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Southern Athletic Association

Operations Manual

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Table of ContentsSAA InformationPage 3 SAA Member School and Colors

Primary Staff DirectorySAA Office / OverviewPrimary Staff Directory

Page 4 SAA Office / OverviewPage 5 SAA Code of Ethics

SAA Procedural OverviewPage 6 Athletics TrainersPage 10 Sports Information Directors

SAA Sports ManualsFall SportsPage 16 Men’s and Women’s Cross CountryPage 19 Field HockeyPage 24 FootballPage 31 Men’s and Women’s SoccerPage 36 Volleyball

Winter SportsPage 41 Men’s and Women’s BasketballPage 49 Men’s and Women’s Swimming & Diving

Spring SportsPage 57 BaseballPage 62 Men’s and Women’s GolfPage 7 Men’s LacrossePage 77 Women’s LacrossePage 81 SoftballPage 87 Men’s and Women’s TennisPage 92 Men’s and Women’s Track & Field

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InstitutionsBerry Silver BlueBirmingham-Southern Black GoldCentre College Gold (123) White/BlackHendrix College Orange (1375) BlackMillsaps College Purple (273-U) WhiteOglethorpe University Gold (109-U) BlackRhodes College Red (185) BlackUniversity of the South Purple (273) WhiteSouthern Athletic Association Blue/Black White/Gray*PMS numbers in parenthesis

Council of PresidentsPresident Name SchoolPresident Steven Briggs BerryPresident Daniel Coleman Birmingham-SouthernPresident Milton Moreland CentrePresident Ellis Arnold III HendrixPresident Rob Pearigen MillsapsPresident Nicholas Ladany OglethorpePresident Carroll Steven RhodesVice-Chancellor/President Reuben Brigety University of the South

Council of Athletic DirectorsAthletic Director SWA SchoolAngel Mason Ginger Swann BerryKyndall Waters Sherri Salmon Birmingham-SouthernBrad Fields Gina Nicoletti CentreAmy Weaver Brittany Newberry HendrixAaron Pelch Jaime Fisher MillsapsTodd Brooks Cindy Vaios OglethorpeMatt Dean Sara Quatrocky RhodesMark Webb Tracey Braden University of the South

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SAA Office

Address: 4484 Peachtree Road, Atlanta, GA 30319

Staff:Jay Gardiner, Commissioner

jay@saa.oglethorpe.edu404-364-8414

Clayton Felts, Associate Commissionercfeltst@saa.oglethorpe.edu

931-691-7653

Website: saa-sports.com Founded: 2011 First Year: 2012-13

Geography: One school each in Alabama (Birmingham-Southern), Kentucky (Centre), Arkansas(Hendrix) and Mississippi (Millsaps); two schools in Tennessee (Sewanee and Rhodes), inGeorgia (Berry and Oglethorpe)

Sports Sponsorship:MEN (10) - Baseball, basketball, cross country, football, golf, lacrosse, soccer, swimming anddiving, tennis, outdoor track and field.

WOMEN (11) - Basketball, cross country, field hockey (TBD), golf, lacrosse, soccer, softball,swimmingand diving, tennis, outdoor track and field, volleyball.

Governance:COUNCIL OF PRESIDENTS - Comprised of the chief executive officers of the memberInstitutions. This group meets bi-annually and is ultimately responsible for the operation of theconference.

ATHLETICS DIRECTOR’S COUNCIL - Comprised of the athletics director and senior womanAdministrator (SWA) at each member institution. This group meets bi-annually and makesrecommendations on legislation to the Presidents and accepts reports and recommendationsfrom all Sports Councils.

SPORTS COUNCILS - Represent the 21 sports sponsored by the conference and includesthe head coach at each member institution. There are also councils representing the Sports

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Information Directors (SID) and Athletic Trainers. Each Sports Council meets annually todiscusspolicies and make recommendations to the Athletics Directors Council.

COMMISSIONER - Serves as the executive director and is responsible for directing thedevelopment, coordination and implementation of the conference’s policies.

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SAA Code of EthicsSection 1 - Abusive, profane, or insulting language directed at any player, coach, official, anystaff member at a conference institution, or the commissioner, is completely unacceptable byanyone associated with the conference and its member schools. Such misconduct could result indisciplinary action by the individual’s institution and/or the commissioner.

Section 2 - It is completely unacceptable for anyone to directly comment in a derogatory mannerto a media member on a player, coach, official, any staff member of a conference institution, orthe commissioner. Such misconduct could result in disciplinary action by the individual’sinstitution and/or the commissioner.

Section 3 - Neither a coach nor his/her representative may enter the officials’ dressing roomfacilities. The officials’ dressing room must remain private. A capable security guard must beresponsible for maintaining the privacy and safety of officials while they are on campus.

Section 4 - A report on any ejections from athletics events involving conference teams must bereported to the conference office within 48 hours after the contest by the host institution. If thecontest is a non-conference event, the member institution is responsible for notifying theconference office of any ejections within 48 hours. An ejection could result in disciplinary actionby the individual’s institution and/or the commissioner. The Athletics Directors AdvisoryCouncil will serve to assist the commissioner on any such rulings involving potentialsuspensions of student-athletes and/or coaches as it relates to potential violations of the SAACode of Ethics.

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Murray Burch Athletic Trainers Council

1. The Athletic Trainers Council will include the head athletic trainers from each SAA school.This Council will have an annual conference call during the spring to discuss common concernsand make recommendations to the Athletic Directors Council for changes in these policies.

2. In order to provide an acceptable standard of care for all conference sports and events, anNATABOC certified athletic trainer must be on campus and directly accessible as well as havedirect communication available to him/her to all events in competition. The host athletic trainerwill provide emergency care to visiting teams. In the sports of football and men’s lacrosse,conference schools are required to travel with an athletic trainer.

3. It is the responsibility for the host institution’s athletic trainer to provide the followingamenities for football games:

A. At each sideline:(4) 10-gallon water coolers with cups(1) Ice chest with loose ice and bags(1) Treatment table(1) Water table(1) Trash can

B. In each locker room:(2) 10 gallons of water with cups(1) Ice chest with loose ice and ice bags(1) Taping/Treatment Table mandatory(2) Taping/Treatment Tables recommended(1) Hydrocollator Unit(1) Trash can

C. Provide football equipment transportation to the field no less than 45 minutes prior tokickoff. The status of all the aforementioned equipment and supplies will be checked athalftime.

