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Tournament Rules

 

Tournament Rules

Teams Will Be Approved When Payment Is Received

Refund Policy

Tournaments may sell out before the payment date; total teams taken includes all divisions.

Schedules go out by Wednesday at noon the week of the tournament.

Gate Fees for 2026 Will Be Cashless

(If we cannot do a gate it will be a $200 team gate.)

TBA for 2026 (sales tax will be added to all tickets).

Lineup Card Is Required for All Seeded Pool Games and Bracket

Formats

Formats will be announced closer to the event date based on the number of teams and available fields.

Non-Seeded Pool Games

  • Flip for home/visitor.
  • 6 runs per half inning.
  • Scores will be posted but will not count for seeding.
  • Scores are posted based on when the game ends.
  • Lineup cards not required.
  • Free defensive substitutions.

Seeded Pool Games

  • Team with the most USSSA points picks home/visitor.
  • Official game when time expires if there is a winner (including when you cannot catch up to at least tie the game).
  • USSSA batting and courtesy runner rules.
  • Teams playing an extra pool game (last game on schedule) will only have that game count if it affects placing between the two teams who played (head-to-head).
  • 6 runs per half inning.
  • 10/8/6 run rules.

Game Times and Pay at the Plate

  • 65 min – $45
  • 70–80 min – $50
  • 85 min – $55
  • 90 min – $60
  • No time limit, 6 innings – $75
  • No time limit, 7 innings – $85

8U only: 70 min – $40

Most game times are 75 minutes. Some formats and delays due to weather may change game times.

Teams must be ready to play 15 minutes before scheduled time, except for the first game of the day; the coaches’ meeting will be 5 minutes before game time.

Due to the shortage of softballs, game balls cannot be sold or traded for home runs, and teams must retrieve out-of-play balls to keep games going without delays.

Forfeits will be recorded as 7–0.

Age-Specific Rules

8U Goes Strictly by USSSA Rules

Click here and go to page 67 for coach pitch rules.

Tournament Bracket Rules

  • Top Seed Advantage: The top seed, determined by pool play or most USSSA points if not seeded, chooses home or visitor, except in the double-elimination championship game, where the team from the winners’ bracket is designated home or visitor.
  • Run Limits:
    • A, B, and Open Divisions: Gold/Silver brackets – unlimited runs per half inning, unless otherwise specified at the event.
    • C Divisions and all Bronze or lower brackets in A/B or Open: Maximum of 6 runs per half inning.

10/8/6 run rules are in effect.

USSSA Seeding Is Based on the Following

  1. Winning percentage – descending.
  2. Number of wins – descending.
  3. Number of losses – ascending.
  4. Tied teams (vs each other) winning percentage – descending (not valid if all tied teams have not played each other).
  5. Average points allowed – ascending.
  6. Average points differential with a maximum of 8 – descending.
  7. Ranking points – descending.
  8. Date team entered the USSSA database.
  9. If you play an extra seeded pool game, the last game will not count unless it comes down to head-to-head.

ITB and IF Game / Shootout

  • Progressive extra innings (except for the championship game).
  • 1st ITB: Runner on 2nd, 2 balls and 1 strike count.
  • 2nd ITB: Runners on 2nd and 3rd, 2 balls and 1 strike count.
  • 3rd ITB: Bases loaded and full count.

If an “IF” game can start before 7:30 pm on the last day of the tournament, it will be a normal game length.

If the Game Starts After 7:30 PM We Play a Shootout

In lieu of an IF game, a 2-inning shootout will be played in the event of a tie after the championship game is played (two one-loss teams). Each team creates a new lineup for the shootout and flips for home team.

  • 1st inning: Last batter in the lineup starts on 2nd base.
  • 2nd inning: Last completed at-bat starts on 2nd base.

If the game is still tied after the 2nd shootout inning, progressive ITB will begin. Pay at the plate for this is $20.

Tournament Winner and Rainout

  • All teams in the winners’ bracket must have played 2 complete games.
  • Team that stayed in the winners’ bracket the longest.
  • Winning percentage (bracket games).
  • Wins (bracket games); byes in bracket count as a win.
  • Head-to-head (only if between 2 teams).
  • Runs allowed.
  • Runs scored.
  • Run differential.
  • Coin flip.

A complete game is 1.5 innings if the home team leads; otherwise, after 2 innings the winner is determined by the last full inning score.

OR

If all teams play 3 or more seeded pool games before bracket and a rainout occurs before all teams play 2 bracket games, seeded pool results will be used to place the event. Any bracket games played will not count for placing.

Forfeits, Placings, and Points

Forfeits During Tournament

Teams that forfeit any game during the tournament must pay all umpire fees for games not played for both teams, unless it is the last game of the day, in which case they pay only their fee. Teams will be suspended from USSSA until payment is made.

Final Placings

Once the event is completed, the usssa.com system must be manually configured to show the final placings and award the correct points. Until this is done, results may not show as final or be correct.

This process is done for each event on Monday and may take until midnight Monday to fully update and reflect accurate results.

All protests are $50 cash; if your protest is upheld, you get your money back.

USSSA Rules

Teams cannot accumulate USSSA points without a roster of at least 9 girls.

Noisemakers and Music

  1. Noisemakers and music may only start when play is dead.
  2. All noisemakers and music must stop when the pitcher has the ball.
  3. Noisemakers and music must not interfere with or prevent the opposing coach from coaching their team.
  4. Noisemakers and music must not be distracting to other fields.
  5. If any complaints are received regarding noisemakers or music, their use must stop immediately.
  6. Complex rules may supersede any of these rules.