Softball Operating Code

Transcription

1 Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference Updated: September 1, Softball Operating Code 1. ORGANIZATION STRUCTURE 1.1 CONFERENCE STRUCTURE The Conference consists of three divisions: East, Central and West East: East Stroudsburg, Kutztown, Millersville, Shippensburg, West Chester Central: Bloomsburg, Clarion, IUP, Lock Haven, Mansfield, Pitt-Johnstown West: California, Edinboro, Gannon, Mercyhurst, Seton Hill, Slippery Rock Conference play shall be conducted with each team playing four games against each opponent in their respective division for a total of 20 games (Central and West) / 16 games (East). All mandated conference contests shall count in divisional standings. 1.2 CONFERENCE COMMITTEES Sports Chairperson: An athletic administrator from a member school shall be selected chairperson to the softball coaches. Duties: a. Annual Meeting/Special Meetings - Prepare and distribute an agenda, oversee recording and distribution of minutes. b. Present approved recommendations to the Athletics Administrators for action. c. Attend the championship and administrate any conference issues that arise at the site. d. Assist conference office with editing of the sport operating code. 1.3 MEETINGS: The annual meeting of softball coaches shall be at the discretion of the conference office. 1.4 PERSONNEL Staff Limitations a. 1 head coach b. 1 full-time assistant (coaching contract with benefits) or part-time assistant or volunteer c. 1 paid part-time assistant (half time or less) or graduate assistant or volunteer d. 1 volunteer e. 4 TOTAL COACHES Additional Staffing a. An institution is also permitted to utilize an unlimited number of full-time undergraduate students with no limitation of duties. b. An institution is also permitted to utilize a maximum of one social equity position per sport. i. The social equity position may not be utilized as the head coach 1.5 NATIONAL LETTER OF INTENT: Each Conference member agrees to abide by the regulations and procedures outlined in the National Letter-of-Intent Programs. 2. REGULAR SEASON PROCEDURES 2.1 GAME DAY PROCEDURES Uniforms: Per NCAA rules Game Balls: The official game ball is Wilson WTA9010B PSAC Host institution shall provide water and ice.

2 2.1.4 Divisional Play: Time of games - unless otherwise mutually agreed, conference game times are as follows: Weekday games shall start at 2:00 p.m. before Daylight Savings Time. After Daylight Savings Time, weekday games will start at 2:30 p.m., unless an institution has lights at which the start time will be determined by the host school Weekend games shall not start before noon Mandated Schedule: The mandated schedule requires that each team play four 7-inning games (two home and two away) against each team in its division Should the final regular season mandated date on the original schedule be reached and make-up games still remain to be completed only those contests that have a bearing on the outcome of the conference tournament seeding will be completed NCAA Rules, including the tie-breaker rule (beginning in the 10 th inning), shall be used in regular season play only In the event a team is delayed for arrival at the site of competition, the team will be provided 45 minutes of preparation time before the start of competition upon their arrival at the site Called Games Regulation Games - Called games during the regular season that meet the criteria of a regulation game (NCAA Softball Rule 6.16) are complete with results (win, loss or tie) recorded for both teams. NOTE: A tie will be the result under NCAA Softball Rule Halted Games - Called games during the regular season that do not meet the criteria for a regulation game are considered halted games (NCAA Softball Rule ) and must be completed from the point of being called If this involves the second game of a double-header during the teams initial meeting, it must commence at the point of being halted prior to the start of the second set of games between the two teams If it was impossible to begin the second game of the initial double header, that game will be played as the first game of a triple-header at the site of the second meeting. (See for expenses) If during a second meeting of two teams a halted game that must be completed should occur, the visiting team must return to the site to complete the contests Postponement Due to Weather: Games which are postponed because of weather must be rescheduled for the next available date. The next available date is defined as a date on which no conference mandated game has been scheduled or rescheduled If a team has a non-conference opponent scheduled in advance for any of those dates, the opponent should be aware of the policy which requires that the non-conference game be canceled or rescheduled If conditions permit, teams are encouraged to switch home/away sites in the double round robin schedule in order to facilitate the playing of the contests If the same team hosts both doubleheaders in the schedule, home/visitor status for the second doubleheader should be opposite of the first played doubleheader in order to balance home/visitor status for the season series For all contests, regardless of the determination of home/visitor status, the HOST institution will be responsible for payment of officials and supplying game balls If an institution has concerns due to academic issues, the two coaches should turn the rescheduling of weather-postponed games over to the respective athletic directors To clarify academic issues pertaining to the rescheduling policies -- a team will not be required to TRAVEL consecutively to away-from-home contests in the equivalent of an academic week of classes (M-W-F or W-F-M or F-M-W and T-Th or Th-T).