D. In addition to the athletic trainer, it is required that a physician and ambulance be onsite.

E. The host institution must provide two-way radios for each team to be used via bothsidelines for the purpose of communication about water and physician needs.

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4. It is the responsibility for the host institution’s athletic trainer to provide the followingamenities for men’s lacrosse games:

A. At each sideline:(2) 10-gallon water coolers with cups(1) Ice chest with loose ice and bags(1) Trash can(1) Treatment or massage table is recommended

B. Outside each locker room:(1) Taping table(1) Treatment or massage table is recommended(1) 10-gallon water cooler with cups is recommended

C. In addition to the athletic trainer, it is highly recommended that a physician and/orambulance be on site.

5. It is the responsibility for the host institution’s athletic trainer to provide the followingamenities for basketball games:

A. At each bench:(1) 10-gallon water coolers with cups(1) Ice chest with loose ice and bags(1) Trash Can(5) Bench towels(1) Treatment or massage table is recommended

B. At each locker room:(1) 7-gallon water cooler with cups(1) Trash Can

6. It is the responsibility of the host institution’s athletic trainer to provide the followingamenities at each bench for baseball, field hockey and soccer.

(2) 10 gallon water coolers with cups(1) Ice chest with loose ice and bags(1) Trash can(1) Treatment or massage table is recommended

7. It is the responsibility of the host institution’s athletic trainer to provide the followingamenities at each bench for softball, volleyball and women’s lacrosse:

(1) 10 gallon water cooler with cups(1) Ice chest with loose ice and bags(1) Trash can(1) Treatment or massage table is recommended

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8. If a visiting institution will have a practice at the host SAA institution, it is the responsibilityof the traveling athletic trainer to contact the host athletic trainer at least 48 hours in advance torequest water and ice to be placed at practices.

9. The chair of the SAA Athletic Training Council will maintain a SAA Athletic Training contactlist. The head athletic trainer or Coordinator of Athletic Training Services at each institution isencouraged to share the SAA Athletic Training contact list with each of their staff members. Thestaff members should contact the athletic trainer working the prospective sport at eachinstitution.

10. In addition to standard provisions for all sites and events, the SAA Championships presentsthe following additional responsibilities for the host athletic trainer(s):

A. The host athletic trainer(s) will work with the visiting athletic trainers to ensure that allgames are covered by two certified athletic trainers during the championship at all times.(Except in the sport of golf when one certified athletic trainer is acceptable).

B. For track & field, a tented/shaded area is required that serves as a dual site forofficials. The tent must be large enough to be equipped with the following at a minimum:(2) 10-gallon cooler with cups(1) Ice chest with loose ice and bags(1) Treatment table(1) Ice bath

C. For the cross country meet, the minimum following amenities are required:(2) 10-gallon cooler with cups(1) Ice chest with loose ice and bags(1) Treatment table

D. The host institution is recommended to provide an ambulance or EMT on site.

E. If any team in any championships is not represented by an athletic trainer, the hostathletic trainer(s) will provide coverage for the event.

11. The Athletic Trainers Council also recognizes the need for a consistent provision of standardmodalities at each conference institution. The minimum standards for the provision of modalitiesfor use by visiting teams includes but is not limited to ice, moist heat (hydrocollator unit), and acombination E-Stim-Ultrasound unit.

12. The provision of providing cold beverages after each athletic event for visiting teams is theprimary responsibility and decision of the athletic director and/or head coach and not thedecision of the athletic trainer. The same provision is true for shower towels and is not theresponsibility of the athletic trainer.

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13. All conference teams must travel with some form of identification that will guaranteeemergency care (insurance) at any hospital. Individual player information needs to be providedby each athletic trainer.

14. Teams not traveling with an athletic trainer should contact the host school’s athletic trainer atleast 48 hours prior to the scheduled competition if special needs or treatments will be necessary.This is to include taping, treatments, etc. The standard provisions as stated above will beprovided and the visiting team is expected to bring normal medical supplies (wrapping tape,etc.). Only emergency care will be administered by the host school’s athletic trainer if he or sheis not contacted prior to the visiting team’s arrival. The host athletic trainer is not required tocover practices for visiting teams in any sports. Any additional care will be provided only if thehost athletic trainer is notified in advance or with written instructions.

15. Current NCAA policy mandates the immediate, aggressive treatment of open wounds or skinlesions that are deemed potential risks for transmission of disease. Participants with any activebleeding should be removed from the event as soon as practical. Return to play is determined byappropriate medical staff personnel and/or sport officials.

A student-athlete who is bleeding should be treated according to the NCAAGuideline 2L regarding “Blood-Borne Pathogens and Intercollegiate Athletics.” Thebleeding must be stopped and the open wound covered with a dressing sturdy enough towithstand the demands of the activity before the student-athlete may continueparticipation. While the wound is being attended, an assessment of the individual’s skin,uniform and equipment should be made by medical personnel. All blood on the skinshould be thoroughly cleaned. Any equipment, including tape, padding or uniform that issaturated with blood and could come into contact with other student-athletes should bechanged.

Other participants at the point of injury should be evaluated by medical personnel for thepresence of blood from the injured student-athlete. All blood on the skin of the non-bleedindividuals should be thoroughly cleaned. Any equipment, including tape, padding oruniform that is saturated with blood and could come into contact with otherstudent-athletes should be changed.

Environmental surfaces should also be inspected to determine if any hard surfaces havebeen contaminated by blood or other potentially infectious materials (OPIM). These areasshould be disinfected with the proper chemical germicides or a freshly prepared bleachand water solution diluted to a 1:10 bleach/water ratio.

All personnel should follow “Standard Precautions” when providing care of thestudent-athlete and cleaning and disinfecting of environmental surfaces. Theseprecautions can be found in the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA)standards for Blood-Borne Pathogens and Hazard Communication.(Standard #29 CRF1910.1030 & .1200). The NCAA also publishes a Sports Medicine Handbook that

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addresses many of the problems with blood-borne diseases. Each athletic trainer is askedto maintain a copy of this handbook.

16. The use of all tobacco products by individuals on the field of play and bench areas duringregular competition and practice is prohibited. Violations of this regulation shall be dealt with bythe Athletic Directors Council for possible disciplinary action.

17. The Council requires that all coaches be certified in CPR and first aid, plus be knowledgeableof the Emergency Action Plan (EAP) at their conference school – for traditional andnon-traditional seasons. All EAPs must be posted on the respective schools website.

