CIF approves N. County league realignment

The CIF San Diego Section’s Board of Managers unanimously approved a realignment of the three leagues comprising the North County Conference.

The realignment approved April 22 keeps Fallbrook High School in the Avocado League, although none of the other current Avocado League schools will remain in that league. Thirteen of the 19 North County Conference teams will be in new leagues for the 2008-09 season.

“These things are very difficult decisions. We take many different things into consideration,” said Sue Emerson, the principal of Escondido High School and the president of the North County Conference.

One of the most important factors is the content of the conference by-laws. “Our by-laws really are fairly straightforward in terms of leaguing,” Emerson said. “They talk about how important it is to look at the size of schools.”

The new league alignments place more importance on enrollment rather than geography. “It’s important to look at the size of schools so the competition can be fair and competitive,” Emerson said.

The current North County Conference alignment has Fallbrook, Carlsbad, El Camino, Oceanside, Rancho Buena Vista, and Vista in the Avocado League. La Costa Canyon, Mount Carmel, Poway, Rancho Bernardo, Torrey Pines, and Westview are currently in the Palomar League. The Valley League now consists of Escondido, Mission Hills, Orange Glen, Ramona, San Marcos, San Pasqual, and Valley Center.

The conference includes four school districts with one high school and six school districts with multiple high schools, and in the current alignment all schools in a district are in the same league.

When the 2008-09 season begins Escondido, La Costa Canyon, Mission Hills, San Pasqual, and Torrey Pines will join Fallbrook in the Avocado League. Carlsbad, El Camino, Poway, Rancho Bernardo, Rancho Buena Vista, and Vista will be in the Palomar League. The Valley League will consist of Mount Carmel, Oceanside, Orange Glen, Ramona, San Marcos, Valley Center, and Westview.

“They really jumped around. They broke up some school districts,” said CIF commissioner Dennis Ackerman. “There’s going to be a lot more transportation involved.”

Two of the four school districts with two high schools will have both schools in the same league while neither of the districts with more than two high schools will have all schools in the same league.

Rancho Buena Vista and Vista do not have boys volleyball teams, and currently San Pasqual moves from the Valley League to the Avocado League for boys volleyball. Westview is expected to move from the Valley League to the Palomar League for boys volleyball under the new alignment.

The North County Conference has also approved the admission of Canyon Crest Academy into the conference for boys water polo, girls water polo, boys swimming and diving, and girls swimming and diving for the 2008-09 season. Canyon Crest is part of the San Dieguito Union High School District, whose two high schools which are full North County Conference members will both be in the Avocado League.

The North County Conference added the Valley League for 1998-99 after Valley Center High School opened and became the conference’s 17th school. The leagues were realigned for 2000-01, although no schools were added at that time.

The opening of Westview High School for 2002-03 led to another realignment, and the previous realignment took place after Mission Hills opened for 2004-05.

Del Norte High School, which is in the Poway Unified School District, is slated to open in 2009-10 with freshmen and sophomores, and the North County Conference will review the league alignments next year to acknowledge the addition of that school.