02/21/18 – Board of Control Addresses Postseason Format for Softball, Suspends the Implementation of the International Tiebreaker for the 2018 Postseason

February 22, 2018

During the course of its February meeting at the KHSAA offices on Wednesday, the Board of Control deliberated on the postseason format for the sport of softball, with the Board voting for the event to transition to a single-elimination format in 2019. The move to single elimination will bring the softball championship more in-line with the baseball state tournament while also helping to alleviate concerns with the potential overuse of pitchers under the current double-elimination format.

“We have been discussing the future and the format of the state softball tournament for the last several years, and I applaud the Board for the steps it took today in approving our recommendations,” said KHSAA Commissioner Julian Tackett. “Examining the state softball and baseball tournaments, you would be hard-pressed to say the events were equitable for the participants and fans in their current formats. Moving to a single-elimination format where each team plays one game per day in those early rounds will open some new possibilities for the scheduling of this championship.”

In addition to the change in format for 2019 and beyond, the Board approved a recommendation to suspend implementation of the International Tiebreaker (ITB) for the 2018 postseason. Coaches and umpires should consider the removal of the requirement for the ITB in the postseason to be immediately effective, but are reminded that the use of the ITB is mandatory in all regular season contests beginning in the 10th inning, and optional by mutual agreement in the 8th and 9th innings.

Please be sure to contact the KHSAA if you have any additional questions.

-KHSAA-

About the Kentucky High School Athletic Association
The Kentucky High School Athletic Association was organized in 1917 and is the agency designated by the Kentucky Department of Education to manage high school athletics in the Commonwealth. The Association is a voluntary nonprofit 501(c)3 organization made up of 279 member schools both public and private. The KHSAA sanctions 44 state championships in 13 sports and 5 sport-activities, licenses and trains over 4,000 officials, provides catastrophic insurance for its more than 70,000 member school student-athletes, as well as overseeing coaching education and sports safety programs.