18. The Council requires that all schools follow the updated NCAA lightning policy. Theseguidelines are included in the updated NCAA Sports Medicine Handbook. The host school’sadministrator-in-charge (AIC) will be responsible for ensuring that the person identified by eachinstitution to make the call concerning lightning safety has spoken with the lead official andreviewed the lightning policy prior to competition.

19. The SAA policy regarding protocol for visiting team concussions (if an athletic trainer is nottraveling with the visiting team) is for the home team certified athletic trainer to communicatewith the visiting team certified athletic trainer. If a concussion is suspected, the athlete will beremoved from play. The home team certified athletic trainer will not clear visiting team athletesto return to play after a concussion.

20. The Head Athletic Trainer or Coordinator of Athletic Training Services at each institutionmust submit the medical hardship paperwork request via email to Jay Gardiner by May 1st ofeach year. Jay Gardiner will e-mail the approval or denial paperwork to each Head AthleticTrainer over the summer.

Additionally, each institution's compliance officer must sign the medical hardship forms beforeturning them in.

21. The Chair of the Athletic Training Council will send minutes and a copy of the manual toeach institution including associate members in Football and Field Hockey.

Note: Presidents and ADs recognize the NATA recommendation of one certified trainer for every100 athletes. This will be a conference wide priority.

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Sports Information Directors Council

I. General Overview

1. The Sports Information Directors Council will include the SIDs from all conference schools.

2. The SIDs will assist the conference office in maintaining a comprehensive conference recordbook of all conference sports.

3. The conference office will coordinate with the SIDs an operating system for sportsinformation, publications and statistical maintenance regarding scores, results, and statistics.

4. Any school’s failure to comply with the SID Council’s guidelines could result in that school’sforfeiture of all-conference consideration in the sport in question.

5. Before the approval of changes affecting the SIDs, sports council proposals should bepresented to the SIDs for discussion.

6. Schools are required to host championships based on each sport's championship manual,created by the conference office. Each manual should adhere and be updated according tochanges from each sport's council on an annual basis. This also includes reading the providedchampionship scripts as created by the conference office.

7. SID's should be included and invited by the conference office on pre-championship phonecalls. An SID-only conference call may take place afterwards if necessary.

8. A timeline for all awards will be provided by the conference office which includesnominations open/closed dates, voting open/closed dates, and a date for the official release.These dates should correspond to existing sports council timelines. The SID's should be copiedon all awards correspondence to coaches.

9. It is the responsibility of the host institution to provide a championship website. Brackets willbe updated on the conference website including times and locations, to allow a single link to beused on championship sites.

II. Game Day Procedures - Gameday Management

1. The SID from each member school is responsible for the conduct at the press box or press rowat each home contest. The SAA, in the interest of ensuring a professional working environment

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and reflection of the member institution, recommends the following code of conduct for themedia facilities be distributed or posted in the press box or on press row:

“The Southern Athletic Association and (name of member institution) remind each personhere that this is a working media area and cheering and other

emotional outbursts are absolutely prohibited. Any such behavior mayresult in dismissal from the press box or row by the crowd

control officer or sports information director.”

In all cases, only media personnel, scouts, athletics officials and necessary game staff arepermitted in any press box or on any press row. At no time is cheering or other emotionaloutburst permitted. Such conduct could result in dismissal from the contest and suspension offuture media credentials or admittance to the press box or press row.

2. The host institution for football and basketball will provide internet access (wireless or wired)for radio broadcasts by visiting teams within the field of play (football is the working press boxand basketball is inside the gym or arena), provided the space is requested 24 hours in advance.Additionally, the broadcast location for football within the press box should maintain some typeof privacy. Every effort should be made possible for football broadcasters to have a level ofprivacy separate from the regular working staff in the same location.

3. The following statement shall be read or played over the public address system. This pledgeencourages SAA schools to have a student athlete from both schools read the following:

Player one: “As representative participants in today’s contest we ask your cooperation inhelping to make today’s game a positive one for all involved by promoting good

sportsmanship”

Player two: “Please refrain from the use of profanity or any intimidating actions towardsthe players, referees, or coaches of either team. The use of alcohol is only permitted in

designated and approved areas.”

Together: “Thank you for your cooperation”

Other appropriate Sportsmanship Pledges may be substituted with the approval of theCommissioner.

4. The public address announcer should not be a “cheerleader” or incite the crowd at any time.During SAA tournament competition, the PA announcer must be strictly neutral, providingpertinent information in a concise and restrained manner. Criticism over the public addresssystem of officials, coaches, student-athletes, etc, during any competition is a significantviolation of conference policy.

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Any individual guilty of such behavior will be expelled from those duties immediately. Thepublic address announcer should be aware of procedures in case of necessary evacuation of theplaying area for emergencies.

The crowd control offers should instruct the announcer of these procedures in advance of thecontest.

5. Prior to the beginning of any conference event, the following protocol is recommended:

A. The National Anthem will be played or sung, and the American andSAA flags displayed. (If feasible, but not required for all sports – checkeach Sports Council.)

B. It will be announced it is a Southern Athletic Association event:

Pregame timing protocols should follow sport-specific NCAA and coaching associationprotocols.

6. Consideration should be given to special pregame and halftime activities (Homecoming,Parent’s Weekend, Senior Day, etc.). Those activities should begin early enough so it does notaffect the starting times of games.

III. Game Day Procedures - Statistics

1. The host school is responsible for posting the final score to Presto and uploading the packedfile into the Presto system.

2. For consistency, in regards to digital roster files, the proper listing is as follows:First name, Last name

3. Also, in the sports of baseball and softball, when sharing digital roster files, a school needs tosend both a .tro (roster) and .trx (extended roster) file before the game to allow for both first andlast names to show up in the box score.

4. The host SID must provide an official NCAA box score and a competent statistical staff for allevents. This is true for field hockey, football, basketball, baseball, soccer, softball, volleyball andlacrosse. SIDs will work with cross country, golf, swimming and diving, outdoor track and tenniscoaches to ensure that adequate statistics and results are maintained. The host school must updatethe SAA online scoreboard, no later than midnight the day of competition after a contest inbaseball, basketball, field hockey, football, soccer, softball, tennis, volleyball and lacrosse.

5. On conference basketball weekends, game files for the first game of a scheduled doubleheadershould be e-mailed immediately between games (if needed) or uploaded to the appropriatewebsite. Once the second game is completed, the same procedure applies. SIDs are also

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responsible for distributing basketball box scores to the locker room of both teams duringhalftime and at the conclusion of all games.

