The University Interscholastic League announced the realignment of districts for football and basketball teams for the 2016-2018 seasons, changing who Akins will compete against in the coming years.

The major changes are the removal of Austin, Westlake and Lake Travis high schools as district opponents for Akins and the addition of Manor and San Marcos. The number of teams in District 14-6A is also dropping from nine to six.

Lake Travis and Westlake moved to Region 4, pitting them against Vandergrift, Hays, Lehman, Vista Ridge and Leander high schools. Austin High moved down to the 5A class because the cutoff enrollment was changed to 2,150.

Basketball coach Jesse Hayes said he is excited about the new alignment and the chance to play new teams.

Players said they have mixed feelings about not having strong teams like Westlake and Lake Travis as district opponents. However, the change could benefit Akins chances of making it to playoffs.

“Westlake was always a great team to play,” Hayes said. “Maybe we’ll schedule them for a preseason game.”