Two Wayne County schools are being invited to join a new conference for athletic and academic competitions, and two Henry County schools have already committed.
The announcement about the new Eastern Crossroads Conference came Thursday, Oct. 2, from Eastern Hancock Schools athletic director Aaron Spaulding.
New Castle, Shenandoah, Lapel and Eastern Hancock have committed to the conference, while Centerville, Northeastern and Delta are being formally invited, the news release said.
Spaulding said the ECC will feature athletics, including cheerleading, and academic contests at both the high school and middle school levels.
Northeastern and Centerville currently belong to the Tri-Eastern Conference. Both of its athletic directors addressed their respective school boards and administrators at their regular September board meetings.
READ: Blow blues in TEC
Those athletic directors, Ryan Halloran and Clay Bolser, described recent TEC member discussions about the TEC’s future.
A few weeks ago, five TEC members voted against inviting additional area schools (Eastern Hancock, Shenandoah, Monroe Central and Wes-Del) to fully join the TEC. The same TEC members (Lincoln, Hagerstown, Tri, Knightstown and Winchester) also voted against the new invitees joining just for football. Four TEC members (Northeastern, Centerville, Union County and Union City) voted in favor.
At their September school board meetings, Bolser and Halloran also described discussions they’d been invited to attend with other prospective ECC members who had begun exploring the possibility of forming a new conference of eight schools. Jay County had been mentioned as a potential member but was not part of the Oct. 2 press release.
When asked, most Centerville and Northeastern coaches told their athletic directors they favored joining a new conference. Concerns about remaining in the TEC included disparities between football programs and limited playing time for some athletes when their teams built big leads. Both schools said the reduction in tough competitions they face during the season might affect their abilities to advance to state competitions.
The Knights and Bulldogs also noted challenges of finding junior varsity games because some TEC schools don’t field JV teams.
School board members asked questions, including what additional facility and staff/volunteer resources might be needed to accommodate new conference members and their fans, but no answers were available at that time. They took no action regarding athletic conference membership at their board meetings but supported additional exploration of possibilities.
In November, the ECC will start writing formal bylaws, Spaulding said.
No dates were given in the release regarding decision deadlines for membership or when ECC competitions would begin.
WWN has reached out to representatives from Centerville and Northeastern for comment, and this story may be updated as new information becomes available.
A version of this article appeared in the October 8 2025 print edition of the Western Wayne News.