Chagrin Valley Conference
The Chagrin Valley Conference is a high school athletic conference made up of several schools in Northeast Ohio, United States. The league and its members compete as part of the Ohio High School Athletic Association (OHSAA).
The conference is named for the Chagrin River that flows through the valley where the majority of the founding schools are located.
Current members
| School | Nickname | Location | Colors | Tenure | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chagrin Division | ||||||
| Harvey | Red Raiders | Painesville | Red & black |
2009– | ||
| Hawken | Hawks | Gates Mills | Red & gray |
1996– | ||
| Lutheran West | Longhorns | Rocky River | Red & white |
2019– | ||
| Orange | Lions | Pepper Pike | Orange & black |
1964–1996, 1998– | ||
| Perry | Pirates | Perry | Scarlet & white |
1996– | ||
| West Geauga | Wolverines | Chesterland | Navy blue & white |
1963–1996, 1998– | ||
| Lake Division | ||||||
| Conneaut | Spartans | Conneaut | Navy blue & gold |
2023– | ||
| Edgewood | Warriors | Ashtabula | Scarlet & gray |
2019– | ||
| Geneva | Eagles | Geneva | Scarlet & gray |
2015– | ||
| Jefferson Area | Falcons | Jefferson | Red, white, & black |
2023– | ||
| Lakeside | Dragons | Ashtabula | Forest green & Vegas gold |
2019– | ||
| Madison | Blue Streaks | Madison | Blue & white |
2023– | ||
| Metro Division | ||||||
| Beachwood | Bison | Beachwood | White & gold |
2005– | ||
| Brooklyn | Hurricanes | Brooklyn | Blue & gold |
2019– | ||
| Cuyahoga Heights | Red Wolves | Cuyahoga Heights | Scarlet & gray |
2005– | ||
| Independence | Blue Devils | Independence | Royal blue & gold |
2005– | ||
| Richmond Heights | Spartans | Richmond Heights | Royal Blue & White |
2005– | ||
| Trinity | Trojans | Garfield Heights | Blue & white |
2019– | ||
| Wickliffe | Blue Devils | Wickliffe | Navy blue & gold |
1980– | ||
| Valley Division | ||||||
| Berkshire | Badgers | Burton | Purple & gold |
1996– | ||
| Cardinal | Huskies | Middlefield | Red & white |
1996–2025 | Leaving for the Northeastern Athletic Conference in 2025 | |
| Chagrin Falls | Tigers | Chagrin Falls | Orange & black |
1964– | ||
| Crestwood | Red Devils | Mantua | Red & gray |
2020– | ||
| Fairview | Warriors | Fairview Park | Scarlet & gray |
2023– | ||
| Kirtland | Hornets | Kirtland | Navy Blue & gold |
1996– | ||
Future members
| School | Nickname | Location | Colors | Joining | Notes | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rootstown | Rovers | Rootstown | Navy Blue & white |
2025 | Joining the Valley Division | ||
| Chardon | Hilltoppers | Chardon | Red & black |
2026 | Returning after having previously been a member from 1964–1980 and 1983–1996 | ||
| Fairport Harding | Skippers | Fairport Harbor | Maroon & white |
2026 | Returning after having previously been a member from 2005–2020 | ||
| North | Rangers | Eastlake | Orange & black |
2026 | |||
| South | Rebels | Willoughby | Columbia blue & gray |
2026 | |||
Former members
| School | Nickname | Location | Colors | Tenure | Notes | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aurora | Greenmen | Aurora | Green & white |
1964–1983, 1996–2015 | Left for the East Suburban Conference in 1983 and for the Suburban League in 2015 | ||
| Chardon | Hilltoppers | Chardon | Red & black |
1964-1980, 1983–1996 | Left for the East Suburban Conference in 1980 and for the Premier Athletic Conference in 1996 | ||
| Grand Valley | Mustangs | Orwell | Royal blue, navy blue, gray, & white |
1998-2009, 2019-2024 | Left both times for the Northeastern Athletic Conference | ||
| Fairport Harding | Skippers | Fairport Harbor | Maroon & white |
2005–2020 | Left for the Northeastern Athletic Conference | ||
| Kenston | Bombers | Bainbridge | Blue & white |
1964–1996, 2005–2015 | Left both times for two separate iterations of the Western Reserve Conference | ||
| Newbury | Black Knights | Newbury | Orange & black |
1998–2014 | Left for the Northeastern Athletic Conference | ||
| Solon | Comets | Solon | Navy blue, gold, & white |
1964–1996 | Left for the Western Reserve Conference | ||
| Twinsburg | Tigers | Twinsburg | Blue & white |
1964–1996 | Left for the Western Reserve Conference | ||
History
The CVC formed in 1964 with Chagrin Falls, Kenston, Orange, Solon, Twinsburg, and West Geauga as its charter members. Aurora and Chardon joined in 1968 to bring membership up to eight.