6. In football, it is required that each host SID provide a play-by-play for all conference homegames. This play-by-play should be a part of the regular statistics package provided after eachgame (box score, tackle statistics, etc.) SIDs are also required to review with their statistics staffassisted and unassisted tackles for accuracy in reporting defensive statistics (e.g. an assistedtackle means the player assisted in the momentum of the tackle). To ensure accurate gamestatistics, coaches or SIDs will send a set of individual defensive statistics and correction of teamstatistics from game film according to NCAA guidelines. This should be done no later than 9:00a.m., (EST) Monday.

7. At the SAA Volleyball Tournament, it is required that the host school keep live, in-gamestatistics for both the semifinal matches and the championship match on Sunday.

IV. Game Day Procedures - Ejections

1. The official scorebook – in those sports in which an official scorebook is maintained – is thefinal determining factor for ejections, fighting, etc. The act of an ejection and the consequencesinvolved with any ejection must be recorded in the official scorebook by the official scorekeeperin all sports that require official scorekeeping. All ejections will be reported to the conferenceoffice within 48 hours by the member institution.

V. Roster Maintenance

1. For consistency in roster guidelines (when using and sharing Microsoft Word rosters), allschools should have team sport rosters available per NCAA standards:

Cross Country / Golf / Tennis / Track / Swimming and Diving1) name2) class3) hometown(list events for each swimmer and/or track athlete after class and before hometown)

Basketball / Football / Soccer / Volleyball / Lacrosse / Field Hockey1) number2) name3) position4) height5) weight (omit for women’s basketball, women’s soccer, volleyball, women’s lacrosseand field hockey)6) class7) hometown

Baseball / Softball

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1) number2) name3) position4) bats/throws5) height6) weight (omit for softball)7) class8) hometown

Also, for listing of states on all rosters, the AP style should be used.

2. Football rosters and two-deep charts shall be sent to conference opponents both on theMonday prior to Saturday’s game.

3. Each school must send their digital rosters for the applicable sports the Monday beforeconference competition. All rosters must be maintained in a digital format (Statcrew, Presto, etc.)and Word or Google Doc format in numerical order on each school’s athletics website and allrosters should be kept up to date during the season to reflect changes, deletions, additions, etc.

VII. Player of the Week Nominations ProcessFor all sports that use Stat Crew, Genius Sports, or Presto statistics (except volleyball), the SIDswill make weekly Player of the Week nominations using the Presto online nomination platformand will use the comments section to write their submissions in paragraph form.

VIII. Video Streaming

There is no conference-wide contract to utilize a specific streaming service. Due to conferencesplit of website providers, institutions may use streaming services that best fit with eachinstitution's own needs. Each institution must use a video streaming service. It is up to eachindividual institution to charge for revenue. A school may not charge for any SAA conferencetournament or championship event.

All schools are required to video stream online conference football and basketball games. Wehighly encourage institutions to broadcast all other conference sports. Schools may charge a feefor the video service at their discretion. Schools may not password protect or block anyon-demand games due to a possible competitive advantage between conference programs.

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Men and Women’s Cross Country

1. The men’s and women’s championship will be held two weeks prior to the NCAA RegionalMeet. The women will race 6,000 meters. The men will race 8,000 meters. The course shouldmeet minimum NCAA championship standards with regard to obstacles and obstructions, andavoid any lapping.

2. A rotation for host sites will be established among conference schools. If schools do not haveadequate facilities, or are unable or unwilling to host, they may pass on their opportunity to hostto the next school listed in the rotation. Championship sites must be approved, two (2) years inadvance, by a majority of the conference coaches and must comply with all NCAA rules andregulations, as listed in the NCAA cross country manual. Schools wishing to join the rotation(having either newly joined the conference or acquired a new facility) may be placed at the endof the current rotation. The head coach at the host institution will automatically serve as the crosscountry council chair for that season.

3. Start times will be at 10:00 a.m. and 11:00 a.m. local time. The order of start for the men andwomen will alternate, following the order used at the NCAA Championship Meet. In addition, amajority of coaches, in consultation with the conference office, may vote to adjust the start timesfor a particular year when there is concern that weather conditions may significantly affectperformance and/or create health concerns.

4. SAA Championship races must be timed/scored with modern equipment on par with NCAAChampionship standards. (Chip timing is currently the standard protocol, with video/finish Lynxback-up for times within 4/10ths of a second of one another. In addition to chip timing, a finishcorral should be used, rather than a chute, as noted in the NCAA rules book.) In addition,manual scoring/timing backup systems must be used at the finish line.

5. At the conclusion of the second race, and once both sets of results are posted, they areconsidered “unofficial”. The time of posting will be noted on the results sheet. At this point, a 20minute protest period begins, during which protests for both races may be filed with the meetreferee. At the conclusion of the 20 minute period, if no protests have been filed, the resultsbecome “official”.

6. The meet referee will rule on any protests. A coach has the option of appealing the meetreferee’s ruling to the games committee. The games committee is composed of three (3) coaches- the host coach, the host coach from the previous championships, and the host coaches from theupcoming championships. In the event a protest involves a school from which a coach isserving on the games committee, an alternate coach (as selected by the host coach) will serve inhis/her place.

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7. The annual cross country council (coaches) meeting will take place each year per telephoneconference call. The purpose of the meeting is to propose changes to the cross country operatingmanual, as well as to select/approve the championship site for two years out. It is theresponsibility of the host coach from the previous academic year’s championship meet toschedule this conference call. The specific date/time of the conference call should occur atthe end of the Fall semester and before the start of the Spring semester.

8. The host institution will make a reasonable effort to make the meet packet (bib numbers,chips, and other important material) available to each school on Friday prior to the meet. It isrecommended that this material be available at the course on Friday, at a pre-race meal (ifscheduled), or at a convenient location near the host hotel(s). Box assignments will be drawn bythe host institution and made available as a part of the packets on Friday. Packets not picked upmust be available at the course 90 minutes prior to the first race on Saturday, at which time boxassignments will also be drawn. In addition, course maps should be available at least two weeksprior to the meet.

9. Entries are due to the host institution by midnight on the Monday prior to the SAAChampionships. The entry procedure will be determined by the host school. An unlimitednumber of entries per institution will be permitted at the SAA Championships. It is theresponsibility of the host institution to forward meet entries to the conference office by 5:00 p.m.est. on Tuesday prior to the meet.

