The Trailways Conference is a high school athletic conference in Wisconsin. Formed in 2001, its membership consists of smaller public and private high schools in east central and south central Wisconsin. All member schools belong to the Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletic Association.
History
Primary alignment The Trailways Conference was formed in 2001 with most of the members coming from two recently disbanded conferences for small schools in south central Wisconsin: the Dual County Conference (Cambria-Friesland, Fall River, Green Lake, Montello, Pardeeville, Princeton, Randolph, Rio) and the Eastern Suburban Conference (Deerfield, Dodgeland, Hustisford, Johnson Creek and Williams Bay). Two private schools who had recently joined the WIAA as part of the WIAA/WISAA merger (Abundant Life Christian in Madison and Valley Christian in Oshkosh) rounded out the initial membership roster of the Trailways Conference. The fifteen schools were initially subdivided into North and South Divisions: North DivisionSouth DivisionCambria-FrieslandAbundant Life ChristianGreen LakeDeerfieldMontelloDodgelandPardeevilleFall RiverPrincetonHustisfordRandolphJohnson CreekValley ChristianRioWilliams Bay Central Wisconsin Christian joined the conference after leaving the East Central Flyway Conference in 2004, and two years later the Trailways Conference took three more former East Central Flyway schools into the fold: Lourdes Academy, Markesan and Oakfield. All three schools joined the North Division with Pardeeville moving over to the South Division to accommodate the expansion: North DivisionSouth DivisionCambria-FrieslandAbundant Life ChristianCentral Wisconsin ChristianDeerfieldGreen LakeDodgelandLourdes AcademyFall RiverMarkesanHustisfordMontelloJohnson CreekOakfieldPardeevillePrincetonRioRandolphWilliams BayValley Christian This alignment would only last for two years, as the Trailways split into Central, North and South Divisions in 2008: Central DivisionNorth DivisionSouth DivisionCambria-FrieslandGreen LakeAbundant Life ChristianCentral Wisconsin ChristianLourdes AcademyDeerfieldMarkesanMontelloDodgelandPardeevilleOakfieldFall RiverRandolphPrincetonHustisfordValley ChristianJohnson CreekRioWilliams Bay In 2012, Green Lake and Princeton High Schools entered into a cooperative agreement for their schools' athletics, and the newly created program remained in the North Division. That same year, Horicon and Madison Country Day School in Waunakee joined the Trailways, and Rio moved to the North Division to keep membership at six schools. The Trailways Conference was realigned to a two-division format in 2013: North DivisionSouth DivisionCambria-FrieslandAbundant Life ChristianCentral Wisconsin ChristianDeerfieldGreen Lake/PrincetonDodgelandLourdes AcademyFall RiverMarkesanHoriconMontelloHustisfordOakfieldJohnson CreekPardeevilleMadison Country DayRandolphRioValley ChristianWilliams Bay In 2014, Wayland Academy in Beaver Dam joined the Trailways South Division as its twenty-first member school. The North/South divisional alignment would last for two more years before the Trailways realigned to three divisions in 2016: Central DivisionNorth DivisionSouth DivisionCambria-FrieslandGreen Lake/PrincetonAbundant Life ChristianCentral Wisconsin ChristianLourdes AcademyDeerfieldHoriconMarkesanDodgelandPardeevilleMontelloFall RiverRandolphOakfieldHustisfordWayland AcademyValley ChristianJohnson CreekMadison Country DayRioWilliams Bay This alignment would only last a single season, as Palmyra-Eagle and Parkview joined the Trailways as all-sport members in 2017 after leaving the Rock Valley Conference, bringing conference membership to the current twenty-three teams (twenty-five schools) and the current East/South/West divisional alignment. In March 2026, the WIAA Board of Controls approved the request of two independent programs to join as full members of the Trailways Conference: St. Ambrose Academy of Madison and The Lincoln Academy of Beloit. St. Ambrose Academy is currently an associate member of the Trailways for several sports, while this will be the first ever conference affiliation for The Lincoln Academy after it opened in 2021. Both additions are planned for the 2027-28 school year and will be coupled with the loss of Hustisford, who is planning to dissolve their school district after an operational referendum failed to pass in April 2026.
