The Lake Superior Conference is a high school athletic conference with its membership centered around the Twin Ports region at the mouth of the Saint Louis River in Lake Superior. It was founded in 1939 and its member schools belong to the Minnesota State High School League and Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletic Association.
History
1939-1974
The Lake Superior Conference was formed in 1939, and it was originally known as the Big Six Conference to reflect the number of its original member schools (Cloquet, Denfeld, Duluth Central, Morgan Park, Proctor and Two Harbors). At the time of the Big Six Conference's formation, all of its members also belonged to the Head of the Lakes Conference, which included Duluth Cathedral and three high schools across the Saint Louis River in Wisconsin (Superior Cathedral, Superior Central and Superior East). After a short hiatus from 1946 to 1948, the Big Six resumed competition and changed its name as the conference grew; becoming the Big Seven in 1951 (Duluth East), the Big Eight in 1954 (Grand Marais), the Big Nine in 1958 (Silver Bay) and finally, the Big Ten in 1962 (Hermantown). The Big Ten Conference maintained its member roster until 1974, when Duluth Cathedral joined the conference, and the conference changed its name to the Lake Superior Conference due to there being more than ten member schools.
1974-present After the conference's name change, the Lake Superior Conference stayed at eleven schools until 1982, when Morgan Park closed its doors and merged into Denfeld. The school became known as Denfeld-Morgan Park for one school year before reverting to the original Denfeld name in 1983. The next year, the Lake Superior Conference accepted its first ever Wisconsin-based member in Superior High School. Membership in the Lake Superior Conference remained stable for sixteen years until in 1999, four schools (Duluth Central, Duluth East, Silver Bay and Superior) left the conference; Silver Bay joined the Polar League and the other three schools became independents. Prior to the exit of these four schools, the members of the conference voted to disband following the 1999-2000 season, citing disparities in enrollment and competition levels. In 2000, the members of the Lake Superior Conference decided not to disband and two schools made their return: Duluth Central and Superior. Their entry into the Lake Superior Conference offset the loss of Cook County to independent status. In 2006, Two Harbors left to join the Polar League and were replaced by Ashland, who had just left the WIAA's Lumberjack Conference. In preparation for the closing of Duluth Central High School, the athletic programs at Central and Denfeld merged in 2010, initially competing under the Central banner before reverting to Denfield after the two schools merged in 2011. Ashland left the Lake Superior Conference to compete as an independent for the 2020-21 school year prior to joining the WIAA's Heart O'North Conference. They were replaced by Grand Rapids, who previously competed as an independent after leaving the Iron Range Conference in 2019. They were followed by Hibbing in 2021, who left the Iron Range in 2020 and brought the Lake Superior Conference to its current tally of eight member schools.
Football (1958-1977) Football was sponsored for the first time with Silver Bay's entry into the Big Nine in 1958, and all nine schools participated with the conference's first season. Membership was split into two divisions: the four Duluth schools were placed in the City Division and the other five became the Seaway Division. Hermantown joined the Seaway Division for football when it entered the conference for all other sports in 1962. For the 1966 season, Cloquet was shifted over to join with the Duluth schools, and the City Division was renamed the Zenith Division. Duluth Cathedral joined the football roster in 1974, competing in the Zenith Division for the final four seasons of football sponsorship. The Lake Superior Conference discontinued sponsorship of football after the 1977 season as part of a larger realignment of football schools in the Iron Range. All six Zenith Division schools joined with Grand Rapids and Hibbing to form the Northern Lakes Conference, four schools in the Seaway Division (Hermantown, Proctor, Silver Bay and Two Harbors) partnered with five former Iron Range Conference schools (Aurora-Hoyt Lakes, Eveleth, Greenway, International Falls and Virginia) in the new Sea-Range Conference, and Grand Marais became members of the Arrowhead Conference.