10. It is the responsibility of the host institution in coordination with the SAA office to send ameet packet (hotels, restaurants, directions, practice opportunities on the course, starting times,etc) to each school no later than October 1 prior to the SAA Championships.

11. AwardsThe team champions will be awarded championship trophies provided by the conference office.

The individual finisher in each event will be named the conference Runner of the Year andrecognized during the awards ceremony. Newcomer of the Year (top freshman or first-yearstudent based on finish at the conference championship) will also be selected and recognizedduring the awards ceremony. Coach of the Year will be selected after the championships.

The top-five finishers in the conference meet will be named to the All-SAA First-TeamAll-Conference Team, the next five will be named to the second team and finishers 11-15 will belisted as Honorable Mention. Each runner will be awarded a medallion following the meet.

At the conclusion of the meet, the following schedule should be followed:

Recognition of senior student-athletes who have participate in four individual crosscountry conference championship competitions. The host institution shall list the athletesby school before the beginning of the individual and team awards.

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Team and individual orders of finish determined.

Announcement of final team order of finish. Recognition of all teams, beginningwith the last-place team and working up to the conference champion. The teamtrophy is then presented.

Announcement of the top-15 individual finishers, beginning with the 15th placefinisher and working up to the individual champion.

Announcement of the Newcomer of the Year Award.

It is mandatory that the host institution set up an appropriate area to conduct theawards presentation and post the final scores and results.

The commissioner will present the awards. If the commissioner is unable to bepresent for the awards presentation, the assistant commissioner, host institution’spresident, primary athletics administrator or head cross country coach shouldmake the presentation.

SAA Coach of the Year awards for men and women will be selected by the head coaches. Headwomen’s coaches will vote for the women’s SAA Coach of the Year award, and head men’scoaches will vote for the men’s coach of the year award. Coaches are allowed to vote forthemselves. Voting and announcement of award recipients will take place during the weekimmediately after the SAA Conference Championship meet, and will be coordinated by theconference office.

12. A male and female SAA Runner of the Week will be selected each week during the regularseason. Coaches will submit their nominations via e-mail to the SAA office by 1:00 p.m. (EST)each Tuesday. All weekly nominees will be emailed back to the coaches for a vote to select thewinners. Coaches are allowed to vote for their own runners. The SAA office will release thewinners by 5:00 p.m. on Tuesday on the SAA website and by email to the institution.

13. An All-SAA Sportsmanship Team will be selected after the SAA Championship Meet. Eachmen and women’s team will select one member from their team who displays goodsportsmanship throughout the season to be a member of the All-SAA Sportsmanship Team.

14. It is strongly recommended that the host school of the SAA Cross Country Championshiphave a meal (or some other appropriate event) after the championship race andbefore/during/after the awards ceremony. The host should take into consideration that visitingteams need to travel home and may not have time for an event that lasts a long time.

Future Championship HostSewanee - 2020BSC - 2021

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Centre - 2022Hendrix - 2023Millsaps - 2024OU - 2025Rhodes - 2026Sewanee - 2027Berry - 2028

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Field Hockey

Section 1- Regular Season and Postseason

A. Regular Season SchedulingFor the 2019 season, each team shall play a single round-robin schedule consisting of 4conference games - home/away are determined by the SAA Matrix (See Appendix A).

B. Scheduling Guidelines1. No conference games will be scheduled the first weekend of the season.

2. Once scheduling is complete, submit your full schedule to the SAA Office (Clayton Felts,cfelts@saa.oglethorpe.edu) to ensure their files are correct and the SAA website is up todate.

3. Game times will be set in agreement between the competing teams. Suggested startingtimes for Saturday-Sunday series are:

a. Saturday – 11:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.b. Sunday – 11:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.

Consideration should be given to special pregame and halftime activities (Homecoming,Parent’s Weekend, Senior Day, etc). Those activities should begin early enough so itdoes not affect the starting times of games.

4. Game times may be adjusted to accommodate travel by the visiting teams or otherreasons pertaining to missed class time and campus activities for the home teams. Bothhead coaches and school staff must be in agreement with the proposed change.

5. Teams should set pre-game clocks to end approximately 10 minutes prior to thescheduled match time to allow for the National Anthem (when applicable) and startinglineups. This protocol will allow for matches to start on time.

6. Game dates/sites may be adjusted for travel and financial reasons if both parties andthe conference office agree. It may be feasible for conference matches to be played at aneutral site if it is agreeable with both teams and conference office.

7. In the event of inclement weather that adversely affects suitability of field conditions, thefollowing people will be involved in determining whether the field is safe for competition:athletics director or senior woman administrator from the host school (required), facilities

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manager (recommended), umpire/(recommended), and/or athletics trainer(recommended)

C. Postseason1. Starting in the 2019 season, the coaches have approved the SAA conference

tournament will be played at a predetermined site. Host institutions are as follows:

2022: Centre2023: Rhodes

2. In the event that seeding and/or the conference championship cannot be played tocompletion, a tie-break system will be used to determine the champion

a. All ties will be broken by first measuring head-to-head conference play betweenthe tied teams.

b. In the event teams’ regular season conference standing are equal, thenhead-to-head in-conference goal differential will be used. In the case of a threeway tie, after one team is selected, the remaining two teams shall ALWAYS revertback to head to head.

c. Ties will be broken by conference goals allowed.d. Ties will be broken by head to head okay between (out of region) in division

common opponents.e. Ties will be broken by head to head play between out of region common

opponentsf. Ties will be broken by goal differential between in-division common opponents.g. In the event of teams having equal records for regular season play, seeding of

the championship will be awarded using the same tie-break system. If a tieremains, a coin flip by the commissioner will determine the seeding.

