Leechburg to D6/Heritage?

[cleaverstuart]

Ligonier has 105 students enrolled in cyber schools this year. Not all are new growth of cyber school students is due to the closure of Laurel Valley. There were approx. 35 cyber school students before the Laurel Valley closure. It would be logical to think that about 80 of these students however are due from the Laurel Valley closure and moving 6 graders from LV elem. to Lig M.S. If you figure that is 12 students per grade for seven grades with a even mix of male and female (although there were more female students cyber schooled two years ago.) that would make it that there is about 24 boys in the top four grades that are cyber schooled. That would make Liggy a small AA (but still AA) football school and still close to MC in size but still significant larger that the mid size A schools like Bliarsville, United, NC & PL and still close to double that of HC, PM & Saltsburg. Liggy is very similar in size to Westmont, Richland and C. Heights. The football program has made it quite clear that they do not want to change conferences even when the school baord was supportive of a move to the LHAC until the football program made its feeling quite clear. In reality Liggy is a better fit in the Heritage in other sports than in football and still better there than in LHAC or WPIAL. It the girls basketball team would drop a class if the cyber school students were not all counted (AA and not AAA).

[deepcreek]

If Liggy was smart, they would contribute to a lift type scholarship so those kids could go to BM or GCC. It would get them off the books and not cost them via Cyberschool. I am serious, it woud cost the district less and help their athletic programs at the same time.

[d6footballfan95]

There was definatly some people against the move inside the football program but most people in the program wanted out of the heritage.

[costanza]

It was the football program that wanted to stay....it is quite an accomplishment to get some of those easy guaranteed wins.

and the cyber school point is moot--each district has to count all cyber and home-schooled kids in their enrollment. if they live in the district, they would attend the high school anyway if they didn't go to cyber or be home-schooled. those kids can (and do) play sports....

[d6footballfan95]

It was the football program that wanted to stay....it is quite an accomplishment to get some of those easy guaranteed wins.

and the cyber school point is moot--each district has to count all cyber and home-schooled kids in their enrollment. if they live in the district, they would attend the high school anyway if they didn't go to cyber or be home-schooled. those kids can (and do) play sports....

Yes they do play sports at ligonier alit of those home schooled kids do track and dont compete in meets. Ligonier has a vaery large track team that has home schooled kids and cyber schooled kids on it, but there is not one single home or cyber school kid on the football roster from last year. Its unfortunate.

[bigben7]

There was a video, on the save Laurel Valley facebook page, of an athletic meeting with all of the coaches from Ligonier. The topic of switching conferences came up and they polled the coaches. It was close to a 50/50 vote. Every coach either said laurel highlands or heritage except 1. Beitel said "100% heritage". Because he knows he is a .500 team in the LH, but he can beat saltsburg by 60 every year. The only people who are worse than Beitel and Ligonier ,in this situation, are the conference AD's who didn't just throw them out.

[LionDad]

http://triblive.com/sports/hssports/oth ... z2TFh8AFWK

D-6 has given their approval, now the move is all dependent upon the PIAA giving their approval. One would think since the WPIAL and D-6 have given their blessing that the PIAA would follow suit. This is a puzzling move it isn't just a long commute for 3 teams in the Heritage it is a long trip for all of them. It's an hour from United, which isn't a big deal for football since it generates revenue, but in times of budget crisis its all the other sports that make this move one that makes no sense.

One local A.D. told me since the Heritage was advertising to add a school that it would be difficult for them to turn down a school that was interested in joining.

The West Shamokin/Apollo Ridge discussion has been around forever. Back in the day I believe the argument was it was a logical fit for some sports, but not in everything which I could be wrong but that was before most Heritage Schools didn't have soccer and other sports, I believe Tennis or something else was an issue as well.

West Shamokin will be absorbed in the coming years by the new super school which will be Kittanning/Ford City/West Shamokin..Etc..United and Blairsville wrestled West Shamokin and they barely had 4 kids, football is horrible although they would likely be more competitive in the Heritage. Apollo Ridge would make a lot of sense for the Heritage.

What made the most sense was the Appalachian Conference

[Head Roadie]

This move from WPIAL to D6 was tabled at last nights PIAA Board of Directors Meeting. Word is that Leechburg's school board is having second thoughts.

[animus]

Dang. I wouldn't mind seeing them go. There will be at least 3-4 2A schools set to drop to 1A this upcoming cycle.

[richaboli]

Is any other team going to apply for the Heritage?
Any further talk of a team moving from the Heritage to the WestPac or vice versa?