List of conference members
Current members SchoolLocationAffiliationEnrollmentMascotColorsJoinedCloquetCloquet, MNPublic662Lumberjacks 1939DenfeldDuluth, MNPublic729Hunters 1939, 2011Grand RapidsGrand Rapids, MNPublic953Thunderhawks 2020HermantownHermantown, MNPublic618Hawks 1962HibbingHibbing, MNPublic564Bluejackets 2021Marshall SchoolDuluth, MNPrivate (Nonsectarian)232Hilltoppers 1974ProctorProctor, MNPublic472Rails 1939SuperiorSuperior, WIPublic1,308Spartans 1983, 2000
Former members SchoolLocationAffiliationEnrollmentMascotColorsJoinedLeftConference JoinedCurrent ConferenceDuluth CentralDuluth, MNPublicN/ATrojans 1939, 20001999, 2011IndependentClosed (merged into Denfeld)Morgan ParkDuluth, MNPublicN/AWildcats 19391982Closed (merged into Denfeld)Two HarborsTwo Harbors, MNPublic290Agates 19392006Polar LeagueDuluth EastDuluth, MNPublic1,358Greyhounds 19511999IndependentCook CountyGrand Marais, MNPublic137Vikings 19542000 IndependentPolar LeagueSilver BaySilver Bay, MNPublic91Mariners 19581999Polar LeagueAshlandAshland, WIPublic635Oredockers 20062020IndependentHeart O'North
Membership timeline
Full members
Football members
Membership map
List of state champions
Fall sports +Boys Cross CountrySchoolYearOrganizationDivisionDuluth Central1943MSHSLDuluth Central1945MSHSLDuluth Central1949MSHSLDuluth Central1951MSHSLDuluth Central1956MSHSLDuluth Central1957MSHSLEsko/Cloquet1984MSHSLClass AAEsko/Cloquet1985MSHSLClass AA +Girls Cross CountrySchoolYearOrganizationDivisionHermantown1984MSHSLClass AHermantown1985MSHSLClass ADuluth East1992MSHSLClass AADuluth East1993MSHSLClass AADuluth East1994MSHSLClass AADuluth East1995MSHSLClass AADuluth East1996MSHSLClass AADuluth East1997MSHSLClass AADuluth East1998MSHSLClass AA +Boys SoccerSchoolYearOrganizationDivisionMarshall School2007MSHSLClass AAshland2013WIAADivision 3 +Girls VolleyballSchoolYearOrganizationDivisionHermantown1976MSHSLClass A
Winter sports +Boys Alpine SkiingSchoolYearOrganizationDuluth Central1943MSHSLDuluth Central1944MSHSLCloquet1945MSHSLDuluth Central1946MSHSLDuluth Central1947MSHSLCloquet1948MSHSLDuluth Central1949MSHSLCloquet1950MSHSLCloquet1951MSHSLCloquet1952MSHSLDuluth East1953MSHSLDuluth East1954MSHSLDuluth East1956MSHSLCloquet1957MSHSLGrand Marais1958MSHSLGrand Marais1959MSHSLDuluth East1960MSHSLDuluth East1961MSHSLGrand Marais1962MSHSLGrand Marais1963MSHSLGrand Marais1964MSHSLGrand Marais1965MSHSLGrand Marais1966MSHSLCloquet1968MSHSLGrand Marais1969MSHSLGrand Marais1970MSHSLDuluth East1985MSHSLDuluth East1990MSHSLDuluth East1991MSHSLDuluth East1994MSHSLDuluth East1995MSHSL +Girls Alpine SkiingSchoolYearOrganizationCloquet1977MSHSLDuluth East1983MSHSLDuluth East1994MSHSLDuluth East1995MSHSLHermantown2012MSHSL +Boys BasketballSchoolYearOrganizationDivisionDenfeld1947MSHSLDuluth Central1950MSHSLDuluth Central1961MSHSLDuluth Central1971MSHSLClass AADuluth Central1979MSHSLClass AA +Boys HockeySchoolYearOrganizationDivisionDuluth East1960MSHSLSuperior1990WIAASuperior1992WIAASuperior1994WIAADuluth East1995MSHSLClass AASuperior1995WIAASuperior1996WIAADuluth East1998MSHSLClass AASuperior2003WIAASuperior2005WIAAHermantown2007MSHSLClass ASuperior2015WIAAHermantown2016MSHSLClass AHermantown2017MSHSLClass AHermantown2022MSHSLClass A +Girls HockeySchoolYearOrganizationDivisionSuperior2005WIAAProctor/Hermantown2021MSHSLClass A +Boys Nordic