Naugatuck Valley League

The Naugatuck Valley League (abbreviated NVL) is a 15-team athletic conference of high schools, located in the Naugatuck River Valley of Connecticut.

Naugatuck Valley League
ConferenceCIAC
No. of teams15
RegionNew Haven County
Litchfield County

The NVL is a member of the Connecticut Interscholastic Athletic Conference (CIAC). It is the oldest high school athletic conference in Connecticut,[1] claiming a continuous history that dates back to at least 1930.

Divisions

Prior to the 2007–08 school year the NVL member schools' athletic directors agreed to split the league into two divisions: the Brass and the Copper.[2] The goal of the new structure was to create more competition within the league and enhance each sport's postseason tournament. The names "Brass" and "Copper" were chosen because of Waterbury's history of being centers of brass and copper production.

The addition of Derby High School and St. Paul Catholic High School in 2009 resulted in the first realignment of the league resulted in two sets of divisions—one set for football and the other for all other sports. St. Paul Catholic (which fields a co-operative team with Lewis Mills High School and Goodwin Technical High School in football) was simply added to the pre-existing Copper football division, while Derby (which fields a co-op team with Emmett O'Brien Technical High School in football) was added to the old Brass.

In each of the other NVL sports, the divisions were more drastically realigned. Both St. Paul and Derby were added to the Brass, and Woodland moved from the Copper to the Brass. Crosby and Wilby both shifted from the Brass to the Copper, creating an essentially "city division", with the five Waterbury schools, along with Naugatuck and Torrington.

Expansion of the league (2009—present)

During the winter of 2009, the existing 12 member schools of the NVL voted in favor of admitting two new schools into the league: Derby High School, moving over from the SCC (Southern Connecticut Conference), and St. Paul Catholic High School of Bristol, which would have been forced to play independently upon the disbanding of the Northwest Conference. Both schools began league play in the fall of 2010.

On February 22, 2013, the Naugatuck Valley League approved the admittance of Oxford High School into their conference from the SWC (South West Conference.) With the move, the NVL announced on November 22, 2013, that the format of two divisions (Brass and Copper) would be realigned into three (Brass, Copper, and Iron) for the start of the 2014–15 school year:

Iron Division
SchoolLocationNicknameColors
Ansonia High School Ansonia, Connecticut Chargers    
Derby High School Derby, Connecticut Raiders   
Oxford High School Oxford, Connecticut Wolverines    
St. Paul Catholic High School Bristol, Connecticut Falcons      
Seymour High School Seymour, Connecticut Wildcats    

Brass Division
SchoolLocationNicknameColors
Crosby High School Waterbury, Connecticut Bulldogs    
Holy Cross High School Waterbury, Connecticut Crusaders    
Kennedy High School Waterbury, Connecticut Eagles    
Waterbury Career Academy Waterbury, Connecticut Spartans  

 

Wilby High School Waterbury, Connecticut Wildcats


Copper Division
SchoolLocationNicknameColors
Naugatuck High School Naugatuck, Connecticut Greyhounds    
Torrington High School Torrington, Connecticut Raiders    
Watertown High School Watertown, Connecticut Warriors    
Wolcott High School Wolcott, Connecticut Eagles
Woodland Regional High School Beacon Falls, Connecticut Hawks    

In boys' and girls' basketball, 20 games are played, two against each team within the same division, one each against non-division teams, and two non-league games.

In 2015 Waterbury Career Academy High School joined the NVL bringing it to a membership of 16 schools. In February 2021, Sacred Heart High School announced that it would cease operations following the 2020-21 academic year. Thus, Sacred Heart is no longer a member of the Naugatuck Valley League.

NVL football divisions

The Naugatuck Valley League football divisions are as follows.[2]

Division School Nickname Location
Copper Division Holy Cross High School Crusaders Waterbury
John F. Kennedy High School Eagles Waterbury
Naugatuck High School Greyhounds Naugatuck
Sacred Heart High School Hearts Waterbury
St. Paul Catholic High School Falcons Bristol
Torrington High School Red Raiders Torrington
Woodland Regional High School Hawks Beacon Falls
Brass Division Ansonia High School Chargers Ansonia
Crosby High School Bulldogs Waterbury
Derby High School Red Raiders Derby
Seymour High School Wildcats Seymour
Watertown High School Warriors Watertown
Wilby High School Wildcats Waterbury
Wolcott High School Eagles Wolcott

NVL divisions in other sports

The Naugatuck Valley League divisions in sports other than football are as follows.[2]

Division School Nickname Location
Copper Division Crosby High School Bulldogs Waterbury
Holy Cross High School Crusaders Waterbury
John F. Kennedy High School Eagles Waterbury
Naugatuck High School Greyhounds Naugatuck
Sacred Heart High School Hearts Waterbury
Torrington High School Red Raiders Torrington
Wilby High School Wildcats Waterbury
Brass Division Ansonia High School Chargers Ansonia
Derby High School Red Raiders Derby
Seymour High School Wildcats Seymour
St. Paul Catholic High School Falcons Bristol
Watertown High School Indians Watertown
Wolcott High School Eagles Wolcott
Woodland Regional High School Hawks Beacon Falls

Sports

The NVL offers varsity sports in three seasons: fall, winter, and spring.[2]

Footnotes
  1. "St. Paul Catholic High School - Bristol, CT". Archived from the original on 2009-04-11. Retrieved 2009-04-20.
  2. CIAC Tournament Pairings/Schedules/Results/E-Mail Lists
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