Rules Supplement

Click here for a printable version

I.	TOURNAMENT ELIGIBILITY 

	A.	Each school may send a maximum of four (4) teams, with no more than three (3) teams in either of the two (2) divisions. 

		i.	UVA, as the host school, may enter six (6) teams, with no more than three (3) teams in either of the two divisions.

	B.	Players must either be current students, current faculty members, or current administrators of the school.  

		i.	A team that attempts to play an alumnus(a) or another ineligible player will forfeit its games and its entry fee.  

		ii.	Umpires may check for identification at any time.  Failure to produce proper identification may result in ejection from the game.  Players should keep a valid school ID with them at all times.

II.	SUPPLEMENTAL RULES OF PLAY	

	A.	ASA Official Softball Rules will govern all games, except as modified herein.

		i.	ASA umpires will officiate all tournament games and are empowered to make all decisions affecting play.  Any judgment calls made by the umpires are final and cannot be appealed.

	B.	Forfeits

		i.	The game will be declared a forfeit if a team fails to field eight (8) players within five (5) minutes of the designated starting time.

			a.	In Co-Rec play, three (3) of these eight (8) players must be women.

			b.	Forfeits will be scored as 10-0 against the forfeiting team.

	C.	Pace of Play

		i.	Games will be the shorter of either seven (7) innings or one (1) hour.
	
			a.	No new inning may begin forty-eight (48) minutes after the scheduled starting time.  

			b.	Semi-final and final games will be seven (7) innings absent extenuating circumstances.

		ii.	No warm-ups are permitted between innings.

		iii.	The umpire has the discretion to forfeit any team that is employing delay tactics.

	D.	Tiebreakers

		i.	Tiebreakers will be used only in elimination games and not in pod play.

		ii.	In elimination games, if the score is tied after either (a) the completion of seven (7) innings, or (b) the completion of the last inning begun within the forty-eight (48) minute time limit, extra innings will be played.  
	
			a.	In extra innings, batters will get one pitch.

		i.	A ball is considered a walk, a strike or foul ball is considered an out.

			b.	Play will continue with “one pitch” innings until the tie is broken.

			c.	Semi-final and final games that reach extra innings will play ordinary innings, and not “one pitch” innings, unless the umpire and the captains agree before the start of any extra innings to use the “one pitch” system.  
 
	E.	Inclement Weather

		i.	No game will be called for rain unless there is lightning or unless the fields are deemed unplayable.  

			a.	NOTE.  The final authority regarding field conditions rests with the City of Charlottesville and the University of Virginia, not the NGSL.

		ii.	No portion of any entry fee will be refunded for cancelled games due to inclement weather.  

		iii.	Any team that plays on closed fields without authorization will be asked to leave the tournament, will forfeit their entry fee, and that team’s school will be banned from the tournament through 2009.  

			a.	The City of Charlottesville and the University of Virginia also may bring trespassing charges at their discretion.  

	F.	Bats

		i.	Any ASA-approved bat may be used, including ASA-approved multi-walled bats.

			a.	A list of ASA-approved bats is available at 	http://www.asasoftball.com/about/build_batlist_one_page.asp

		ii.	Each team captain is permitted to inspect the other team’s bats at the start of the game.	

		iii.	If a batter is found to be using a non-ASA-approved bat, the first offense will result in the batter being called out.  The second offense will result in the forfeit of the game.

	G.	Cleats

		i.	No metal spikes may be worn.

	H.	Balls

		i.	The same size and type of balls will be used at every game and for every batter, no matter the gender of the batter.

	I.	Batting Order

		i.	Regular and Co-Rec

			a.	Teams may have a batting order of unlimited size.

			b.	A player may be in the batting order and not play in the field.  However, in order to play in the field, a player must be in the batting order.

			c.	The number of batters in the batting order must remain constant throughout the game.

		i.	A player who is not in the batting order at the start of the game may only enter the game by permanently replacing someone in the batting order by either pinch-hitting or by replacing them in the field.  Once a player is replaced in the batting order, he or she may not re-enter the game except by returning to the same position in the batting order (unless there is an injury during the game and there are no other players available on the team).  
	
		ii.	If a player cannot bat for any reason during the game and there is no substitute available, his or her spot in the order will count as an automatic out.

		iii.	The only exception to the rule requiring a constant number of batters is if a team starts a game with eight (8) or nine (9) players and additional team members arrive after the game begins.  In such a case, the late players must be added to the end of the batting order.

			d.	Each team captain is entitled to the batting order of the other team prior to the start of the game, if he or she requests it.

		i.	No appeals regarding the batting order will be considered unless the batting order was exchanged prior to the start of the game.

		ii.	Co-Rec Only

			a.	No more than two men may bat in a row.

		i.	This rule applies across innings, e.g. if the last two batters of an inning are men, the next time that team bats a woman must lead off.

		ii.	NOTE.  A team may bat as many women in a row as it chooses.

			b.	TIP.  This is most effectively done by maintaining separate batting orders for men and women, e.g. the first two men bat followed by the first woman, then the third and fourth men bat followed by the second woman, etc.  
	
		i.	Each batting order must remain the same throughout the game. 

		ii.	NOTE.  If you choose to use separate men’s and women’s batting orders, the women will bat after different men each time through the order unless your team has a perfect 2:1 ratio of men to women.