The league remained stable until 1980 when Chardon left for the East Suburban Conference and was replaced with Wickliffe. When Aurora left for the Metro Athletic Conference in 1983, Chardon returned as their replacement.
Around 1994, Chagrin Falls and Wickliffe suggested creating a "small school" division within the CVC to give them better competition. Aurora was invited back, along with Hawken, and four schools from the ESC: Berkshire, Cardinal, Kirtland, and Perry. The two-division setup fell through when Kenston, Orange, Solon, Twinsburg, and West Geauga left to form the Western Reserve Conference in 1996 with members of the Metro League. Chardon would ultimately end up in the Premier Athletic Conference. This left the CVC with the eight schools meant to be its smaller division.
In 1998 the CVC decided to follow through with the two-division, 12-school setup. They invited Orange and West Geauga back to be part of the Chagrin Division with Aurora, Chagrin Falls, Perry, and Wickliffe. The Valley Division included Berkshire, Cardinal, Hawken, Kirtland, and two more schools from the ESC: Grand Valley and Newbury.
When the MAC-8 dissolved in 2005, Beachwood joined the Valley Division while Cuyahoga Heights, Independence, and Richmond Heights joined with Fairport Harding and Hawken to create the Metro Division . Kenston also returned at this time, but would leave for a new version of the WRC in 2015. Aurora would also depart at the same time for the Suburban League. Grand Valley left in 2009.
The CVC would continue to expand: Harvey would join in 2009[1] and Geneva came on board in 2015.[2] The addition of six schools in 2019 (Brooklyn, Edgewood, Grand Valley, Lakeside, Lutheran West, and Trinity ) brought the league to 22 members.[3]
Newbury would leave for the NAC in 2014 before having its district transferred to West Geauga in 2020.[4] Newbury, Cardinal, and Berkshire considered a district merger before Berkshire ultimately absorbed the Ledgemont School District in 2015.[5]
Crestwood would join in 2020[6] at the same time that Fairport Harding left for the NAC. Conneaut, Fairview, Jefferson Area, and Madison would come aboard in 2023.[7] This lead to the creation of the Lake Division.[8]
Grand Valley left the CVC a second time in 2024 for the NAC. Cardinal announced in the summer of 2024 that they would leave for the Northeastern Athletic Conference as well for the 2025-2026 school year.[9] As a result, in October 2024 it was announced that Rootstown would leave the Portage Trail Conference and join the Valley Division for the 2025-2026 school year as Cardinal leaves.[10]
In February 2025, the CVC announced that Chardon and Fairport Harbor would return to the league along with Eastlake North and Willoughby South in the fall of 2026.[11] This expansion will bring the league to 29 teams.
All-time membership timeline
References
- ^ Weeklies, Kent (2009-07-01). "Sports Wire: Harvey joining CVC, will play AHS in football". Akron Beacon Journal. Retrieved 2025-02-07.
- ^ Kampf, John (2013-10-24). "Source: Geneva, West G pick CVC over new WRC". News-Herald. Retrieved 2025-02-07.
- ^ Goul, Matt (2018-04-20). "Source: Brooklyn, Lutheran West and Trinity joining Chagrin Valley Conference expansion to 22 schools". Cleveland.com. Retrieved 2025-02-07.
- ^ "Newbury BOE Exploring Merger Options". Geauga County Maple Leaf. 2018-06-14. Retrieved 2025-02-07.
- ^ "It's Official: Berkshire, Ledgemont Becoming One". Geauga County Maple Leaf. 2015-03-10. Retrieved 2025-01-31.
- ^ Kampf, John (2019-07-12). "Mantua Crestwood makes move to join Chagrin Valley Conference". News-Herald. Retrieved 2025-02-07.
- ^ Hare, Steve (2023-02-07). "Fairview to join the Chagrin Valley Conference". Chagrin Valley Conference. Retrieved 2025-02-07.
- ^ Kampf, John (2022-01-19). "Chagrin Valley Conference votes to add Madison, Jefferson, Conneaut". News-Herald. Retrieved 2025-02-07.
- ^ Kornspan, Alan (2024-06-27). "Cardinal Joining Northeastern Athletic Conference in Fall 2025". Geauga County Maple Leaf. Retrieved 2025-02-07.
- ^ Nader, Tom (2024-10-22). "Rootstown announces move to Chagrin Valley Conference". Portage Sports. Retrieved 2025-02-07.
- ^ Hare, Steve (2025-02-18). "CVC Welcomes Four New Member Schools". Chagrin Valley Conference. Retrieved 2025-02-18.