Football-only alignment
2001-2020 When the Trailways Conference was formed in 2001, football was among the sports offered by the organization. Thirteen of the original fifteen members participated in the first season of competition (including the Fall River/Rio cooperative team), with Abundant Life Christian and Williams Bay being the only holdouts. ALCS did not offer football at that time, and Williams Bay was a football-only member of the Indian Trails Conference. Two members who were affiliated primarily with the Six Rivers Conference (Belleville/Albany and New Glarus/Monticello) rounded out the original membership roster, and they participated in the first five seasons before their exit to join the Capitol Conference for the 2006 football season. The Trailways Conference was subdivided into large-school and small-school divisions for its first season of football: Trailways LargeTrailways SmallBelleville/AlbanyCambria-FrieslandDodgelandDeerfieldFall River/RioGreen LakeMontelloHustisfordNew Glarus/MonticelloJohnson CreekPardeevilleRandolphPrincetonValley Christian There were a few cooperative programs that were football participants during the conference's history due to the small size of some of its members, and divisions realigned frequently based on the acquisition of new member schools and changes in enrollment.
2020-present In February 2019, in conjunction with the Wisconsin Football Coaches Association, the WIAA released a sweeping football-only realignment for Wisconsin to commence with the 2020 football season and run on a two-year cycle. In this alignment, the eight original members of the realigned Trailways Conference were Cambria-Friesland, Deerfield, Fall River/Rio, Johnson Creek, Lourdes Academy, Randolph, St John's Northwestern Military Academy and Wayland Academy. Six schools were holdovers from the previous two-division setup, while St. John's Northwestern and Wayland Academy held primary affiliation in the Midwest Classic Conference. For the 2022-2023 cycle, the Trailways Conference picked up Pardeeville from the Eastern Suburban Conference as a replacement for Wayland Academy, which dropped football before returning with an eight-man football team in 2023. In 2024, the Trailways Conference lost three members to the Eastern Suburban Conference (Deerfield, Fall River/Rio and Pardeeville) and St. John's Northwestern to eight-man football and the Southeast-8 Conference. Dodgeland and Palmyra-Eagle moved over from the Eastern Suburban Conference and one school each moved over from the Southwest Wisconsin Activities League (Parkview/Albany) and South Central Conference (Westfield) as replacements for the four exiting members. The Trailways Conference will be experiencing significant changes to football membership for the 2026-2027 cycle. Deerfield and Fall River/Rio make their return from the Eastern Suburban Conference, and Randolph will enter into a cooperative program with Cambria-Friesland. Palmyra-Eagle will be leaving the conference due to their impending transition to eight-man football and membership in the Southeast-8 Conference.
List of member schools
Current full members School Location AffiliationEnrollment MascotColorsJoinedDivisionAbundant Life ChristianMadison, WIPrivate (Christian)161Challengers 2001SouthCambria-FrieslandCambria, WIPublic91Hilltoppers 2001WestCentral Wisconsin ChristianWaupun, WIPrivate (Reformed)138Crusaders 2004EastDeerfieldDeerfield, WIPublic200Demons 2001SouthDodgelandJuneau, WIPublic205Trojans 2001EastFall RiverFall River, WIPublic144Pirates 2001WestGreen Lake/PrincetonGreen Lake, WI & Princeton, WIPublic174Tigersharks 2012WestHoriconHoricon, WIPublic225Marshmen 