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Maryland Public Secondary Schools Athletic Association

Maryland Public Secondary Schools Athletic Association (MPSSAA) is the association that oversees public high school sporting contests in the state of Maryland.[2] Organized after World War II in 1946, the MPSSAA is made up of public high schools from each of Maryland's 23 counties and independent city of Baltimore, which joined the association in 1993 when its public high schools withdrew from the earlier longtime athletic league, the Maryland Scholastic Association (MSA) which was founded in 1919. The MSA had been composed of public high schools in Baltimore and private/religious/independent schools on the secondary level in Baltimore and its metropolitan area and the surrounding central Maryland region. It was one of the few state-level interscholastic athletic leagues in the nation composed of both public and private/religious/independent secondary schools. After the Baltimore City public high schools withdrew from the MSA, the remaining private/religious/independent schools conferred and organized two parallel regional/state-wide athletic leagues with sports competition and exercise activities with one for young men and the other for young women. These were the Maryland Interscholastic Athletic Association (MISAA—for boys) and the Interscholastic Athletic Association of Maryland (ISAAM—for girls), which still exist today. All three state-wide athletic leagues, two for private/religious/independent secondary schools and one for co-ed public high schools exist today marrying on the proud traditions, memories and championships of the old Maryland Scholastic Association (MSA)—one of the oldest state athletic leagues for secondary schools in the country.

Maryland Public Secondary Schools Athletic Association
AbbreviationMPSSAA
Formation1946; 78 years ago (1946)
TypeVolunteer; NPO
Legal statusAssociation
PurposeAthletic/Educational
HeadquartersNancy Grassmick Building, Maryland State Department of Education, 200 West Baltimore Street
Baltimore, Maryland 21201
Region served
Maryland
Membership
199 public high schools[1]
Official language
English
Executive Director
Edward F. Sparks
AffiliationsNational Federation of State High School Associations
Websitempssaa.org

The current MPSSAA includes nearly 200 public high schools, with more than 110,000 student-athletes participating in 24 sports. The Association is governed by the Division of Instruction of the Maryland State Department of Education. All public high schools in Maryland in the 23 counties who qualify under the established rules and regulations may become members of the MPSSAA.

The stated purpose of the MPSSAA is "to promote, direct, and control all interscholastic activities of high school students; to establish, maintain, and enforce regulations to assure that all such activities are part of and contribute toward the comprehensive educational program of the state of Maryland; to work with the state department of education in the development of the program to safeguard the physical, mental, and moral welfare of high school students and protect them from exploitation."[3]

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Team sports

Individual sports

Member high schools

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Due to the state's unique geography, Maryland high school athletics is divided into nine districts by the MPSSAA for purposes of organizing athletic activities and postseason tournaments. MPSSAA member schools compete within geographic regions (jurisdictions) and are divided into leagues across the state. In total, there are five conferences and six counties competing together to form a league, but remaining independent.

Classifications

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The MPSSAA's 199 member schools are arranged by classification to ensure that schools compete on a regular basis with other schools in the geographic area of a similar size. The classifications are 1A (the smallest), 2A, 3A, and 4A (the largest).

  • 1A = Lowest 25 percent based on enrollment
  • 2A = Next 25 percent based on enrollment
  • 3A = Next 25 percent based on enrollment
  • 4A = Top 25 percent based on enrollment

District Alignment

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  • District 1 – Allegany, Carroll, Frederick, Garrett, and Washington counties
  • District 2 – Montgomery County
  • District 3 – Prince George's County
  • District 4 – Charles, Calvert, and St. Mary's counties
  • District 5 – Anne Arundel and Howard counties
  • District 6 – Baltimore County
  • District 7 – Cecil and Harford counties
  • District 8 – Caroline, Dorchester, Kent, Queen Anne's, Somerset, Talbot, Wicomico, and Worcester counties
  • District 9 – Baltimore City

Conferences

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Appalachian Mountain Athletic Conference

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Allegany Garrett
Allegany High School Northern Garrett High School
Mountain Ridge High School Southern Garrett High School
Fort Hill High School

Bayside Conference

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Caroline Dorchester Kent Queen Anne's Somerset Talbot Wicomico Worcester
Colonel Richardson High School Cambridge-South Dorchester High School Kent County High School Kent Island High School Crisfield High School Easton High School James M. Bennett High School Pocomoke High School
North Caroline High School North Dorchester High School Queen Anne's County High School Washington High School St. Michaels High School Mardela High School Snow Hill High School
Parkside High School Stephen Decatur High School
Wicomico High School

Monocacy Valley Athletic League

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Carroll Frederick Washington
Century High School Brunswick High School Boonsboro High School
Francis Scott Key High School Catoctin High School Clear Spring High School
Liberty High School Frederick High School Hancock High School
Manchester Valley High School Governor Thomas Johnson High School North Hagerstown High School
Linganore High School Smithsburg High School
South Carroll High School Middletown High School South Hagerstown High School
Westminster High School Oakdale High School Williamsport High School
Winters Mill High School Tuscarora High School
Urbana High School
Walkersville High School

Southern Maryland Athletic Conference

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Calvert Charles St. Mary's
Huntingtown High School Henry E. Lackey High School Chopticon High School
Northern High School La Plata High School Great Mills High School
Calvert High School Maurice J. McDonough High School Leonardtown High School
Patuxent High School North Point High School
Thomas Stone High School
Westlake High School
St. Charles High School

Upper Chesapeake Bay Athletic Conference

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Cecil Harford
Bohemia Manor High School Aberdeen High School
Elkton High School Bel Air High School
North East High School C. Milton Wright High School
Perryville High School Edgewood High School
Rising Sun High School Fallston High School
Harford Technical High School
Havre De Grace High School
Joppatowne High School
North Harford High School
Patterson Mill High School

Independents

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Anne Arundel County League

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Baltimore City League

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Baltimore County League

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Howard County League

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River Hill High School competes against Baltimore City College for the 2009 Class 2A girls' basketball state championship at UMBC's Retriever Activities Center in Catonsville.

Montgomery County League

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Prince George's County League

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See also

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References

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  1. ^ "About Us". Maryland Public Secondary Schools Athletic Association. Retrieved February 22, 2024.
  2. ^ "Maryland Public Secondary Schools Athletic Association". Maryland Public Secondary Schools Association. Retrieved 1 April 2011.
  3. ^ "2013-14 Handbook" (PDF).
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