Reclassification numbers for 2016-17 released to schools

In advance of the first quarterly meeting of the Wyoming High School Activities Association’s Board of Directors on Sept. 29-30 in Casper, the WHSAA has released the enrollment numbers it will use to classify schools for the 2016-17 and 2017-18 sports seasons to the state’s high schools.

And the potential changes are numerous.

Although larger changes could be made to the classification structures of various sports — such as changing the number of schools in each classification — the following changes are on tap if no such changes are made:

Football

Class 4A and Class 3A will remain the same.

Class 2A will see Moorcroft jump back into the classification after two years in Class 1A 11-man. WHSAA Commissioner Ron Laird said via email to wyoming-football.com that Moorcroft has filed a petition to stay in Class 1A 11-man. Even if it’s approved, such a move might make the Wolves ineligible for the postseason.

Class 1A 11-man will see Wright come down from Class 2A to take Moorcroft’s prior place in 1A.

Riverside will be the 11th-largest Class 1A 11-man school but has asked to play six-man. Lingle, meanwhile, is the 14th-largest 11-man school but has also asked to play down in six-man. Class 1A 11-man’s size is designated as 14 schools.

Previously, when schools have asked to opt down a classification, if the WHSAA approved the option, those schools have been ineligible for the playoffs.

Cokeville, which came in 51st place — just below the cutoff for 11-man football — opted up to Class 1A 11-man again, Laird said.

Burlington, meanwhile, will be below the six-man/11-man cutoff and will move to six-man, coach Aaron Papich said via email Thursday.

Upton and Sundance are slated to continue their co-op for football, Laird said. Laird also said the Patriots’ playoff eligibility for the 2016 season won’t be determined until hard enrollment figures come in prior to that school year. Their decision to join football programs will not affect the classification of any other schools.

Other sports

Other sports will see significant shifts, too.

Jackson has supplanted Riverton as the state’s 12th-largest school and, because of that, will be scheduled to enter Class 4A for all sports except football in the fall of 2016. The difference between Jackson (742.26) and Riverton (741.70) ended up being less than one student.

Thermopolis and Lyman are scheduled to move from Class 2A to Class 3A, while Glenrock and Lovell are scheduled to move from Class 3A to Class 2A.

Upton is scheduled to move from Class 1A to Class 2A, while Saratoga is scheduled to move from Class 2A to Class 1A.

Gillette’s new school

The ADM figures do not account for the proposed second high school in Gillette, which is tentatively scheduled to open in the fall of 2017.

Districts

Tentative district alignments set by the WHSAA are as follows, as noted in information provided to the schools:

Football
4A and 3A: Unchanged
2A East: Wheatland, Newcastle, Thermopolis, Moorcroft, Glenrock, Big Horn, Burns.
2A West: Pinedale, Mountain View, Lyman, Lovell, Big Piney, Kemmerer, Greybull.
1A 11-man East: Tongue River, Wright, Upton/Sundance, Pine Bluffs, Southeast, Lusk.
1A 11-man West: Wyoming Indian, Rocky Mountain, Wind River, Shoshoni, Saratoga, Cokeville.
1A six-man East: Lingle, Guernsey, NSI, Midwest, Hanna, Hulett, Kaycee, Rock River.
1A six-man West: Riverside, Burlington, Dubois, Snake River, Farson, St. Stephens, Meeteetse, Ten Sleep.

Non-football
4A East: Gillette, Cheyenne East, Cheyenne Central, Cheyenne South, Laramie, Sheridan.
4A West: Kelly Walsh, Natrona, Rock Springs, Evanston, Green River, Jackson.
3A East: Douglas, Rawlins, Worland, Torrington, Buffalo, Wheatland, Newcastle, Thermopolis.
3A West: Riverton, Star Valley, Cody, Lander, Powell, Pinedale, Mountain View, Lyman.
2A East: Moorcroft, Glenrock, Burns, Big Horn, Tongue River, Wright, Sundance, Pine Bluffs, Southeast, Lusk, Upton.
2A West: Lovell, Big Piney, Kemmerer, Greybull, Wyoming Indian, Rocky Mountain, Wind River, Shoshoni, Riverside.
1A East: Lingle, Guernsey, NSI, Midwest, Hanna, Hulett, Kaycee, Rock River, Arvada-Clearmont, Glendo, Chugwater.
1A West: Saratoga, Cokeville, Burlington, Dubois, Snake River, Farson, St. Stephens, Encampment, Meeteetse, Ten Sleep.
(North and South conferences for non-football sports will be set by participating schools in 3A, 2A and 1A.)

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The “Average Daily Membership” enrollment numbers for grades 9-12, rounded to the nearest full number:

1. Gillette, 2,519
2. Kelly Walsh, 1,893
3. Natrona, 1,870
4. Rock Springs, 1,588
5. Cheyenne East, 1,541
6. Cheyenne South, 1,340
7. Cheyenne Central, 1,267
8. Laramie, 1,066
9. Sheridan, 965
10. Evanston, 857
11. Green River, 837
12. Jackson, 742
13. Riverton, 742
14. Star Valley, 724
15. Cody, 613
16. Douglas, 522
17. Lander, 520
18. Powell, 514
19. Rawlins, 492
20. Worland, 415
21. Torrington, 361
22. Buffalo, 332
23. Pinedale, 299
24. Wheatland, 272
25. Mountain View, 236
26. Newcastle, 224
27. Thermopolis, 215
28. Lyman, 210
29. Lovell, 204
30. Moorcroft, 193
31. Big Piney, 192
32. Glenrock, 191
33. Burns, 187
34. Kemmerer, 177
35. Greybull, 174
36. Big Horn, 159
37. Tongue River, 150
38. Wyoming Indian, 146
39. Wright, 145
40. Rocky Mountain, 125
41. Wind River, 120
42. Sundance, 118
43. Pine Bluffs, 111
44. Southeast, 108
45. Lusk, 106
46. Shoshoni, 106
47. Riverside, 90
48. Upton, 87
49. Saratoga, 85
50. Lingle, 83
51. Cokeville, 78
52. Guernsey-Sunrise, 71
53. Burlington, 67
54. NSI, 65
55. Midwest, 55
56. Arapaho Charter, 53
57. Hanna, 52
58. Dubois, 51
59. Hulett, 49
60. Snake River, 48
61. Farson, 48
62. Fort Washakie, 48
63. St. Stephens, 45
64. Kaycee, 45
65. Encampment, 44
66. Rock River, 32
67. Meeteetse, 32
68. Arvada-Clearmont, 30
69. Ten Sleep, 27
70. Glendo, 19
71. Chugwater, 13

–patrick

Edited 8:10 a.m. Sept. 18 to fix a typo in Burns’ ADM.