North Bend Athletic Director Mike Forrester carried the schools request to remain in the 4A Oregon Schools Activities Association (OSAA) high school sports classification during a meeting Monday in Wilsonville. It was the final round of comments to the committee charged with reclassifying the OSAA 292 schools into competitive classifications based on similar enrollments. North Bend is currently in the 4A Far West League, but the Classification Committee has recommended moving the Bulldogs up to the 5A classification and into a league that includes schools in the Eugene/Springfield area and Medford. Forrester told the committee that North Bend is on an island and the new proposal would change the average sports trip from 130-miles to 281-miles and over 17,000 miles in a year. The committee will make a final recommendation to the OSAA Executive Board by Oct. 16.
