EVENT DETAILS

General Information

Thank you for choosing Effingham Flame Softball and USSSA. Below you will find a series of information that will assist you in preparing for your upcoming tournament. There is a significant amount of information but please read it to answer all your questions about your tournament. We pride ourselves on communication and hope that you find everything you need in this document. If, after reading the information, you still have questions please do not hesitate to contact us.

This document contains a list of general information rules for each USSSA Effingham Flame Softball tournament hosted by Adam Hartke. This information will apply to most of the tournaments and should be a guide for preparing for the event. A copy of tournament rules and information, Pool Schedule, Bracket, for your specific tournament, will be emailed to your coach and players and be posted the USSSA tournament site NO LATER THAN WEDNESDAY before your tournament. Please look them over and share with your parents and spectators.

PAYMENT:

Only teams who are registered and paid will show as approved. If your team is in a pending status, you are not guaranteed a spot. 

• Payment deadline is the “last day to enter” date on the public website.
• If a team on the waiting list pays before a team in the actual event, the team on the waiting list will be moved into the actual event. The last, unpaid, team to enter the event will be moved to the waiting list.
• Only the payment of the entry fee is required to hold your spot. Gate fees can be paid as late as the day of the event. 
• Forms of Payment:
• Online Payment via USSSA
• PayPal: [email protected]
• Check made payable to Effingham Flame Softball
• Mail to 7 Meadowview Drive, Teutopolis, IL 62467

WHAT INFO TO EXPECT AND WHAT INFO YOU NEED TO SUBMIT:

COACHES NEED TO SUBMIT THE FOLLOWING

• PAYMENT OF TOURNAMENT FEES – your spot is not secure until payment is received!
• EMAIL A COPY OF YOUR INSURANCE (only required for NON USSSA insurance holders)
• ENTER ROSTER ONLINE 

• USSSA rules will apply. Copies of birth certificates must be available for inspection in the event a player on your team is protested.
• Teams must be ready to play 30 minutes prior to their scheduled game time. The first game of the day will not begin more than 5 minutes prior to game time but can begin when both coaches are ready.
• Divisions and/or classes may be combined if there are not enough teams to fill up a division. Example 9U and 10U or 12A and 12B
• Pool games will be 7 innings or 70 minutes -Finish the Inning and can end in a tie. Bracket Play will be 75 minutes – Finish the Inning – International Tie Breaker (ITB). If ITB goes to the second inning, there will be runners on 2nd and 3rd, no outs. This will continue until there is a winner.
• All championship games will be full untimed games (7 innings; 6 innings for 8U)
• Bracket Play will be seeded by pool games. Unless otherwise stated on the event page, events are 2 pool, Single Elimination.
• The umpires will be instructed to keep the games moving, please do not delay or get upset with them. If you have an issue, please bring it to the Tournament/Site Director or UIC.

All Teams must be warmed up and ready to play 30 minutes prior to game time. Failure to do so can result in a forfeit.

RULES:

• USSSA rules will apply. There is a digital copy on the USSSA website.
• Teams can bat their roster in pool play or bracket play. It is the coach’s responsibility to submit a lineup card to the home plate umpire prior to each game. Lineup cards MUST have first name, last name, uniform number, and position. 
• If a team chooses to bat their roster and a player is injured, they will be required to take an out every time the injured player’s spot comes up in the batting order.

• Courtesy Runners can be used at every at bat for the Pitcher and Catcher.
• Courtesy Runners are not tied to a player (pitcher or catcher)
• Courtesy Runners must be a substitute first. If the team does not have a substitute, then the runner will be the last completed at bat.
• To determine the last completed at bat, go up the line up until you find a player who is not a pitcher, not a catcher, not on base and has not already been used in the half inning for the opposite position you are courtesy running for.
• For example: If your pitcher gets on base and she is batting 7th then ask yourself where is number 6? If number 6 is on base, then where is number 5? Number 5 is the catcher. Where is number 4? Number 4 is in the dugout. Number 4 in the batting order is your courtesy runner.
• The same Courtesy Runner cannot be used for both the pitcher and the catcher in the same half inning.
• If an incorrect courtesy runner is discovered on base, the runner will be out, and the Head coach will be issued a warning.

• Teams must use the official USSSA softball. Effingham Flame Softball will supply all softballs for your event.
• Teams must have the USSSA “thumbprint” on all bats. B
• If the batter enters the batter’s box with either of these bats or any other illegal bat, the player will be ejected from the game. In addition, the Head coach will be ejected for the remainder of that game and the next game.
• The protest fee is $100 cash and is refundable only if the protest is upheld by the Tournament Director. All protests must be communicated to the Homeplate Umpire by the Head Coach.
• Please reference our ZERO TOLERACE POLICY in the Event Info Tab on the tournament website and share with your fans. Be advised, the umpires oversee controlling the game, coaches oversee controlling themselves, their players, and their fans. Coaches can receive a warning, a bench restriction and even an ejection if their fans are disrespectful, disruptive or display unsportsmanlike conduct.

