Rules | NCSL

We are a Christian fun and fellowship league, not a competitive league.

Bring your competitive spirit, not your competitive attitude.

Spirit & conduct

No swearing, smoking, vaping, or alcohol on or off the field during permit times. First offence is a warning to the coach; a second offence can mean ejection or forfeit. This applies to everyone involved, including coaches and scorekeepers.
Anyone causing a disturbance with another person, including a teammate, must leave the grounds immediately, or the offending team forfeits.
The home team brings and sets up the equipment and gives the devotional. The visiting team says a prayer. Devotion and prayer begin at the official start time.
Poor sportsmanship costs one point in the standings, for the winner or the loser, and carries into the playoffs. Running up the score can be considered poor sportsmanship.
The plate umpire has full authority and the final say in all matters. Appeals are heard only on rule calls, not judgment calls, and only from the coach or assistant coach identified before the game.

Roster & players

All players must be 14 or older before the season starts and must sign the waiver form. A team caught with an underage player forfeits every game that player played in.
A full team is 10 players with a minimum of 4 females or males. Legal combinations are 3m-5f, 3m-6f, 3m-7f, 4m-4f, 4m-5f, 4m-6f, 5m-3f, 5m-4f, 5m-5f, and 6m-4f.
Teams may play with 8 or 9 as long as there are at least 3 females or males. If only 3 females are available, only 5 males may play.
No player who is pregnant may play. A player may play for only one team per year.
The batting order may have no more than three males in a row.
A team will not lose two players to a single on-field injury when no legal substitute exists. Automatic outs may apply for the injured spot depending on whether a legal combination remains.
If a team cannot continue because of an ejection, it forfeits. If both teams are involved, the game is a double loss.

Game length, timing & scoring

Games are eight innings or until 8:30pm, whichever comes first. No full inning starts after 8:30pm.
The official start time is 6:30pm sharp, when the devotion and prayer begin. A team that cannot field at least 8 players by 6:45pm forfeits. There are no extensions.
A win is worth 2 points, a tie 1 point each, and a loss 0. Standings ties are broken first by head-to-head, then by the team scoring the fewest runs.
A tied game plays one more full inning. If still tied, it is recorded as a tie.
The mercy rule caps a team at five runs per inning, except in the last inning.
For weather-shortened results to count, the losing team is guaranteed five complete innings (15 outs). A weather delay is 30 minutes, except in the playoffs.

Weather & forfeits

In bad weather the Executive decides if a game is cancelled and notifies the teams, umpire, and statistician. Only the umpire can call a game at the field, so teams must show up ready to play.
A team that knows in advance it will forfeit must have a listed coach call an Executive member in person. Once made, the decision cannot be reversed, and the other team is awarded the win.
No team may reschedule a game.

Playoffs & eligibility

A player must have played three games, recorded in a scorebook, to be eligible for the playoffs. Rained-out or forfeited games can count if signed off by the umpire or opposing coach.
No player may play the last game of the season without two prior games, unless the umpire agrees.
In the playoffs the official start time is 6:15pm, curfew is two hours (except for a tie forcing extra innings), and the final game is eight full innings.
The home team in the playoffs is the team finishing higher in the standings.

The field

Bases are 65 ft apart. The pitching rubber is 50 ft from the front of home plate. The pitching area is 4 ft wide by 10 ft deep. The outfield line is spray-painted at 150 ft.
Proper footwear is required: soft soles or rubber cleats, hard or soft. No metal spikes and no bare feet.
Trappers are allowed only at first base, the pitching mound, and home plate. A regulation glove has four fingers and a thumb visible on both sides.
No hardball bats. Bats need 10" of full tape (no smooth plastic tape) or rubber grips and must be in good condition. Bats must be clearly marked USSSA Thumbprint 1.20 BPF for both male and female players.

Pitching

The pitcher starts with at least one foot in the pitching area with the rubber at the front, and may take only one step before pitching.
Every pitch needs a minimum 6 ft arc and may not exceed 12 ft, and must hit the strike zone or it is a ball unless swung at.
The top of the mat covers home plate. A pitch hitting any part of the mat or the white "V" strike-zone area is a strike.
A pitcher must pitch within a reasonable time. First a warning, then an automatic ball, then removal from the mound for the rest of the game.
A new pitcher gets 5 warm-up pitches and must pitch to 2 batters before being replaced. A pitcher returning to the mound gets no warm-up pitches.

Batting

Players must play the field before they bat, unless the team is using the Everybody Bats option.
No pinch-hitting. A batter must reach first base on their own before a pinch runner can be used.
A player may re-enter after sitting one full inning, taking the removed player’s spot in the order, male for male and female for female.
No bunting or chopping. Check swings count as bunts and are an automatic out (umpire’s discretion).
A batter may not switch hit once they have taken their position or taken a pitch.
For pitcher and catcher safety, a batter may not "walk the box." Minor stance adjustment after the pitch is allowed. The catcher stays at least 5 ft behind the mat until the ball is hit.
A foot on the strike zone or in front of home plate while hitting, fair or foul, is an automatic out.
One foul is allowed on the second strike; a second foul is out. Three strikes is an automatic out.
A batted ball coming to rest on or hitting the strike zone and staying fair is a fair ball. The entire strike zone is fair territory.
Any ball hit hard back through the pitching area (umpire’s discretion) is an automatic out for pitcher safety. A second such hit by the same player is an ejection.
A foul ball caught by the catcher is an out. A thrown bat striking the catcher or umpire is a warning, then an automatic out.
On an intentional four-straight-ball walk with no strikes called, the next batter may choose to bat or take first base.

Base running

On an infield hit the batter must touch the orange part of first base; touching the white part first is an out. On a hit to the outfield, and for walked runners, either bag may be used.
Missing a base is an appeal play, not an automatic out.
A batter-runner cannot be thrown out at first base on a throw from an outfielder.
No courtesy runners, except for a physical limitation identified to the umpire before the game, or an injury (umpire’s discretion).
No sliding (umpire’s discretion). A runner may dive back to a base hand-first. Defensive players may slide to make a play safely.
No lead-offs. Leaving a base before the pitch crosses the strike zone is an automatic out.
Once a runner crosses the commitment line they cannot return to third and cannot be tagged; the play is at the strike zone. To score, a foot must be down on or over the safe line before the catcher catches the ball.
Going more than 3 ft off the baseline to avoid a tag is an automatic out.
There is no infield fly rule. On a deliberate drop (umpire’s discretion), the batter and runners are safe.
Runners are awarded bases on a ball going out of play: two bases on a throw from an outfielder, one base on a throw from an infielder, and a ground-rule double on a misdirected fair ball going out of play.

The Everybody Bats option

Teams may set a batting order at the start that includes all players, with no more than three males in a row. The order does not change all game, and a player does not have to field in order to bat.
Late players are added to the bottom of the order. Missing a turn at bat is an automatic out, with an exception for injury.

Batting out of order

Appeal before the batter finishes the at-bat: either team may appeal, and the correct batter takes over with the current count.
Appeal after the at-bat but before the next pitch: either team may appeal. The proper batter is out, the improper batter is removed from base, and advances are nullified except those from throwing errors. Outs made still count.
Appeal after the next pitch: only the defence may appeal. All plays stand, and the next batter is the one who follows the improper batter.

This page summarizes the league's 2026 rulebook for quick reference. The full official rules govern play, and the umpire's ruling is final. Questions? Ask in the Facebook group or reach the executive.

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League Rules