	J.	Pitching/Batting

		i.	Pitches must have an arc of at least six (6) feet and no more than twelve (12) feet from the ground.  A ball not within these limits shall be called an illegal pitch by the umpire prior to it reaching the plate.  If the batter does not swing at an illegal pitch, it is automatically a ball.  If the batter swings, the pitch will be treated as though it had been thrown within legal limits.
	
		ii.	The strike zone is the space over any part of home plate that is between the batter’s back shoulder and the batter’s front knee when the batter is lined up with the plate.

		iii.	Each at-bat begins with a 1-1 ball-strike count.

			a.	Three (3) balls constitute a walk, two (2) strikes constitute a strikeout.

		iv.	There is one (1) courtesy foul when the batter has two (2) strikes.  The second foul on two (2) strikes results in an out.

	K.	Pinch Running

		i.	An injured player may be allowed to bat with a pinch runner at the umpire’s discretion.

		ii.	The pinch runner must be the last player in the batting order to make an out.

			a.	In Co-Rec play, the pinch runner must be the same gender as the batter.

		iii.	The pinch runner must be touching the center of the backstop and may not leave until the bat contacts the ball.  If the runner leaves early, it is an automatic out. 

		iv.	Pinch runners will rarely be granted and may not be used to gain tactical advantage.  

	L.	Double Plays

		i.	If the defense is attempting to make a double play and there is a reasonable chance a double play will be completed, the runner going to the lead base must either slide or get out of the way of the throw.  

			a.	If the runner breaks up the play, the umpire has the discretion to call a double play. 
 
	M.	Home Plate Plays

		i.	When there is a play at home plate, it is the runner's responsibility to avoid contact if the catcher has the ball before the runner gets to the plate.  

		ii.	The catcher must not unreasonably block the plate before the ball gets to home plate. 

		iii.	The umpire has complete discretion to decide both (a) whether the runner intentionally initiated contact and should therefore be called out, and (b) whether the catcher unreasonably blocked the plate before the ball gets to home plate and the runner should therefore be called safe. 

	N.	Mercy Rule

		i.	There is no mercy rule.

	O.	Final Scores

		i.	The umpire shall confirm the final score with the team captains and report it to the field marshal(s) present at the location.

		ii.	Any disputes as to result or score are to be determined by the umpire.

	P.	Additional Co-Rec Rules

		i.	If a team has ten (10) defensive players, at least four (4) of the ten (10) must be women.

			a.	If a team only has eight (8) or nine (9) defensive players, at least three (3) must be women.
	
		ii.	There is no limitation on which defensive positions women may play.

		iii.	No outfielder may step in front of the Co-Rec line painted in each outfield until after the ball is hit.  

			a.	If an outfielder crosses the Co-Rec line before the ball is hit and that outfielder subsequently plays the ball for an out, the batter will be given first base.

			b.	If a line has not been painted on the field of play, the two teams and the umpire should agree to where the line should be prior to the start of the game.

		iv.	If a male batter is walked in three straight pitches and is followed by a female batter, the male batter advances to second base.  The female then has the option of either hitting or walking. 

	Q.	Field-Specific Rules

		i.	McIntire #1

			a.	Teams are limited to 2 over-the-fence home runs per game.  The third and subsequent hits over the fence count as singles.

		i.	Each runner already on base will advance one base, regardless of whether there is a force.
	 	
		ii.	Copeley

			a.	A ball hit into the road (either on the fly or on the bounce) is an automatic homerun.

			b.	A ball hit into a tree will be fair or foul as determined by the umpire on the basis of where the ball hits the tree, not by where the ball lands or where the tree is planted.

		i.	Any ball hitting the trees in fair territory is completely in play and may be caught for an out. 

			a.	This includes the trees in the outfield.  
	
			b.	The ball is in play even if the ball lands in foul territory.

		ii.	Any ball hitting a tree in foul territory is out of play and may not be caught for an out, even if the ball lands in fair territory.

		iii.	Any ball hitting a tree in fair territory that becomes lodged in the tree shall be a ground rule double.

			c.	Imaginary lines extend from the fences parallel with the foul lines.  Any thrown or batted ball that goes beyond the imaginary lines (either on the fly or on the bounce) is out of play.  

		i.	A batted ball that is fair but then rolls out of play shall be considered a ground rule double.

		ii.	If a thrown ball rolls out of play, the runners may only advance one base.

		iii.	The Park #2 and #5

			a.	All balls are in play unless a fence is erected.  

			b.	Should a fence be erected, the fence will be treated as a fence for both fields.  Any ball hit over the fence on the fly from either field will be a home run and any ball hit over the fence from either field on the bounce will be a ground rule double.

	R.	Homerun Derby Rules

		i.	Each school will be permitted two participants.

		ii.	Each participant may swing away until he or she has five outs.

			a.	Each participant should provide his or her own pitcher.

			b.	No bat prohibited by ASA rules will be permitted.

		iii.	The participant tallying the most home runs prior to their fifth out will be the winner.

			a.	An out is any pitch at which the batter swings that does not pass the marked distance, which will be different for men and women, in fair territory.

		iv.	In the event of a tie preventing the determination of the top three batters (for men and women), the tying batters will complete a three-out tiebreaker.

	S.	Alcohol 

		i.	Alcohol is not permitted at any field at any time.

	T.	Interpretation and Modification of the Supplemental Rules of Play

		i.	Team captains may submit an appeal to the NGSL regarding interpretations of these supplemental rules.  The NGSL has complete discretion on whether to or how to evaluate such appeals.  Decisions of the NGSL are final.
	
		ii.	NGSL reserves the right to modify these supplemental rules of play.