Sebring expected to fill opening left by Mathews

The ICL is looking at a two-tier conference in the near future.
By BRIAN RICHESSON
VINDICATOR SPORTS STAFF
Disparity in school size has become a growing problem for area prep conferences.
The Inter-County League hopes it has found an answer.
While they wait for word on Sebring's official arrival into their league, ICL officials have their sights set on the big picture: a two-tier conference.
"The school sizes have gone in opposite directions," ICL commissioner John Davis said. "The bigger schools have gotten bigger and the smaller schools have gotten smaller. We were much closer in the past."
Trading places
With Mathews leaving for the East Suburban Conference (in football) and the Northeastern Athletic Conference (in all other sports) after the 2003-04 basketball season, the ICL will be reduced to seven schools.
Other ICL members are Jackson-Milton, Lowellville, McDonald, Mineral Ridge, South Range, Springfield and Western Reserve.
Sebring's addition, which was approved by the ICL last week, would keep the league at eight members while giving it hope for expansion.
"The overall plan was to go to two tiers, but we had to get somebody to give us eight [members again], to the even number," Davis said. "It so happened we talked to them first."
Sebring could leave the Tri-County League and start competing in the ICL as early as next school year, but those details are not clear yet. First, the board must vote to approve change in league affiliation.
"It's something that should be discussed, with various points brought up," Sebring principal Brian Coffee said. "Something's going to happen soon, one way or another."
Wellsville reportedly would replace the Trojans in the eight-member TCL. On Monday, the TCL Board of Control voted to extend an invitation to Wellsville for 2005.
"We're trying to be proactive with our league," TCL commissioner John Mang said. "We felt it was a good fit for us. They're perfect for some of our smaller schools, and they have a new facility."
Merger scrapped
Negotiations between the ICL and Sebring began after an attempted merger between the ICL and TCL fell apart in late August, Davis said.
"The problem is, we have five small schools and three bigger schools" in the ICL, Davis said. "We were not balancing off our league."
That's why a two-tier system appears to be the solution, with schools grouped by similar size.
If Sebring becomes a member, Davis added, the ICL would continue expansion of up to 12 or 14 schools, with two joining at a time.
The league already has interest from two other schools, which Davis declined to name publicly. One is in Mahoning County, the other in Trumbull County.
"We hope to add them and build from there," he said.
richesson@vindy.com