Conference realignment name game, Part 2

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Next school year, the N.C. High School Athletic Association conferences will realign. Now we know what Mecklenburg County's will be called.

The realignment plan, which you can find on the NCHSAA website, splits up the Southwestern 4A conference, where all of the south Charlotte 4A schools have been playing.

Conference 4C will include: Ardrey Kell, Berry, Charlotte Catholic, Harding University, Olympic, Providence High, South Mecklenburg and West Mecklenburg.

Conference 6C will include: Butler, East Mecklenburg, Garinger, Independence, Myers Park, Porter Ridge and Rocky River.

According to Ardrey Kell Athletic Director Cheryl Feeney, Conference 4C will be named SoMeck 8. And, according to Independence Athletic Director Kelly Lewis, Conference 6C will keep the Southwestern 4A name.

In an October blog, I took guesses at what the conferences would be named. Looks like I was half right. I figured 6C would keep the Southwestern 4A; it retains five of the current eight SW4A teams. I thought 4C would bring back the Queen City name.

I don't love the "SoMeck 8" name, especially when the conference includes three schools that are not near what I would call southern Mecklenburg. (See map below.)


View SoMeck Conference Schools in a larger map

A generic name (Queen City, Meck Metro, etc.) seemed to fit this spread out conference better. I have to wonder how Berry, Harding and *West* Meck feel about this.

The third Mecklenburg conference -- which includes A.L. Brown, Hopewell, Hough, Mallard Creek, North Mecklenburg, Jay M. Robinson, West Charlotte and Vance -- will be called the ME-CA 4A MeCka.

What are your thoughts on the new names?

UPDATE: J. Mike Blake at the News & Observer found a document hidden on the NCHSAA website with the new conference names filled in: bit.ly/Xd5gvj. That's where the updated MeCka spelling comes from.