# Capitol Conference (Wisconsin)

The Capitol Conference is a high school athletic conference in south central Wisconsin. It was founded in 1969, and its member schools are affiliated with the Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletic Association.

## History
### Madison Suburban Split and Early Years (1969-1994)

The Capitol Conference was formed in 1969 after the breakup of the larger Madison Suburban Conference into three separate organizations. Six of its original members came from the conference's Western section (Lodi, McFarland, Poynette, Verona, Waunakee and Wisconsin Heights) and two came from the Central section (DeForest and Waterloo). In 1977, Poynette left to rejoin the Dual County Conference (having previously been a member from 1926 to 1954) and Waterloo became a member of the Eastern Suburban Conference. Two schools moved over from the Central Suburban Conference (Columbus and Lake Mills) to take their place and keep the conference at eight member schools. Mount Horeb became the ninth member of the Capitol Conference after leaving the Southern Eight Conference in 1983. In 1987, that number went back down to eight as DeForest and Waunakee left to become the newest members of the Badger Conference and Poynette rejoined the Capitol Conference as a replacement.

### Growth-Driven Membership Shuffle (1994-2006)

By 1994, the Verona Area School District was the fastest-growing district in the Madison area, and they were invited to enter the Badger Conference with an eye towards continued future growth. Lakeside Lutheran in Lake Mills took their place in 1995 after leaving the Eastern Suburban Conference, giving Lake Mills a crosstown rivalry for conference play. Cambridge, Marshall and Waterloo followed Lakeside Lutheran out of the Eastern Suburban in 2001, offsetting the loss of Lodi and Poynette to the South Central Conference and McFarland and Mount Horeb to the Badger Conference. For Waterloo, this was their second stint in the conference after having been a member from 1969 to 1977. The Capitol Conference would remain a seven-member league for the next five years before major changes would occur.

### Divisional Realignment and Complete Overhaul (2006-present)

In 2006, the Capitol Conference reached its high of twelve member schools when Lodi and Poynette rejoined from the South Central Conference, Belleville and New Glarus came over from the Six Rivers Conference and Luther Prep in Watertown was added after being displaced from the Parkland Conference after it ceased operations. With the addition of the new schools came realignment into the Capitol North and Capitol South divisions:
| Capitol North | Capitol South |
| Columbus | Belleville |
| Lake Mills | Cambridge |
| Lakeside Lutheran | Marshall |
| Lodi | New Glarus |
| Luther Prep | Waterloo |
| Poynette | Wisconsin Heights |
This alignment stayed intact for sixteen years before Luther Prep exited the conference to rejoin the Midwest Classic Conference in 2023. Two years later, the Capitol Conference will undergo a significant revamping of its membership roster. All six schools in the Capitol South division, along with Poynette from the Capitol North and Brodhead from the Rock Valley Conference, are set to form a new conference yet to be named for the 2025-26 school year. The Capitol Conference will become an eight-member loop with the addition of three schools from the Rock Valley (Clinton, Jefferson and Whitewater) and one from the dissolved East Central Conference (Waupun).

## List of Conference Members
### Current Members

| School | Location | Affiliation | Enrollment | Mascot | Joined |
| Belleville | Belleville, WI | Public | 279 | Wildcats | 2006 |
| Cambridge | Cambridge, WI | Public | 266 | Bluejays | 2001 |
| Columbus | Columbus, WI | Public | 390 | Cardinals | 1977 |
| Lake Mills | Lake Mills, WI | Public | 491 | L-Cats | 1977 |
| Lakeside Lutheran | Lake Mills, WI | Private (Lutheran, WELS) | 506 | Warriors | 1995 |
| Lodi | Lodi, WI | Public | 451 | Blue Devils | 1969, 2006 |
| Marshall | Marshall, WI | Public | 292 | Cardinals | 2001 |
| New Glarus | New Glarus, WI | Public | 323 | Glarner Knights | 2006 |
| Poynette | Poynette, WI | Public | 310 | Pumas | 1969, 1987, 2006 |
| Waterloo | Waterloo, WI | Public | 259 | Pirates | 1969, 2001 |
| Wisconsin Heights | Mazomanie, WI | Public | 228 | Vanguards | 1969 |

### Former Members

| School | Location | Affiliation | Enrollment | Mascot | Joined | Left | Conference Joined | Current Conference |
| DeForest | DeForest, WI | Public | 1,093 | Norskies | 1969 | 1987 | Badger | Badger |
| McFarland | McFarland, WI | Public | 774 | Spartans | 1969 | 2001 | Badger | Badger |
| Verona | Verona, WI | Public | 1,801 | Wildcats | 1969 | 1994 | Badger | Big Eight |
| Waunakee | Waunakee, WI | Public | 1,309 | Warriors | 1969 | 1987 | Badger | Badger |
| Mount Horeb | Mount Horeb, WI | Public | 792 | Vikings | 1983 | 2001 | Badger | Badger |
| Luther Prep | Watertown, WI | Public (Lutheran, WELS) | 407 | Phoenix | 2006 | 2023 | Midwest Classic | Midwest Classic |