3 If an institution is unable to complete a weekend home double-header by Monday at 6 p.m., the Conference Office will determine the sites and dates of any uncompleted contests at that time All games, including make-ups, must be scheduled before the last date of the original mandated schedule Institutions are required to /call the conference office with rescheduling changes Speed Up Rules: A team may only huddle at the start of an inning. A team will be charged with a timeout if it huddles subsequent to the one allowable huddle at the start of each inning Lightning Policy: The certified athletic trainer from the host institution will have the unchallengeable authority to postpone or suspend competition in the event of lightning. The certified athletic trainer and game official/or game administrator must consult and agree as to when play is resumed. 2.2 GAME OFFICIALS Officials Fees: Doubleheader 2018: $238 Doubleheader shortened during game #1 - $205; Doubleheader shortened during game #2 full doubleheader fee. Tripleheader fee - $ Host school responsible for paying tripleheader fee The assignor fee is $400/institution and will be billed through the conference office PSAC certified umpires must be used for conference and non-conference games Post-season selection of officials will be conducted through the conference office. 2.3 GAME ENVIRONMENT Sportsmanship: The PSAC is committed to developing sportsmanship and creating healthy environments for competition. We believe that part of the role of education through sports is to educate all participants in athletic contests to conduct themselves with civility, dignity and respect for opponents Crowd Control Statement: Each member institution is expected to have the following announcement read prior to each contest (at a minimum). Institutions are encouraged to develop a format in which participating student-athletes or other enrolled student-athletes recite this (or a similar statement) prior to competition. The PSAC and (host institution) promotes good sportsmanship by student-athletes, coaches and spectators. We request your cooperation by supporting the participants and officials in a positive manner. Profanity, racial comments or other intimidating actions directed at officials, student-athletes, coaches or team representatives will not be tolerated and are grounds for removal from the site of competition. Also, consumption or possession of alcoholic beverages is prohibited. Thank you for your support of the PSAC and (host institution) Artificial noisemakers are permitted at outdoor athletic events except those devices (i.e. whistles, air horns) that would interfere with the conduct of the contest or those already prohibited by NCAA regular season playing rules The director of athletics or the designated representative is responsible for removing such instruments from the competition area Game Environment, The PSAC and Division II: Institutions have a unique opportunity to establish the link between the educational purpose of Division II athletics and the competition environment at Division II events. Game Environment goes beyond the behavior of players and coaches to include all that surrounds the event, including game administration, fans and student supporters. Sportsmanship should be regarded as a mandatory subset of game environment. That is, an institution can exhibit great sportsmanship without having a great game environment. However, it is not possible to have a great game environment without sportsmanship.

