New York State Public High School Athletic Association


The New York State Public High School Athletic Association is the governing body of interscholastic sports for most public schools in New York outside New York City. The organization was created in 1923, after a predecessor organization called the New York State Public High School Association of Basketball Leagues began in 1921 to bring consistency to eligibility rules and to conduct state tournaments. It consists of 768 member high schools from the state divided into 11 numbered sections. While as its name suggests the vast majority of its members are public, it does include a number of private and Catholic high schools. Most of these are located in Central New York and the Capital District, where parallel sanctioning bodies for private schools do not exist. It is a member of the National Federation of State High School Associations as well as the New York State Federation of Secondary School Athletic Associations.

NYSPHSAA sports

The NYSPHSAA acknowledges and holds championships for over 30 sports throughout 3 seasons: Fall, Winter and Spring.
Fall Sports
Winter Sports
Spring Sports
The NYSPHSAA is divided into eleven sections by geographical areas. The official membership list is at the NYSPHSAA site.
Each section is further divided into classes, by school enrollment size. The classes are, from largest schools to smallest, AA, A, B, C, and D, though the classifications and enrollment numbers for each classification vary by sport. In wrestling, separate sectional and state tournaments are held for Division I and Division II.
Typically, each section holds a sectional championship tournament in each sport and class. The sectional champions then meet first in regional competition, then in state competition, to determine the state champion in each class.