SWSAD Player/Non-Player Eligibility

Player and Non-Player

Player– Any player who wishes to play on a team shall satisfy one of the following requirements:
–Any player, who is Deaf, shall have a hearing loss of 55 db or greater in the better ear
–Any player who is either sixteen (16) or seventeen (17) years old shall have obtain permission from parent/guardian
–Any KODA/CODA shall provide birth certificate or adoption paperwork showing at least one deaf parent/guardian showing the adult is Deaf.
–Any SODA shall provide a birth certificate and show that their sibling, either their brother or sister, including step or half, showing at least one of their common parent/guardian is Deaf.
–Any Spouse shall provide a marriage certificate or common law paperwork showing their spouse is Deaf.
–Any player who identifies as opposite sex shall follow USSSA’s Gender Classification which can be found at http://usssa.com/docs/usssa_pp_manual.pdf.
–Any player(s) who participated in past SWSAD Tournaments prior to year 2023 are grandfathered in with approval of the Executive Board.
Non-Player– Any non-player who wishes to be on a team shall satisfy the any of the following requirements and must identify on the registration form:
–Coach (Main or Assistant)
–Manager
–Water boy/girl
–Statistician
-May be hearing

Team Eligibility – Any team who wishes to register and participate in SWSAD tournament shall follow:

Free Agent – A team may allow number of free agents for their division and outside of their “team” quadrant:
–Men Division – Three (3) per team – One (1) Any Age, One (1) Over 35, One (1)Over 40
–Women Division -Three (3) per team – Three (3) Any Age
–Coed Division – Six (6) per team – Three (3) Women Any Age and Three (3) Men- One (1) Any Age, One (1) Over 35, One (1) Over 40
KODA/CODA/SODA/Spouse (Hearing) Rule –
Non-SWSAD Teams – teams from Non SWSAD region- Only One (1) per team- Must play within the same quadrant, following the National Softball Association of the Deaf quadrant concept.
SWSAD Teams – teams from SWSAD region- Only one (1) Hearing is allowed in the Men’s Division, two (2) in Women’s Division, one (1) men and two (2) women in COED Division.■Must reside within the SWSAD region. ○No Hearing players are allowed to be Free Agents.
Players from within their team quadrant will be waived on the same family member team. Example: A father/son must be on the same team. A mother has a son, and a daughter must be on the same COED team. The mother must be either player,coach/manager, scorekeeper. Either Husband/Spouse or Wife/Spouse must be on the same team.Disregard to Team and Team Member Eligibility- any team or team member who disregards any of the eligibility rules stated above shall result in an automatic disqualification from the tournament.

Definitions –
CODA – Child of Deaf Adult (either as a Parent or Guardian)
KODA – Kid of Deaf Adult (either as a Parent or Guardian) and under 17 years of age
SODA – Sibling of Deaf Adult (Applies to any Brother/Sister, Step-Brother/Step-Sister,Half-Brother/Half-Sister)
SPOUSE – Wife/Husband, Wife/Wife, Husband/HusbandPage2- Southwest Softball Association of the Deaf