A full list of softball rule changes will be available on the NFHS website in www.nfhs.org. Click on “Activities & Sports” at the top of the homepage and select “Softball”. The ASA is considered the most regulated association in softball, followed by the USSSA. If your fastpitch softball league is governed by another body, chances are your racquet, if approved by the ASA or USSSA, will be legal in your league. However, it`s always a good idea to check with your league`s website or director for specific rules, regulations, and lists of bats allowed. NFHS Softball recognizes and operates USA Softball`s certification process. For a racquet to be legal for use in NFHS softball, it must be marked with the ASA 2000, 2004 or USA Softball All-Games certification mark. All racquets approved by USA Softball, formerly ASA, for use on the fast field must have one of the markings listed below. According to the 2017-18 NFHS High School Sports Participation Survey, 367,861 girls in 15,544 schools across the country participate in rapid softball and 1,589 boys participate in the sport in 35 schools. First, you have taken the right steps. Rule 1-5 requires a bat.” bear the 2000 or 2004 certification mark and are not on USA Softball`s list of unapproved bats… Bats must be approved. NFHS uses USA softball-approved racket list. A “prohibited bat” is an unapproved bat bearing a certification mark.
These are bat models that were first tested and approved, but were not subsequently approved because bat samples from random markets (retail stores) did not match the characteristics of the bat model originally submitted for testing. However, there are bats on the market that have not been tested by USA Softball and are not on their list of approved racquets. The Easton Ghost bat models you have encountered are examples of such bats. “This rule defines damaged bats and distinguishes them from unapproved and modified bats,” said Sandy Searcy, NFHS athletic director and liaison to the NFHS Softball Rules Committee. “The committee clarified what to do if a damaged racquet is discovered in the game.” All Fastpitch softball bats must have a barrel diameter of 2″ and must not exceed 34″ in length and 31 oz in weight, regardless of the club you play in. We had an Easton Ghost racquet in one of our last games. We couldn`t find it on the list of prohibited bats, but it didn`t have an ASA certification mark. So we didn`t allow it in the game.
How do we determine if bats are legal? A damaged racquet is now defined as a racquet that was once legal, but is broken, cracked, bumpy, shaken or has sharp edges that could disfigure the ball (Rules 1-5-1, 7-4-2, 2-4-3). To determine if a bat is allowed, visit the U.S. softball website. www.usasoftball.com Once on the site, “click” on the “Certified Equipment” section. Once you`re on the “Certified Equipment” page, scroll down until you see the large box labeled “USA Softball TESTING & CERTIFICATION PROGRAM” at the bottom right. Make sure “Bats” is listed in the selection box and click the “GO” button. Once the following field with examples of certification marks appears, scroll down until you see the title “APPROVED STICKS: 2000, 2004 and 2013”. There are 2 selection boxes with “Go” buttons underneath.
Make sure “Bats” is listed in the first field. In the second box, you can select “Show All” to list bats from all manufacturers, or you can click the “down arrow” to see a list of each bat manufacturer. Do this and choose “Easton” and “Click” on the “Go” button. All approved Easton bats are listed by model number and description. Scroll down until you see the model number of the bat you`re exploring. If the model number does not exist, the racquet has not been approved by USA Softball. It seems that Easton Fast Pitch Bat model numbers start with “FP” and I only see 5 approved model numbers: FP18GH10, FP18GH11, FP18GH8, FP18GH9 and FP18GHY11. Previously, a damaged racquet was considered an illegal racquet, with the penalty being an exit if the racquet entered the racket box. Now, damaged rackets are simply removed from the game without penalty. In addition, any racquet bearing one of these certification marks cannot be listed on the USA Softball unapproved bat list with certification marks. This list was created to alert players and coaches that a racquet that was once approved for use is no longer approved. Once these bats have arrived on the market and potential problems arise, there is a procedure to revoke the approval of these bats.