972-1986) bar:10 color:darkred from:2016 till:2017 bar:10 color:red from:2017 till:end text:Calvert (2016-) bar:11 color:powderblue from:1958 till:1963 text:Carey (1958-1963) bar:12 color:powderblue from:1960 till:1972 text:Lakota (1960-1972) bar:12 color:darkred from:2016 till:2017 bar:12 color:red from:2017 till:end text:Lakota (2016-) bar:13 color:powderblue from:1960 till:1962 text:Mohawk (1960-1962) bar:14 color:powderblue from:1963 till:2016 text:Margaretta (1963-) bar:14 color:darkred from:2016 till:2017 bar:14 color:green from:2017 till:end text:Margaretta bar:15 color:powderblue from:1968 till:2016 text:Huron (1968-) bar:15 color:darkblue from:2016 till:2017 bar:15 color:green from:2017 till:end text:Huron bar:16 color:powderblue from:1968 till:1972 text:St Wendelin (1968-1972) bar:16 color:darkred from:2016 till:2017 bar:16 color:red from:2017 till:2017 text:St Wendelin (2016-2017) bar:17 color:powderblue from:1972 till:2016 text:Perkins (1972-) bar:17 color:darkblue from:2016 till:2017 bar:17 color:blue from:2017 till:end text:Perkins bar:18 color:powderblue from:1986 till:2016 text:Edison (1986-) bar:18 color:darkblue from:2016 till:2017 bar:18 color:green from:2017 till:end text:Edison bar:19 color:darkblue from:2016 till:2017 bar:19 color:green from:2017 till:end text:Vermilion (2016-) bar:20 color:darkred from:2016 till:2017 bar:20 color:red from:2017 till:end text:New Riegel (2016-) bar:21 color:darkred from:2016 till:2017 bar:21 color:red from:2017 till:end text:Old Fort (2016-) bar:22 color:blue from:2017 till:end text:Bellevue (2017-) bar:23 color:blue from:2017 till:end text:Columbian (2017-) bar:24 color:blue from:2017 till:end text:Norwalk (2017-) bar:25 color:blue from:2017 till:end text:Sandusky (2017-) bar:26 color:blue from:2017 till:2018 text:Shelby (2017-2018) bar:27 color:green from:2017 till:end text:Willard (2017-) ScaleMajor = gridcolor:line unit:year increment:10 start:1948 TextData = fontsize:L textcolor:black pos:(370,30) # tabs:(0-center) text:"Sandusky Bay Conference Membership History"

Championships

Championships - Multi-division Era

Divisional Championships - Fall Sports

Divisional Championships - Winter Sports

Divisional Championships - Spring Sports

Official SBC Site

SBC Football home page

References

* High school athletics conferences in Ohio {{Northwest Ohio High School Athletic Conferences Ohio high school sports conferences