SkiingSchoolYearOrganizationDuluth Central1940MSHSLDuluth Central1941MSHSLDuluth Central1942MSHSLDuluth Central1943MSHSLDuluth Central1944MSHSLDuluth Central1945MSHSLDuluth Central1946MSHSLDuluth Central1947MSHSLCloquet1948MSHSLDuluth Central1949MSHSLDuluth Central1950MSHSLCloquet1951MSHSLCloquet1952MSHSLDuluth Central1953MSHSLDuluth Central1954MSHSLCloquet1956MSHSLDenfeld1957MSHSLDuluth Central1958MSHSLCloquet1959MSHSLCloquet1960MSHSLDuluth Central1961MSHSLDuluth Central1962MSHSLCloquet1963MSHSLCloquet1966MSHSLDuluth East1998MSHSLDuluth East1999MSHSL +Girls Nordic SkiingSchoolYearDivisionCloquet1976MSHSLCloquet1977MSHSLCloquet1978MSHSLDuluth East1996MSHSLDuluth East1998MSHSLDuluth East1999MSHSL
Spring sports +BaseballSchoolYearOrganizationDivisionDenfeld1950MSHSLMarshall School2019MSHSLClass AA +Boys GolfSchoolYearOrganizationDivisionDuluth Central1946MSHSLDuluth Central1947MSHSLDuluth Central1948MSHSLDuluth East1960MSHSLDuluth East1968MSHSLMarshall School2004MSHSLClass ACloquet2021MSHSLClass AA +SoftballSchoolYearOrganizationDivisionHermantown1991MSHSLClass AHermantown2002MSHSLClass AAHermantown2009MSHSLClass AA +Boys Track & FieldSchoolYearOrganizationDivisionDenfeld1949MSHSLSilver Bay1977MSHSLClass AHermantown2005MSHSLClass A
List of conference champions
Boys Basketball SchoolQuantityYearsDuluth Central221949, 1950, 1951, 1952, 1955, 1957, 1961, 1963, 1967, 1968, 1971, 1977, 1978, 1979, 1982, 1986, 1988, 1989, 1993, 1994, 1997, 1998Superior171990, 1991, 1996, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2013, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2020, 2022, 2024Duluth East161956, 1957, 1966, 1970, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1980, 1981, 1982, 1987, 1991, 1992, 1995, 1996Cloquet151958, 1959, 1960, 1962, 1963, 1965, 1969, 1976, 1983, 1984, 1985, 1999, 2000, 2014, 2021Denfeld131944, 1946, 1952, 1954, 1955, 1957, 2001, 2002, 2004, 2012, 2018, 2024, 2025Two Harbors111940, 1941, 1942, 1943, 1944, 1945, 1970, 1976, 1990, 1991, 1994Hermantown61965, 1990, 1992, 2019, 2023, 2024(Grand Marais)Cook County31993, 1999, 2000Marshall School21995, 2005Morgan Park21943, 1953Silver Bay21970, 1974Proctor11964Ashland0Duluth Cathedral0Grand Rapids0Hibbing0
Girls Basketball SchoolQuantityYearsHermantown121991, 1992, 1994, 1996, 1999, 2005, 2006, 2008, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2020Cloquet71978, 1979, 1990, 1999, 2000, 2004, 2025Denfeld61977, 1988, 1989, 1992, 1993, 1994Duluth Central61981, 1983, 1984, 1986, 1987, 1997Duluth East61977, 1982, 1985, 1991, 1995, 1996Superior61985, 2007, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014Proctor42002, 2003, 2019, 2020Ashland32009, 2010, 2015Marshall School31998, 2021, 2024Two Harbors31993, 1995, 2001Grand Rapids22022, 2023Silver Bay11980(Grand Marais)Cook County0Duluth Cathedral0Hibbing0Morgan Park0
Football
City/Zenith Division SchoolQuantityYearsDenfeld71958, 1959, 1964, 1966, 1973, 1974, 1977Cloquet51967, 1971, 1972, 1975, 1976Duluth Central41961, 1962, 1965, 1968Morgan Park31963, 1969, 1970Duluth East11960Duluth Cathedral0
Seaway Division SchoolQuantityYearsTwo Harbors91958, 1960, 1961, 1967, 1968, 1969, 1975, 1976, 1977Hermantown41964, 1965, 1970, 1972Cloquet31959, 1960, 1962Proctor21963, 1971Silver Bay21973, 1974Grand Marais11966
References
External links
Lake Superior Conference (official website)