3. See Appendix B for Field Hockey Tournament Policies.

Section 2- Officials

A. AssignorThe assignor for the 2019 season is Chip Rogers.Email: chip.rogers@miamioh.eduCell: 434-825-2082

B. Two officials must be present at ALL conference games and will be provided by the hostinstitution.

C. The following compensation policy for officials/umpires will be adopted across the boardfor all SAA member institutions sponsoring field hockey:

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a. All umpires are required to possess a current USFHA rating of Level II or III andthat they attend at least one USFHA sponsored umpires’ interpretation meetingannually. Coordination with USFHA for a regional umpires clinic should takeplace each calendar year.

b. All umpires are compensated $150 per match.c. Officials that stay overnight for two or more games will be given a $25 per diem

for meals each dayd. Host institutions will compensate umpires’ travel expenses according to the

following:i. $0.50 per mile driven OR flight and rental car, whichever option is

cheaper.ii. Umpires who travel together will only be compensated for mileage one

time. Only the driver will receive the mileage reimbursement.e. Umpires who need hotel accommodation will receive a complimentary hotel room

at a local hotel of good reputation.f. For SAA Championships, at least four umpires will be reserved with one acting

as Umpire Manager for the event. The Umpire Manager must be a USFHA LevelIII rated umpire who is up-to-date on his/her rating and interpretations.

Section 3- Scouting

Verbal/written scouts on conference opponents is not permitted to anyone in or out ofconference. Otherwise, scouting is permissible pending no additional cost to the institution.During the postseason, scouting of tournament practices is prohibited.

Section 4- Gameday Operations

A. Film ExchangeThe SAA coaches have agreed to use Team Xstream for film exchange. We are all in openexchange. The expectation is that all home games (as well as neutral you are hosting) areuploaded within 24 hours of game time. Should neutral games not be filmed (due to lack ofstaffing), communication to the visiting team is expected in a timely (one week) fashion.

B. EjectionsA report on any ejections from athletics events involving conference teams must be reported tothe conference office within 48 hours after the contest by the host institution. If the contest is anon-conference event, the member institution is responsible for notifying the conference office ofany ejections within 48 hours. An ejection could result in disciplinary action by the individual’sinstitution and/or the commissioner. The Athletics Director's Advisory Council will serve to assistthe commissioner on any such rulings involving potential suspensions of student athletes and/orcoaches as it relates to potential violations of the SAA Code of Ethics.

C. Balls and Cones

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Per NFHCA rules, all home teams are to provide a minimum of 50 balls and a set of cones tothe visiting team.

Section 5- Awards

A. Regular Season Awards1. Player of the Week

Every week along with conference statistics, there will be an offensive and defensivePlayer-of-the-Week selected. Nominations for Players-of-the-Week should be submitted tothe conference office by 1pm EST each Monday and the conference office will namePlayers-of-the-Week later in the afternoon each Monday.

2. Regular Season ChampionThe conference will provide a championship trophy to the regular season conference champion.

B. Postseason Awards1. Conference Champion

The conference will provide a championship trophy to the conference tournament champion.

The conference office will administer the selection process for the All-Conference Teams,defensive and offensive Players-of-the-Year, Newcomer-of-the Year and Coach-of-the-Year.

2. All-ConferenceEach coach is allowed to nominate up to six (6) of his/her own players to be placed on the finalballot for All-SAA. Players will appear on the ballot with individual overall statistics andconference statistics listed on the ballot. Players will also be selected without consideration toposition, except one goalkeeper per team. The online nomination platform opens at 6pm ESTon the final Sunday of regular season play and remains open until 8am EST on Tuesday.Coaches voting will be conducted on-line from Tuesday at 9am EST until Wednesday at 6:30pm EST the week prior to the conference tournament. Unless otherwise determined by the FieldHockey sports council, the All-Conference teams will be announced by the following Tuesday.

Coaches will vote by ranking 11 players (10 field players and a goalkeeper) to comprise theAll-Conference team. A First Team of 10 field players and one goalkeeper will be named as wellas a Second Team of 10 field players and one goalkeeper. Those players not named to one ofthe All-Conference teams but who received votes in the balloting for All-Conference shall berecognized as honorable mention. If there are not enough players voted for two full teams, wewill fill the first-team and then the coaches will re-vote again for the second-team. All votes bythe coaches will be made public to all FH coaches by email from the conference office.

Should coaches fail to vote, the SAA Office will send a second notification to the head coachand another individual at the institution, such as Sports Information Director, Athletic Director orSenior Women’s Administrator, and at least one of the individuals will be required to send votes

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for their institution. This will ensure that the SAA field hockey student-athletes receive properrepresentation.

3. Players of the Yeara. Defensive and Offensive POY: will be selected through the voting

process. You cannot vote for your own players. Players nominated asDefensive and/or Offensive Player-of-the-Year should be ranked as thetop selection by the nominating school within their six nominees for SAAAll-Conference.

b. Newcomer: will be selected on a separate ballot. Coaches can nominateone player from their squad to the Newcomer of the Year ballot.Newcomer-of-the-Year will be a player in her first year at a conferenceschool (transfer, freshman, or someone playing in her first year as amember of the team).

4. Coach of the YearThe SAA office will request Coach of the Year votes via email. Coaches may not vote forthemselves to select coach-of-the-year

5. All Sportsmanship TeamAn All-SAA Sportsmanship team will be selected at the following the SAA championshiptournament. Each team will elect one member from their team who displays goodsportsmanship throughout the season to be a member of the All-SAA Sportsmanship team.These individuals will be selected by the team and head coach, with the head coach sendingthe selection to the conference office at the end of the season. Only one student athlete fromeach team may be selected. The award will be publicized with other conference awardsfollowing the conclusion of the season.

6. SAA All-Tournament TeamThe All Tournament team is selected by the host institution SID and coaches following the SAAtournament. The breakdown of awards is as follows:

Conference Champion: Four selections including one MVPConference Runner-Up: Three selections3/4th Place Teams: Two selections5th place Team: One selection

Appendix ASAA Scheduling Matrix

2020:

Centre Concordia Rhodes Sewanee Transy

H A H A H A H A H A H A

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CUW RHO CEN CEN CUW RHO CEN CEN

SEW RHO SEW SEW CUW CUW RHO

TRA TRA TRA TRA SEW

SAA Tournament: @ SEWANEE

Appendix B

SAA Field Hockey Tournament Policies

Format: In 2019, the conference tournament will be a one weekend format. The tournament willbe structured as follows:

Friday Saturday SundayQuarterfinal 1: 4 v 5 1:00pm Semifinal: 2 v 3 11:00am Championship 1:00pm

Semifinal: 1 vs. winner 4/5 2:00pm

*The 1, 2, and 3 seeds will receive a bye and will automatically play in the semi-final games onSaturday.

Site: See Section 1, part C.

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Requirements to host: The host institution must have an artificial surface and lights. If lightsare not available, the host institution 1) forfeits their right to host 2) must rent lights to allow forgame times to be reasonable in terms of missed class time. Multiple home events hosted by thehost institution should also be considered.