2012EastHustisfordHustisford, WIPublic81Falcons 2001EastJohnson CreekJohnson Creek, WIPublic179Bluejays 2001SouthLourdes AcademyOshkosh, WIPrivate (Catholic)175Knights 2006EastMadison Country DayWaunakee, WIPrivate (Nonsectarian)137Prairie Hawks 2012SouthMarkesanMarkesan, WIPublic253Hornets 2006WestMontelloMontello, WIPublic206Hilltoppers 2001WestOakfieldOakfield, WIPublic164Oaks 2006EastPalmyra-EaglePalmyra, WIPublic144Panthers 2017SouthPardeevillePardeeville, WIPublic272Bulldogs 2001WestParkviewOrfordville, WIPublic290Vikings 2017SouthRandolphRandolph, WIPublic144Rockets 2001WestRioRio, WIPublic102Vikings 2001WestValley ChristianOshkosh, WIPrivate (Christian)198Warriors 2001EastWayland AcademyBeaver Dam, WIPrivate (Nonsectarian)195Big Red 2014EastWilliams BayWilliams Bay, WIPublic176Bulldogs 2001South
Notes
Current associate members SchoolLocationAffiliationMascotColorsPrimary ConferenceSport(s)St. Ambrose AcademyMadison, WIPrivate (Catholic)Guardians IndependentBoys Cross Country, Girls Cross CountryWestfieldWestfield, WIPublicPioneers South CentralFootball
Notes
Future full members SchoolLocationAffiliationEnrollmentMascotColorsJoiningFormer ConferenceSt. Ambrose AcademyMadison, WIPrivate (Catholic)136Guardians 2027IndependentThe Lincoln AcademyBeloit, WICharter206Lions 2027Independent
Former members SchoolLocationAffiliationMascotColorsJoinedLeftConference JoinedCurrent ConferenceGreen LakeGreen Lake, WIPublicLakers 20012012Trailways (coop with Princeton)PrincetonPrinceton, WIPublicTigers 20012012Trailways (coop with Green Lake)
Former football-only members SchoolLocationAffiliationMascotColorsSeasonsConference JoinedPrimary ConferenceBelleville/AlbanyBelleville, WIPublicWildcats 2001-2005CapitolSix RiversNew Glarus/MonticelloNew Glarus, WIPublicGlarner Knights 2001-2005CapitolSix RiversOakfieldOakfield, WIPublicOaks 2003-2005TrailwaysEast Central FlywayPalmyra-EaglePalmyra, WIPublicPanthers 2016TrailwaysRock ValleyParkview/AlbanyOrfordville, WIPublicVikings 2016TrailwaysRock ValleySt. John's NorthwesternDelafield, WIPrivate (Nonsectarian, Military)Lancers 2020-2023Southeast-8Midwest Classic
Membership timeline Full members
Football members
Membership map
Sponsored sports + Abundant Life Christian●●●●●●● Cambria-Friesland●●●●● Central Wisconsin Christian●●●●●●●●● Deerfield●●●●●●●●●● Dodgeland●●●●●●●●●●● Fall River●●●●●●●●●● Horicon●●●●●●●●●●●● Hustisford● Johnson Creek●●●●●●●●●●●● Lourdes Academy●●●●●●●●●●●●● Madison Country Day●●●●●●● Markesan●●●●●●●●●●●● Montello●●●●●●●●●● Oakfield●●●●●●●●●●● Palmyra-Eagle●●●●●●●●●●●● Pardeeville●●●●●●●●●●●● Parkview●●●●●●●●●●●●● Princeton/Green Lake●●●●●●●●●●●●Randolph●●●●●●●●●● Rio●●●●●●●● Valley Christian●●●●●●● Wayland Academy●●●●●●●●●●●● Williams Bay●●●●●●
Notes
List of state champions
Fall sports +Boys Cross CountrySchoolYearDivision Pardeeville2002Division 3 +Girls Cross CountrySchoolYearDivision Lourdes Academy2010Division 3 Lourdes Academy2011Division 3 Lourdes Academy2013Division 3 Lourdes Academy2014Division 3 Lourdes Academy2015Division 3 Dodgeland2017Division 3 Lourdes Academy2019Division 3 +FootballSchoolYearDivision Cambria-Friesland2002Division 7 +Girls VolleyballSchoolYearDivision Williams Bay2003Division 4 Williams Bay2004Division 4 Williams Bay2005Division 4
Winter sports +Boys BasketballSchoolYearDivisionRandolph2002Division 4Randolph2003Division 4Randolph2004Division 4Randolph2005Division 4Randolph2007Division 4Randolph2010Division 4Randolph2011Division 5Randolph2013Division 5 Hustisford2021Division 5 Lourdes Academy2021Division 4Randolph2022Division 5
Spring sports +BaseballSchoolYearDivision Johnson Creek2007Division 4 Rio2015Division 4 Johnson Creek2025Division 4