### Future Members

| School | Location | Affiliation | Enrollment | Mascot | Joined | Former Conference |
| Clinton | Clinton, WI | Public | 359 | Cougars | 2025 | Rock Valley |
| Jefferson | Jefferson, WI | Public | 604 | Eagles | 2025 | Rock Valley |
| Waupun | Waupun, WI | Public | 573 | Warriors | 2025 | East Central |
| Whitewater | Whitewater, WI | Public | 606 | Whippets | 2025 | Rock Valley |

## List of State Champions
### Fall Sports

Boys Cross Country :
| School | Year | Division |
| Wisconsin Heights | 1973 | Small Schools |
| Verona | 1974 | Class B |
| Verona | 1982 | Class B |
| Verona | 1991 | Division 2 |
| McFarland | 1996 | Division 2 |
| Lakeside Lutheran | 1999 | Division 2 (WISAA) |
| Lakeside Lutheran | 2023 | Division 2 |
Girls Cross Country :
| School | Year | Division |
| Verona | 1980 | Class B |
| Verona | 1981 | Class B |
| Mount Horeb | 1983 | Class B |
| Verona | 1984 | Class B |
| Mount Horeb | 1990 | Division 2 |
| Mount Horeb | 1994 | Division 2 |
| Mount Horeb | 1995 | Division 2 |
| Lakeside Lutheran | 2007 | Division 2 |
Football :
| School | Year | Division |
| DeForest | 1982 | Division 4 |
| Columbus | 1990 | Division 4 |
| Columbus | 1996 | Division 4 |
| Lodi | 2017 | Division 4 |
| Columbus | 2022 | Division 4 |
| Lodi | 2023 | Division 4 |
Boys Soccer :
| School | Year | Division |
| Columbus | 2008 | Division 3 |
| Sugar River co-op (Belleville/New Glarus) | 2023 | Division 3 |
Girls Volleyball :
| School | Year | Division |
| Waunakee | 1985 | Class B |
| Waunakee | 1986 | Class B |
| Wisconsin Heights | 2008 | Division 3 |
| Waterloo | 2014 | Division 3 |
| Waterloo | 2015 | Division 3 |
| Lakeside Lutheran | 2017 | Division 2 |

### Winter Sports

Boys Basketball :
| School | Year | Division |
| McFarland | 1973 | Class B |
| McFarland | 1974 | Class C |
| Marshall | 2002 | Division 3 |
| New Glarus | 2019 | Division 4 |
Girls Basketball :
| School | Year | Division |
| McFarland | 1983 | Class B |
| McFarland | 1999 | Division 2 |
| Lakeside Lutheran | 2001 | Division 3 |
| Columbus | 2002 | Division 2 |
| Columbus | 2003 | Division 2 |
| Marshall | 2018 | Division 3 |
| Marshall | 2019 | Division 3 |
| Lake Mills | 2021 | Division 2 |
Gymnastics :
| School | Year | Division |
| Lake Mills | 1979 | Class B |
| Lake Mills | 1980 | Class B |
| Mount Horeb | 1984 | Class B |
| Mount Horeb | 1993 | Division 2 |
Boys Swimming & Diving :
| School | Year | Division |
| Verona | 1993 | Division 2 |
Boys Wrestling :
| School | Year | Division |
| Lodi | 1998 | Division 2 |
| Lodi | 2008 | Division 2 |

### Spring Sports

Baseball :
| School | Year | Division |
| Wisconsin Heights | 1989 | Class C |
| Lodi | 2013 | Division 2 |
| Wisconsin Heights | 2014 | Division 3 |
Boys Golf :
| School | Year | Division |
| Mount Horeb | 1988 | Class B |
| Lodi | 1990 | Class B |
| Lodi | 1996 | Division 2 |
| Lake Mills | 1997 | Division 3 |
| Lodi | 1998 | Division 2 |
| Lodi | 2015 | Division 2 |
| Cambridge | 2023 | Division 3 |
Softball :
| School | Year | Division |
| Waunakee | 1987 | Class B |
| Poynette | 1998 | Division 2 |
| Poynette | 2011 | Division 3 |
| Poynette | 2018 | Division 3 |
| Poynette | 2019 | Division 3 |
| Poynette | 2022 | Division 2 |
Boys Track & Field :
| School | Year | Division |
| McFarland | 1977 | Class C |
| Verona | 1992 | Division 2 |
| Sugar River co-op (Belleville/New Glarus) | 2012 | Division 2 |
| Cambridge | 2018 | Division 3 |
| Lodi | 2021 | Division 2 |
| Lakeside Lutheran | 2023 | Division 2 |
| Lakeside Lutheran | 2024 | Division 2 |
Girls Track & Field :
| School | Year | Division |
| Lake Mills | 1974 | Class B |
| Lake Mills | 1980 | Class B |
| Verona | 1984 | Class B |
| Verona | 1985 | Class B |
| Lake Mills | 1986 | Class B |
| Verona | 1991 | Division 2 |
| Mount Horeb/Barneveld | 1996 | Division 2 |
| McFarland | 2001 | Division 2 |
| Columbus | 2004 | Division 2 |
| Lakeside Lutheran | 2005 | Division 2 |
| Lakeside Lutheran | 2006 | Division 2 |