4 2.4 MEDIA SHARING Scouting: No member institution is permitted to exchange a scouting report about another member institution with an institution outside the conference. 3. CHAMPIONSHIP PROCEDURES 3.1 TOURNAMENT FORMAT: The conference tournament shall consist of the top three (3) teams in each division and the champion shall be determined by a nine-team double-elimination bracket. NCAA rules shall be used Division Ties: Tie-breakers for determining conference tournament seeding: a. Head-to-head results b. Record versus conference divisional teams progressing downward until the tie is broken c. Road wins within division d. Result vs. common opponents outside the league e. Number of wins against NCAA Division II opponents at or over.500 f. Winning percentage against NCAA Division II opponents under.500 g. Coin toss No play-in games are permitted under conference rules. NOTES: If there are ties for more than one place, the highest seeds are determined first before breaking ties for lower seeds. In the process of breaking the tie among multiple teams, each tiebreaker step will be calculated until at least one team is awarded a higher seed OR at least one team is eliminated from the tiebreaker. At that point, remaining ties shall be broken by restarting the tiebreaker process with the first step Non-completed mandated schedule: If because of weather or other natural causes, it becomes impossible to complete the mandated regular season schedule two days prior to the PSAC Championship, the following criteria shall be used to determine seeding: a. Total number of wins in mandated league play. b. Total number of wins in head-to-head league play. c. Total number of wins versus divisional champion. d. Total number of wins of opponents in mandated league play in rank order of finish. e. Coin toss Date/Time: The tournament shall be played in four days and be at least one week prior to the NCAA Regionals. Refer to Appendix A for times Site: The tournament will be played at Veterans Park, Quakertown, PA Determination of Home Team: The home team for games #1 through #5 will be the higher seed. Home team for games #6 through #17 will be determined by coin toss. The loser of the coin toss or lower seed shall choose uniform colors NCAA Tournament Qualifier: If the Championship cannot be complete, the following format will be used to determine a conference champion and the league s automatic qualifier to the NCAA Tournament: a. If less than 10 games are played, a tie will be broken between the three divisional #1 seeds: 1. Based on winning percentage in the respective divisional standings. 2. Record vs. divisional opponents by rank order of finish. 3. Coin toss. b. If 10 or more, but less than 13 games are played, a tie will be broken among the two unbeaten teams remaining after Game 10 by:

5 1. Highest remaining seed. 2. Based on winning percentage in the respective divisional standings. 3. Record vs. divisional opponents by rank order of finish. 4. Coin toss. c. If 13 or more, but less than 16 games are played, the lone unbeaten team will be declared conference champion. d. If 16 games are played and two teams remain with one loss a tie will be broken among the teams by: 1. Head to head record in the conference tournament. 2. Highest remaining seed. 3. Based on winning percentage in the respective divisional standings. 4. Record vs. divisional opponents by rank order of finish. 5. Coin toss. 3.2 TOURNAMENT PROCEDURES Tournament Director: Shall be determined on the basis of site Tournament Director at Institutional Site: The host athletic administrator shall be responsible for the conduct of the Championship Tournament. It is inadvisable for the coach of the host institution to be appointed Championship Director if his/her team is a potential participant in the tournament Tournament Director at Neutral Site: The softball chairperson shall be responsible for the operations of the conference tournament Tournament Director Duties a. Attend the pre-tournament conference call of the coaches. b. Prepare and distribute all necessary information and forms relative to the tournament. c. Make all arrangements necessary for the smooth operation of the tournament. d. Work with the conference softball chairperson in the preparation of post-tournament financial reports (hosted site only) Championship Practice Times: To be determined based on availability of facilities. All practice times are 1 hour long and the practice times will be determined by the teams traveling the farthest to shortest distance Officials: Three officials shall be assigned to each game and will be hired by the conference office with input from the coaches. The Umpire-In-Chief will meet coaches and team representative in the pre-tournament meeting Coaches Meeting: A mandatory pre-tournament conference call of coaches shall be held. Each coach shall present an official roster for the PSAC tournament to the softball chairperson. The meeting will go over clarification of the rules of the tournament and announcements Equipment and Maintenance A minimum of four (4) Conference adopted balls shall be provided for each game Fields must be raked, lined, and watered if necessary before the start of each game An official scorer s table with score sheets, line-up cards, and pencils shall be set up at each field Emergency aid and training facilities must be available within a reasonable distance. Each participating team shall be responsible for supplying its own training material (taping, etc.) Drinking water must be available for each team.

