Provincial Fast Pitch Championship

1.     DEADLINE DATES

Tournaments must be registered online at the MHSAA website at least one week prior to the tournament start date.

Online ROSTER is due by MAY 17. All teams must enter their roster online regardless of whether or not they will be attending the Provincial Championships.

Zone and Interzone playoffs must be completed by May 23.  Please inform the MHSAA as soon as your representative has been determined.

WILDCARD APPLICATIONS are due by MAY 22 at 1:00 pm sharp.  Wildcards are open to zone semi-finalists and finalists only.  Applications must include the following:

- Letter of intent to participate signed by the Principal.

- All Schools applying for a wildcard must pay a $25 non-refundable application fee.  Schools selected to play in a wildcard game will additionally be invoiced for the wildcard game fee of $125.  The school will then have 20 working days from the date of the invoice to pay the fee(s) or they will be subject to further sanctioning.

- All teams applying for a wildcard will have their season record taken from the MHSAA website.  Teams applying must ensure their online record accurately reflects all games played (league, exhibition, & tournament). Additionally, any team that participates in an out of province tournament or exhibition game must email greg@mhsaa.ca with the date, opponent(s) and scores of those games by the deadline above.

If your application does not include the letter of intent, and/or is late, the application will not be considered.  Wildcard game date and location will be determined once the teams have been selected. Automatic wildcard spots may be awarded.  

SEEDING INFORMATION will be taken from the MHSAA website. All teams will have until MAY 24 to ensure their season record accurately reflects all games played throughout the season. Additionally, any team that participates in an out of province tournament or exhibition game must email greg@mhsaa.ca with the date, opponent(s) and scores of those games by the deadline above.

 

2.     FORMAT & RULES

A) FORMAT: both the boys and girls championship will be twelve (12) team round robin with four (4) pools of three (3).  There will be a championship play-off with no consolation.

B) RULES: Baseball Canada (18U A category) and Softball Canada (U19 category) rules will be in effect.  Special playing rules approved by the MHSAA will take precedence over playing rules in the official rule book.

It is expected that all teams attend Opening Ceremonies and related functions. Non-attendance may result in fines, and/or further sanctions against the school.

Uniform Rule: Style and colour of uniform must be consistent throughout the team. Each team must have matching caps (no commercial advertising allowed on them) and shirts with clearly visible numbers on the shirts.  (No commercial or ‘club’ shirts permitted.) Coaches must wear school team cap.

Coaches should be advised that if the uniform rule is not adhered to, the team may not be allowed to compete and may be fined up to $200.  The school may also be put on probation (probation being that if the school violates the infraction again, the school may be fined $200 and be suspended from all MHSAA activities).

Advertising on uniforms must adhere to guidelines as outlined on pages 136-137.

The maximum number of coaches, trainers, etc. allowed on the bench will be 4.

All games except for semi-finals and finals will be 5 innings; 10-run rule after 3 innings. All semi-final and final games - 7 innings with 10-run rule after 5 innings.

Ties at all stages must be broken by continuation of play until a winner is declared.  Tie breakers will be decided by the International Tie Breaker Rule. The last batter at the end of regulation play for the home team, will start the extra inning at second base.  Play will continue until a winner is decided.

The following procedure will be used to break any ties in the pool following the completion of pool play:

1. Won/Lost records (%). If still tied, then:

2. Winners of games between tied teams

3. Difference PLUS or MINUS of total runs scored, with a limit of 7 PLUS or MINUS per game allowed.

(a) If still tied within 3) then: The least (fewest) amount of runs scored against in all games will be used. If still tied, then:

(b) The total runs scored in all games will be used with a maximum of 10 runs scored per game will be used. If still tied, then:

(c) Positions will be settled by a coin toss.

Pitching distance - 43 feet. (measurement is from the back of home plate to the front of the pitching rubber)

Official batting helmets must be worn while batting and while running bases.

Smoking or chewing tobacco will not be permitted on the field or on the player benches while the game is in progress.

Back catchers must wear protective helmet and mask with an attached throat protector, in addition to the appropriate protective wear.  All of this equipment is to fit properly.

For MHSAA competitions the 9-person batter order will be used.

 

3.     AWARDS 

The winner will receive the championship banner, championship t-shirt, and 1st place medals (16 each).  

The finalists will receive the finalist banner, and 2nd place medals (16).

For fast pitch only the third-place team will receive a plaque and bronze medals (16).

An all-star team along with a M.V.P. will be selected.

Schools with team rosters that exceed the allotted number of awards would be responsible for the cost of any additional awards required.