TIES: If teams are tied going into bracket play teams will be seeded in the bracket or awarded placement by the following: (Once past a tie breaker do not return to previous tie breaker)

1. Winning Percentage – Descending

2. Tied Teams (vs. each other) Winning Pct - Descending (Not valid if all tied teams have not played each other)

3. Average Runs Allowed - Ascending

4. Average Run Differential with a maximum of 8 - Descending

5. Ranking Points - Descending

6. Date Team Entered USSSA Database

Ties in bracket games will be decided by using the international tie breaker (after time limit or in the eighth inning). See “Game Times” above.

ROSTERS: 

• Please understand that we do not require (OR ACCEPT) hard copy rosters.
• Your roster must be online, and that roster is your official roster!
• If at any time during the tournament a player on your team is called into question and the player is not on your online roster, your team will be ejected from the tournament.
• Other teams can see if your roster is online and which players are online, this is intentional for the purpose of transparency for all teams. For this reason, there is no negotiating this policy. I will not make exceptions for any team. If your roster is not posted online, your team will be forced to forfeit. 
• When you are looking at a team’s roster, make sure you are looking at their roster for the tournament you are playing in. When you look at a team roster online, you are more than likely looking at their permanent roster. To see guest players, you must click the drop-down menu at the top of the roster and select the tournament you are playing in to see their official roster for the event. Guest players will appear at the bottom of the roster.

GUEST PLAYERS:

Please see the attached link for guest player info. All guest players must be entered no later than 4 hours prior to the start of the tournament (the first game of the event, NOT YOUR FIRST GAME). I cannot fix, override, or adjust your roster or this process after that time, so please make sure the deadline is met.

Some things to keep in mind: 

• Players can only be on one USSSA PERMANENT ROSTER
• There is no limit to the number of times a player can be used as a GUEST PLAYER.
• To add a player as a Guest Player, they must be on a USSSA roster.
• If you are using a Guest Player from a team who is playing in a USSSA tournament the same weekend you are using their player, they must deactivate the player from their roster for the other team to pick her up.

For Example: Sally is on Heat’s permanent roster but is being used as a guest player for Fire. The Heat is playing in a USSSA event in Springfield and Fire is playing in a USSSA event in O’Fallon. Heat must deactivate Sally for the weekend so Fire can add her as a guest player for the weekend.

• To see your Guest Players, you must pull up your roster for the specific tournament you are adding the guest player. There is a drop-down menu at the top of your roster that allows you to select specific events. 

WEATHER:

• In the instance of a weather delay the Tournament Director will post updates as well as send text/email to all users subscribed to the USSSA App. It is the responsibility of the Head Coach to stay in contact with the Tournament Director during a delay.
• Lightning delays will be 30 minutes from the last known/seen strike and updates will be provided via the USSSA App. Please exit the complex to your vehicles or find appropriate shelter under a pavilion. Players are not allowed to remain on the field, in dugouts or in batting cages during a lightning delay.

REFUNDS:

REFUND POLICY: No refunds will be issued after the tournament deadline. Any team who drops after the tournament deadline or after the schedule is published (whichever comes first) will not receive a refund for their registration fee. The payment deadline, when looking at the tournament website, is the same day as “last day to enter.”   

There may be occasions when deadlines are moved up (if the event is full). This information will be communicated to the team representative via email. If a tournament is cancelled prior to the start date (not due to weather), by Effingham Flame Softball, a full refund will be issued.

• In the event of a weather cancelled game, games will be deemed complete based on the USSSA Rulebook (Rule 4, Sect 6, C, 1 &2). Games can be deemed official after 2 1/2 innings of play (with the home team winning) or 45 minutes of elapsed game time. 
• Teams will receive a prorated refund based on the number of games played less than the game guarantee. The only exception to this is 7 in the Spring. If a team plays 6 games in the 7 in the Spring event, there will not be a refund issued.
• Gate fees will only be refunded if a team plays less than 3 games, regardless of the game guarantee. Gate fees will be prorated based on the number of games played.

GENERAL TOURNAMENT INFORMATION:

• Our events ARE NOT Stay to Play Events
• Addresses of the parks can be found in the Venue tab on the tournament page. If you are entered in an event with multiple complexes, this page will typically identify where each division is playing. If divisions are not specifically annotated, it is because the registration is not complete, and venues have not been determined. Check back periodically, but venues will be decided no later than 30 days prior to an event to provide time to make hotel reservations.
• Please reference the Park’s website for their policy on overnight parking for RV’s
• Please reference the Park’s website for their policy on pets on the property.
• I will do my best to accommodate your requests, please understand if you enter an event scheduled for Friday-Sunday, you can expect to play on Friday. If you are unable to play on Friday, you may be required to forfeit a pool game.