6 3.2.6 Bench Personnel: Maximum number of personnel permitted in the bench area is 26, not to exceed 6 non-uniformed personnel. Medical personnel are excluded from the bench personnel limit, i.e. ATC, student-trainers, physicians Only the eligible players may dress and sit on the bench Changes in the roster must be made at pre-tournament meeting Certified Athletic Trainers Neutral site - each participating institution is required to provide their own certified athletic trainer Hosted site - furnished by host institution The Protest Committee shall consist of the two umpires not included in the contested call and one additional umpire who is not assigned at the time. All protests must be resolved (interpretation of rules only) before play can resume Awards Provided by the conference office. PSAC Champion Trophy, PSAC Runner-up Trophy, 26 Individual Awards to the Championship Team and an MVP Plaque A Tournament Most Valuable Player shall be selected by the Games Committee Awards Ceremony Protocol: The second place team is required to remain present at the site of competition until they are presented with their runner-up trophy. 4. ALL-CONFERENCE AWARD PROCEDURE 4.1 TEAM COMPOSITION and INDIVIDUALS AWARDS Each Division shall select an All-Conference team consisting of a first team with thirteen (13) players and five (5) at large selections. At large selections can be from any position Fielding positions selected shall be: first base, second base, shortstop, third base, catcher and three (3) outfielders Specialty positions selected shall be: designated player, two (2) pitchers, utility/ pitcher and utility/non pitcher Each Division shall select a Player of the Year, Pitcher of the Year, Coach of the Year and Freshman of the Year. To be eligible for the Freshman of the Year award, a student-athlete should be listed by the institution as a freshman or red-shirt freshman and must be competing in their initial year of eligibility for that sport All-Conference players receive a certificate. Individual award winners will receive a plaque. 4.2 NOMINATION PROCEDURES A coach may nominate no more than the total number of players selected on a first team (13) from his/her team only Fielding position players, designated players and utility players must have played in at least 66% of her team s games in order to be nominated To qualify as a fielding position player or designated player, a player must have at least 40% of her total games played at that particular position A utility/pitcher shall be defined as one who has contributed through a strong pitching role and played a minimum of 33% of her games at other positions A utility/non-pitcher shall be defined as one who has played a minimum of 33% of her games at a fielding position or positions outside of her primary (most played) fielding position OR one who has played at least 50% of her total games in fielding positions but does not meet the requirement to be nominated at a particular fielding position (see 4.2.3) An individual can only be nominated at one position.

7 4.2.6 From his/her team only, a coach may nominate one player each in the categories of: player, pitcher and freshman of the year. 4.3 VOTING PROCEDURE A coach may not vote for his/her own players or himself/herself For first team selections a coach must cast votes equal to the total number of players selected on the first team (13) unless unable to due to rule Coaches are required to complete a second round of voting to determine the at-large selections A coach must rank his/her votes at each position selected A ballot must be completed fully in order to be counted. 4.4 MISCELLANEOUS The All-Conference Team shall be released during the week following the Conference Championship The selection process will be conducted by the Conference Communications Director in accordance with the PSAC policy.

8 2018 PSAC Softball Championship Format Appendix A Any adjustments in the schedule shall only be made by the Commissioner. Day One: Wednesday, May 2 Noon Game 1: West 3 vs. Central 3 Game 2: Central 1 vs. East 3 3 pm Game 3: West 2 vs. East 2 Game 4: West 1 vs. Central 2 6 pm Game 5: East 1 vs. Game 1 winner Game 6: Game 1 loser vs. Game 2 loser (Loser Eliminated) Day Two: Thursday, May 3 Noon Game 7: Game 5 loser vs. Game 4 loser Game 8: Game 3 loser vs. Game 6 winner (Loser Eliminated) 3 pm Game 9: Game 3 winner vs. Game 2 winner Game 10: Game 4 winner vs. Game 5 winner 6 pm Game 11: Game 9 loser vs. Game 7 winner (Loser Eliminated) Game 12: Game 10 loser vs. Game 8 winner (Loser Eliminated) Day Three: Friday, May 4 Noon Game 13: Game 9 winner vs. Game 10 winner 3 pm Game 14: Game 11 winner vs. Game 12 winner (Loser Eliminated) 6 pm Game 15: Game 13 loser vs. Game 14 winner (Loser Eliminated) Day Four: Saturday, May 5 noon: If one game is needed (Game 13 winner wins Game 16) Game 16: Championship Game noon: If two games are needed (Game 15 winner wins Game 16) Game 16 Game 17: Championship Game (Immediately following Game 16) PSAC Tournament First Game Rotation Game 1: East 3 vs. West 3 Game 1: Central 3 vs. East 3 Game 2: West 1 vs. Central 3 Game 2: East 1 vs. West 3 Game 3: East 2 vs. Central 2 Game 3: Central 2 vs. West 2 Game 4: East 1 vs. West 2 Game 4: Central 1 vs. East 2 Game 5: Central 1 vs. Game 1 winner Game 5: West 1 vs. Game 1 winner