Practices: Each team is allowed one 1 hour slot on the host institution’s turf on the day prior(Thursday) to the start of competition. Practice times will be determined by the host institutionwith consideration given to teams’ arrival, travel distance, game time, and availability of properstaffing by the host.

Officials: See Section 2 part C, line e.

Inclement Weather: If inclement weather is pending for tournament weekend, members of thetournament committee (specifically the host institution admin and/or commissioner) willcommunicate possible changes for the weekend. If a tournament game is suspended due toweather, all coaches will be notified of the change via a group text message/email. Once agame commences and new start times have been tentatively set, those will be communicatedvia text/email to all coaches.

1. In the event that seeding and/or the conference championship cannot be played tocompletion, a tie-break system will be used to determine the champion

a. All ties will be broken by first measuring head-to-head conference playbetween the tied teams.b. In the event teams’ regular season conference standing are equal, thenhead-to-head in-conference goal differential will be used. In the case of a threeway tie, after one team is selected, the remaining two teams shall ALWAYS revertback to head to head.c.Ties will be broken by in conference goals allowed.d. Ties will be broken by head to head okay between (out of region) in divisioncommon opponents.e. Ties will broken by head to head play between out of region commonopponentsf. Ties will be broken by goal differential between in-division common opponents.g. In the event of teams having equal records for regular season play, seeding ofthe championship will be awarded using the same tie-break system. If a tieremains, a coin flip by the commissioner will determine the seeding.

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Football

Normal Fall Season Tiebreaker and Standings

I. Regular-Season Contest Regulations

1. The conference champion in football shall be determined by a single round robin. The teamwith the best winning percentage against conference teams will be declared the conferencechampion. The conference champion receives an automatic bid to the NCAA championship.

2. In the case of two or more teams tying for the conference championship, each team will bedeclared a co-champion and receive a trophy. To determine the representative to NCAApostseason competition and the recipient of the conference’s automatic bid, the following criteriawill be used as a tie-breaker:

A. Two teams – head-to-head result from conference game played.

B. Three teams – Using the following point system: (Normal Fall tiebreaker)● Each team will be awarded two points for each victory against other conference

co-champions.● Each team is awarded one point for each victory over other conference teams not

sharing the championship.● In the event that both parts of Section B are applied and two teams are still tied,

the formula will revert back to Section A.

C. If Sections A and B cannot break the tie and there are still three teams tied, then theteam or teams with the fewest losses will be declared as the recipient of the conference’sautomatic bid to the NCAAs. If two teams have the equal number of losses, Section A isapplied.

D. If there are still three teams tied with the same number of losses, then the percentageof each team’s opponents’ total overall record will be used.

E. The team whose opponents have the higher win/loss percentage will receive theconference’s automatic bid to the NCAAs.

F. If two teams remain throughout any of these tie-breaking procedures. Section A isapplied.

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3. The official footballs of the conference are the Wilson F1001 NCAA, F1003 NCAA, or theF1005 NCAA and must be used in all conference games.

4. Regular game clocks and functional scoreboards with each team’s score, down, yardage to go,yard line and quarter are required. It is also the responsibility of the host school to have adequatefirst-down markers and chains, down-marker and pylons marking the goal line and back andcorners of the end zone. The conference provides each school with chain-gang crew vests thatare to be worn by the crew during all home games. Schools are required to have 25-secondplay-clocks in both end zones.

5. The host school is responsible for providing a minimum of two ball boys or girls with oneperson on each sideline to ensure that each team is given their own game ball in adequate time.Host schools should make sure enough towels, bags, etc., are available when inclement weatheris a factor to keep game balls dry and playable. Host schools are required to provide a kickingnet for the visiting team in all conferencegames.

6. Each school is responsible for its own communications systems at any game. The host schooldoes not supply communications equipment for the visiting team. If the communications systemfor one school is not functional, the other school does not have to shut down its system. Thehome team will provide no back-up system for the visiting team.

7. The host school will provide locker room facilities. Adequate arrangements should be madefor the privacy of the visiting team for meetings, showers, dressing, etc. The visiting team isresponsible for its own shower towels.

8. The visiting team will also be provided adequate space in the press box orspotting area for at least two people or equal to the host school’s number.Consideration should be given to the privacy of this area and separate from themain press box that includes statisticians, radio personnel, etc.

9. The host school will make every effort to accommodate requests by the visiting team foradequate practice time on the actual game field on the day prior to the game.

10. The visiting team will be allotted no more than 60 minutes of actual on-field practice time.Requests for practice time by the visiting team must be made at least five days prior to the actualday of the game. Adverse weather conditions on the day prior to the game may prohibit eitherteam from practicing on the game field.

11. Pre-game warm-up areas are defined by the chart in this manual.

12. All conference games will be governed by NCAA rules.

13. Any new uniforms would require approval from the SAA office and SAA Coordinator ofOfficials prior to purchase to insure they meet NCAA regulation.

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II. Scheduling

1. Prior to the beginning of the season, each head coach should send an information sheetcontaining details pertaining to the opponents’ visit to their facility. This sheet should containinformation about hotel rates, local maps, restaurants, ground transportation, bus/van parking,dressing and shower facilities, pregame warm-up areas, any pregame activities (time of playingof National Anthem, Homecoming or Parents’ Day ceremonies, etc.), sports informationservices, etc.

2. In the case of inclement weather or travel problems due to abnormal rain, cold or darkness,administrators of the competing schools (presidents, athletics directors and head coaches) willdecide jointly as to when the game will be played. It is preferred that the game take place on thesame day or the following day. The host school should work with hotels, restaurants and evenautomotive mechanics to ensure that the visiting team is accommodated in case of such delays orproblems.

3. Conference schools are responsible for scheduling games against conference opponents, basedon the rotation supplied by the commissioner’s office. The commissioner will assist memberschools on any conflicts in this scheduling process. The Football Council will advise thecommissioner regarding the schedule.

III. Officials

1. There will be a minimum of seven officials on the field plus one official clockoperator for all conference games.

2. The SAA coordinator of officials must assign the field officials and they must be recognizedintercollegiate officials.

3. Each institution will be responsible to send a copy of their final schedule to both theCommissioner and the Coordinator by June 1.

4. The assigner fee is a one time fee for $1,000 per school per year. Total for officials for eachgame would be $1,505.00 per game. Seven officials times $215 per game equals $1,505.00.

