Woodland Conference

The Woodland Conference is a high school athletic conference with its geographic footprint in southeastern Wisconsin. Founded in 1993, the Woodland Conference and its members are affiliated with the Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletic Association.

History

1993-2006

The Woodland Conference was formed in 1993 by nine medium-sized high schools in the Milwaukee metropolitan area: Brookfield Central, Brookfield East, Cudahy, Franklin, Greendale, Greenfield, South Milwaukee, Wauwatosa East and Wauwatosa West. Six of the original members came from two area conferences that disbanded the year prior: the Braveland Conference (Brookfield Central and Brookfield East) and the Suburban Park Conference (Cudahy, Greendale, Greenfield and South Milwaukee). Franklin was formerly in the Parkland Conference, and Wauwatosa East and Wauwatosa West were former members of the North Shore Conference. The original membership roster remained intact for the first four years of the conference's history before major realignment occurred in 1997. Five schools left the Woodland conference that year: three became charter members of the new Greater Metro Conference (Brookfield Central, Brookfield East and Wauwatosa East) and two went to the Southeast Conference (Franklin and South Milwaukee). These four schools were replaced by three schools formerly in the Parkland Conference (New Berlin Eisenhower, New Berlin West and Whitnall) and Thomas More from the Metro Conference. The entry of Thomas More into the Woodland Conference coincided with the merger between the public schools of the WIAA and the private schools in the Wisconsin Independent Schools Athletic Association.

2006-2014 In 2006, the Woodland Conference welcomed four schools displaced by the cessation of the Parkland Conference: Brown Deer, Pewaukee, Shorewood and St. Francis. To accommodate the expansion from eight to twelve members, the Woodland Conference subdivided along geographic lines: North DivisionSouth DivisionBrown DeerCudahyNew Berlin EisenhowerGreendaleNew Berlin WestGreenfieldPewaukeeSt. FrancisShorewoodThomas MoreWauwatosa WestWhitnall In 2009, South Milwaukee returned to the Woodland Conference after being dissatisfied by the competitive imbalance they experienced as members of the Southeast Conference. The conference realigned again, with larger schools in the conference comprising the Black Division and smaller ones in the Blue Division: Black DivisionBlue DivisionGreendaleBrown DeerGreenfieldCudahyNew Berlin EisenhowerNew Berlin WestSouth MilwaukeePewaukeeWauwatosa WestShorewoodWhtnallSt. FrancisThomas More After three years of this arrangement, the Woodland Conference realigned by geography into East and West Divisions in 2012. Pius XI also joined that year after leaving the Classic 8 Conference, replacing Thomas More after they joined the new Metro Classic Conference: East DivisionWest DivisionBrown DeerGreendaleCudahyNew Berlin EisenhowerGreenfieldNew Berlin WestShorewoodPewaukeeSouth MilwaukeePius XISt. FrancisWauwatosa WestWhitnall

2014-2026 St. Francis left the Woodland Conference in 2014 to join with smaller schools in the Midwest Classic Conference. In 2017, the Woodland Conference lost Wauwatosa West to the Greater Metro Conference, exchanging affiliations with newcomers West Allis Central. Milwaukee Lutheran joined the Woodland Conference after two decades as members of the North Shore Conference, along with Wisconsin Lutheran following the dissolution of the Wisconsin Little Ten Conference. Milwaukee Lutheran became members of the East Division, and West Allis Central and Wisconsin Lutheran joined the West Division: East DivisionWest DivisionBrown DeerGreendaleCudahyNew Berlin EisenhowerGreenfieldNew Berlin WestMilwaukee LutheranPewaukeeShorewoodPius XISouth MilwaukeeWest Allis CentralWhitnallWisconsin Lutheran The Woodland Conference has expanded its membership roster to sixteen schools in 2025, accepting Waukesha North and Waukesha South from the Classic 8 Conference. Both schools will be joining the West Division, with West Allis Central moving to the East Division to keep membership at eight schools per division.

