Auburn’s three public high schools will remain together in the Olympic Division of the resurrected North Puget Sound League 4A next school year.

Rob Swaim, athletic director for the Auburn School District, said that was an adjustment from the original plan that would have placed two schools in one division, the third in another.

The change came when the NPSL 4A grew from 12 to 16 teams, Swaim said. When the NPSL’s athletic directors met on Jan. 26, the league originally was supposed to have had 12 members. But since then, Enumclaw, Hazen, Kennedy Catholic and Mount Rainier have joined the new league.

Swaim said the new-look NPSL will keep programs in the larger school districts, such as Auburn, Federal Way and Kent, together.

“It meant all of the criteria of us applying to the new North Puget Sound League as far as proximity, less instructional time impact and travel time,” Swaim said.

The Olympic Division will feature Auburn, Auburn Mountainview, Auburn Riverside, Decatur, Enumclaw, Federal Way, Thomas Jefferson and Todd Beamer. Kent-Meridian, Kentlake, Kentridge and Kentwood will join Hazen, Kennedy Catholic, Mount Rainier and Tahoma in the Cascade.

“They all agreed that they did not want to split up their district schools,” said Swaim, adding that it would not have made sense for Enumclaw’s bus to drive through Auburn in order to be in the same division as the Kent schools. “We put all of the North Puget Sound League schools on a map and it showed a natural fit with those schools on the line. It just made geographical sense in the way that we broke up the divisions.”

Swaim said the divisions, based on geography, will be reviewed after two years.

The NPSL, which disbanded in 1990, was recreated in early January. Swaim said the impetus for the move was the potential size of South Puget Sound League 4A. With the possible additions of the Auburn public schools, Kennedy Catholic and Sumner, that league could have grown from 17 to 22 members.

As of the Jan. 6 WIAA enrollment count, Auburn (1,202.75) was the largest high school in the district, followed by Auburn Riverside (1,179.16) and Auburn Mountainview (1,095.09). They are among the 12 of the 16-team NPSL 4A that opted up from 3A.

Tahoma (1,712.25) is the NPSL’s largest member, followed by Kentridge (1,548.83), Kent-Meridian (1,506.28) and Kentwood (1,438.2).

Schools with the top 16 to 17 percent enrollment are recognized as 4A.

Kentlake (1,019.32) was the only Kent school that opted up.

Swaim said NPSL 4A officials still have plenty of work ahead, including the creation of a league handbook and schedules.

As far as football is concerned, Dave Lutes, Kent School District athletic director, said divisional play will occur between the third and ninth weeks of the season. There is the possibility of crossover play between the divisions during the first two weeks of the season, but Lutes said some school officials have requested to maintain traditional rivalries during those weeks. For example, Auburn and Kent-Meridian will continue to compete for the Taylor Trophy. That rivalry has occurred on an annual basis since 1908.