VCHS likes idea of a three-class system
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[/align][align=justify]Mike Griffenberg/VCTRHi-Liner basketball player Aaron Hochstetler, senior, won't have the opportunity to compete with the likes of Lisbon, Carrington and Fargo Oak Grove for a state championship, but his freshmen teammates might. The North Dakota Interscholastic Athletic Administration Association has proposed a switch from the current two-class system for basketball and volleyball to a three-class one, which would move Valley City out of Class A and into the middle division. The change would go into effect for the 2009-10 school year.
By Mike Griffenberg, TR Sports Writer [/align][align=justify]Right now Valley City High School is a small fish in a big pond. In two years, it could be a big fish in a small pond. A proposal to change the class system in basketball and volleyball from the current A and B system to a three-class one in 2009-10 has been gaining steam with athletic directors across the state.[/align][align=justify]
Under the proposed system, Valley City would have the highest enrollment in the middle class. Currently, VCHS has the lowest enrollment of any Class A school.
This is a change that VCHS activities director Al Cruchet and VCHS school officials are in a favor of and have been for a couple of years now.
"For me personally, and our school administration, we've felt this is the way to move for the last two to three years," Cruchet said. "In about four years we're going to be right on the line to be a Class B school anyway."
Today, the cutoff between Class A and Class B schools is 325 students. According to Cruchet, VCHS will have around 310 students 2010.
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Meanwhile, five schools in the Eastern Dakota Conference have enrollments currently more than 1,000: Fargo South (1,625), West Fargo (1,606), Fargo North (1,200), Grand Forks Red River (1,199) and Grand Forks Central (1,072).
The growing gap between the Fargo schools and Valley City is just one reason why this proposal has been brought up.
Cruchet said there is a sentiment within Class B that the same schools go to the state tournaments every year.
Also, Cruchet said there could be new schools in Fargo and Bismarck within the next five to six years, which means there would be more large schools.
The more large schools means the less likely that Valley City would be able to compete and that the large schools would want to even play Valley City.
"The bigger group is going to be bigger and more elite and have more competition right within their own area," Cruchet said. "If there are two new schools in Fargo, why would they want to come out and play Valley City and Devils Lake, especially if we still only have 19 games."
It is still undetermined if the divisions will be called AAA, AA and A or AA, A and B in the new plan, but whatever the top division is called, it will be for schools with enrollments of 450 or higher. The middle division will have enrollments of 150-449, and the smallest division will be 149 and under.
There will be 15 schools in the top division in two regions, but according to Cruchet, Fargo Shanley and Bismarck St. Mary's have indicated that they will move up into that group.
The middle division will have anywhere between 34-36 schools, depending on co-ops for basketball and volleyball, broken into four regions.
The lower division will have approximately 150 schools broken into eight regions.
Cruchet said he doesn't know exactly who would be in Valley City's region but guessed it would include Lisbon, Carrington, Kindred and Fargo Oak Grove.
"We would have, what I feel, a pretty good region," he said.
VCHS would still compete against the other Class A schools in other sports, such as golf, tennis and track.
Cruchet said the powers that be at VCHS are in favor of the switch to a three-class system, not because it would make them the top dog in their region, but because it will give their athletes a chance to be competitive. That is something that hasn't been possible the last couple of years, with the exception of the girls basketball team that went to the state tournament in 2005.
"We don't have to win every game, but we'd sure like to be competitive," Cruchet said. "We have never been to a state volleyball tournament in the history of it. I guess [the three-class system] would give us the opportunity to have a little more success and have a little bit more team and school spirit."
Cruchet said the North Dakota Interscholastic Athletic Administration Association will approve the plan at its convention in April. From there the NDIAAA will continue to fine tune it until the North Dakota High School Activities Association's general assembly votes on it in October.
This is not the first time a three-class system has been proposed. It has been defeated four times, most recently in 2004 by a vote of 120-49.
Cruchet said the chance of it passing this time is much more likely, but is not a slam dunk by any means.
"My guess is that it will be a close vote," he said. "The large schools are in favor of it. I think most of the smaller schools are in favor of it. It's in the middle bracket that, probably, a good share would vote against it."