2026-present In October 2025, the WIAA fast-tracked a plan for Woodland Conference to split into two separate organizations along divisional lines. The eight schools in the Eastern Division (Brown Deer, Cudahy, Greenfield, Milwaukee Lutheran, Shorewood, South Milwaukee, West Allis Central and Whitnall) will remain in the Woodland Conference and be joined by two newcomers, Augustine Prep in Milwaukee and Nathan Hale in West Allis. The eight schools in the Woodland's Western Division split off into a new conference that initially revived the Parkland Conference name for all sports before changing to the Park Ridge Conference in July 2026.

Football-only alignment 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. The eight-member conference originally referred to as the Woodland East featured Cudahy, Grafton, Greendale, Greenfield, Shorewood/Messmer, South Milwaukee, Whitnall and Wisconsin Lutheran as its original members. All members with the exception of Grafton (whose primary affiliation is with the North Shore Conference) were full members of the Woodland Conference. Another conference that was first called the Woodland West changed its name to the Parkland Conference before competition began, reviving a name previously used for an all-sport conference from 1963 to 2006. Membership remained intact for the first four seasons of play before changes were made for the 2024-2025 cycle. Cudahy was moved to the large-schools division of the Midwest Classic Conference, with full Woodland members Milwaukee Lutheran moving over from the Parkland Football Conference as their replacement. For the 2026-2027 realignment cycle, the Woodland Conference will be losing three members: Grafton (Glacier Trails), Shorewood/Messmer (Midwest Classic) and Wisconsin Lutheran (North Shore). They will be replaced by the two high schools in West Allis, with Nathan Hale joining from the Greater Metro Conference and West Allis Central moving over from the Park Ridge Conference. Along with the Park Ridge Conference, the Woodland Conference will have seven schools each and play one mandatory crossover game per school.

List of conference members

Current full members SchoolLocationAffiliationEnrollmentMascotColorsJoinedAugustine Prep SouthMilwaukee, WIPrivate (Christian)939Lions 2026Brown DeerBrown Deer, WIPublic525Falcons 2006CudahyCudahy, WIPublic620Packers 1993GreenfieldGreenfield, WIPublic1,122Hustlin' Hawks 1993Milwaukee LutheranMilwaukee, WIPrivate (LCMS)913Red Knights 2017Nathan HaleWest Allis, WIPublic1,214Huskies 2026ShorewoodShorewood, WIPublic599Greyhounds 2006South MilwaukeeSouth Milwaukee, WIPublic935Rockets 1993, 2009West Allis CentralWest Allis, WIPublic1,023Bulldogs 2017WhitnallGreenfield, WIPublic807Falcons 1997

Notes

Current associate members SchoolLocationAffiliationMascotColorsPrimary ConferenceSport(s)GreendaleGreendale, WIPublicPanthers Park RidgeFootballWaukesha NorthWaukesha, WIPublicNorthstars Park RidgeBoys Swim & DiveWaukesha SouthWaukesha, WIPublicBlackshirts Park RidgeBoys Swim & Dive

Notes

Current co-operative members TeamColorsHost SchoolCo-operative MembersSport(s)New Berlin United New Berlin WestNew Berlin EisenhowerBoys Swim & DiveWest Allis United Varies by sportNathan Hale, West Allis CentralBoys Soccer, Softball, Boys Tennis, Girls Tennis, Boys VolleyballWest Allis Wave West Allis CentralNathan Hale, Martin LutherBoys Swim & Dive, Girls Swim & Dive

Former full members SchoolLocationAffiliationMascotColorsJoinedLeftConference JoinedCurrent ConferenceBrookfield CentralBrookfield, WIPublicLancers 19931997Greater MetroBrookfield EastBrookfield, WIPublicSpartans 19931997Greater MetroFranklinFranklin, WIPublicSabers 19931997SoutheastGreendaleGreendale, WIPublicPanthers 19932026Park RidgeNew Berlin EisenhowerNew Berlin, WIPublicLions 19972026Park RidgeNew Berlin WestNew Berlin, WIPublicVikings 19972026Park RidgePewaukeePewaukee, WIPublicPirates 20062026Park RidgePius XIMilwaukee, WIPrivate (Catholic)Popes 20122026Park RidgeSt. FrancisSt. Francis, WIPublicMariners 20062014Midwest ClassicSt. Thomas MoreMilwaukee, WIPrivate (Catholic)Cavaliers 19972012Metro ClassicWaukesha NorthWaukesha, WIPublicNorthstars 20252026Park RidgeWaukesha SouthWaukesha, WIPublicBlackshirts 20252026Park RidgeWauwatosa EastWauwatosa, WIPublicRed Raiders 19931997Greater MetroWauwatosa WestWauwatosa, WIPublicTrojans 19932017Greater MetroWisconsin LutheranMilwaukee, WIPrivate (WELS)Vikings 20172026Park Ridge

Former football-only members SchoolLocationAffiliationMascotColorsSeasonsPrimary ConferenceGraftonGrafton, WIPublicBlack Hawks 2020-2025North Shore

Membership timeline

Full members

Football members

Membership map

Sanctioned sports +Augustine Prep South●●●●●●●●●●●●●●Brown Deer●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●Cudahy●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●Greenfield●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●Milwaukee Lutheran●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●Nathan Hale●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●Shorewood●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●South Milwaukee●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●West Allis Central●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●Whitnall●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●

Notes

List of state champions

Fall sports +Boys Cross CountrySchoolYearDivisionShorewood2006Division 2Shorewood2009Division 2Shorewood2010Division 2Shorewood2012Division 2Pewaukee2015Division 2Shorewood2021Division 2 +Girls Cross CountrySchoolYearDivisionPewaukee2009Division 2Pewaukee2015Division 2Shorewood2019Division 2 +FootballSchoolYearDivisionCudahy1994Division 2 +Boys SoccerSchoolYearDivision Saint Thomas More2006Division 3Pius XI2018Division 3Shorewood2019Division 3Shorewood2021Division 3New Berlin Eisenhower2022Division 3 +Girls Swimming & DivingSchoolYearDivisionWhitnall1999Division 2Whitnall2000Division 2Shorewood2012Division 2 +Girls TennisSchoolYearDivisionGreendale1994Division 2Greendale1997Division 2Greendale1999Division 2 +Girls VolleyballSchoolYearDivision Wauwatosa East1994Division 1 Thomas More1999Division 1 (WISAA) Thomas More2000Division 2

Winter sports +Boys BasketballSchoolYearDivisionNew Berlin West2000Division 2New Berlin Eisenhower2008Division 2Brown Deer2014Division 3Brown Deer2015Division 3Pewaukee2021Division 2Pewaukee2022Division 2Pewaukee2023Division 2Wisconsin Lutheran2024Division 2Wisconsin Lutheran2025Division 2Wisconsin Lutheran2026Division 1 +Girls BasketballSchoolYearDivisionNew Berlin Eisenhower2010Division 2Pius XI2015Division 2New Berlin Eisenhower2016Division 2Pewaukee2024Division 2 +Boys Swimming & DivingSchoolYearDivision Brookfield Central1994Division 2 Brookfield Central1995Division 2 Brookfield East1996Division 2

Spring sports +BaseballSchoolYearDivisionPewaukee2026Division 2 +Girls SoccerSchoolYearDivision Wauwatosa East1996 Wauwatosa East1997Division 1New Berlin Eisenhower2022Division 3 +SoftballSchoolYearDivisionSouth Milwaukee1998Division 1Greendale2006Division 2New Berlin Eisenhower2008Division 2New Berlin West2016Division 2Whitnall2018Division 2 +Boys TennisSchoolYearDivisionGreendale1995Division 2 Brookfield Central1996Division 1Greendale2005Division 2 +Boys Track & FieldSchoolYearDivisionBrown Deer2008Division 2Shorewood2013Division 2Shorewood2022Division 2 +Girls Track & FieldSchoolYearDivisionBrown Deer2007Division 2Wisconsin Lutheran2019Division 2Shorewood2022Division 2

Summer sports +BaseballSchoolYearGreendale1995South Milwaukee1996 Wauwatosa East1997New Berlin West2013

List of conference champions Boys Basketball