IV. Ejections

A report on any ejections from athletics events involving conference teamsmust be reported to the conference office within 48 hours after the contest by thehost institution. If the contest is a non-conference event, the member institution isresponsible for notifying the conference office of any ejections within 48 hours. Anejection could result in disciplinary action by the individual’s institution and/or the

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commissioner. The Athletics Directors Advisory Council will serve to assist thecommissioner on any such rulings involving potential suspensions of student athletesand/or coaches as it relates to potential violations of the SAA Code ofEthics.

V. Travel Squad Size

Travel squad size is limited to the NCAA maximum plus 10 percent rounded up for regularseason and conference championship games. Games that do not require an overnight stay or thatare played during institutional breaks are waived from this limitation.

VI. Scouting

1. There will be a videotape exchange through Game Tape Exchange Hudl or in lieu ofscouting. Each film exchange shall include ODK, Down, Distance, Yardline, Gain/Loss.

2. There will be no on-site scouting of conference teams by representatives ofconference member schools.

3. After Week 4 of the regular season, all end zone and wide copies will be uploadedno later than midnight on Saturday following each game. If there are SAA gamesbefore Week 4, each head coach will work out the film exchange so that the filmstraded are equal. Coaches will trade a wide and end zone copy separately. There willnot be an interweave trade. Film exchange with an unequal amount of games: There will be anequal amount of games exchanged and the corresponding weeks shall be used. Ex: Team Aplays weeks 1&2 Team B plays week 1 and has a bye week 2. They play each other week 3-Only Week #1 will be exchanged.

4. If a team is traveling to a non-conference opponent that Saturday, the conferencemember must download both end zone and wide copies of their game no later thanNoon the day after returning from the trip.

5. No exchanges will occur until both teams have downloaded both end zone andwide copies.

6. Teams are responsible for downloading both end zone and wide copies forexchange by Thursday (10 days) prior to the next game.

7. A play-by-play, depth chart, and complete roster must be sent via e-mail or fax toarrive no later than Noon on Thursday (10 days) prior to the next game.

8. The commissioner will handle all exchange problems.

9. No videos of conference teams will be sent to non-conference opponents who

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play conference teams.

10. Every effort shall be made to produce quality videos. All teams must show theentire scoreboard after each change of possession. It is the responsibility of theteam creating the video to contact the team receiving the video to explain anydiscrepancy in missing plays or other complicated situations.

11. Conference members may not provide information on conference teams toconference or non-conference members.

VII. Coaches Meeting

All coaches will meet annually at their annual national coaches convention in January or by SAAconference call to make recommendations to the Athletics Directors Council for changes inthese policies.

VIII. Awards

1. The conference office will provide a championship trophy to the winning team ofthe single round-robin format.

2.To select the All-Conference Teams, the following steps will be taken:

A. The coaches or SID representatives from each school will make nominations online bynoon on the Tuesday following the final game of the regular season. Nominations willopen at 8:00 a.m. following the last regular season game. They will remain open untilTuesday at 11:59 p.m.

B. To achieve an 12-man First Team Offense and 12-man First Team Defense per the actualpositions on the field, players will be nominated per position and the coaches voting willdetermine the top players at each position to set the All-Conference Teams. Coaches areadvised to rank their players within position during the nomination process to assist theother coaches in voting. The offensive categories within which to nominate players areQB, RB, WR, TE/H-Back, OL and K. The defensive players within which to makenominations are DL, LB, DS and P. After voting by ranking players within position, theFirst Team Offense will be the top QB vote-getter, the top-2 RB vote-getters, the top-3WR vote-getters and the top 6 OL vote getters (or top 5 OL plus a TE/H-Back, or 5 OLplus a third receiver, which the coaches may decide). The top vote-getting kicker will beplaced on the First Team. The Second Team Offense will be made up of the samenumbers by position of the next highest vote-getters in each category. After voting byranking players within position, the First Team Defense will be the top-4 DL vote-getters,top-4 LB vote getters top-2 Safeties and top-2 Corners vote-getters. The top vote-gettingpunter will be placed on the First Team Defense. The Second Team Defense will be madeup of the same numbers by position of the next highest vote-getters in each category.

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Players not making either the First or Second Team for Defense or Offense but whoreceived at least two points in the voting process will be named Honorable Mention.

C. A separate ballot for each of the All-SAA major wards will be constructed of thefollowing categories: Offensive Player of the Year; Defensive Player of the Year; SpecialTeams Player of the Year; Newcomer of the Year (freshman or firstyear transfer) and Coach of the Year. Each coach may nominate one player from theirsquad for each of these ballots. The Coach of the Year vote will be conducted via emailbetween the coaches and the conference office. Coaches may not vote for themselves.

D. Coaches will conduct their voting by online ballot and there will not be a conferencecall to conduct this voting. A coach may not vote for a player from his own school orhimself. If there is a tie for the last spot at a certain position, then those players who tiefor the final spot will both be named All-Conference. The voting timetable is as follows;coaches may vote between Wednesday at 9:00 a.m. (EST) - Friday at 3:00 p.m. (EST).All-SAA Teams will be announced publicly on the following Monday at 9:00 a.m. (EST).

E. The All-Conference selections will be announced and released by the conferenceoffice within one week of voting being completed. A First Team, Second Team andHonorable Mention will be selected.

F. There will be neither a selection of a preseason All-Conference team nor a predictedorder of finish.

G. During the regular season, the conference office will select an offensive, defensive,and special teams Player of the Week each Monday. Nominations are due to theconference office by Monday at 1:00 p.m. (EST) and the results will be publicized on theconference website.

H. An All-SAA Sportsmanship team will be selected at the end of the SAA regularseason. Each team will elect one member from their team who displays goodsportsmanship throughout the season to be a member of the All-SAA Sportsmanshipteam. These individuals will be selected by the team and head coach, with the head coachsending the selection to the conference office at the end of the season. Only onestudent-athlete from each team may be selected. All institutions will have onerepresentative, with final team choice selected by the head coach. The award will bepublicized with other conference awards at the end of the season.

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SAA Pregame Warm-Up Area Chart

IX. Southern Athletic Association Replay Policy and PurposeThe SAA has established a fundamental process for the video review of a targeting foul that hasbeen called and enforced in the first-half of football games played between two SouthernAthletic Association institutions. It can also be used for non-conference games if the homeschool is a Southern Athletic Institution and both schools have mutual agreement. If either teamobjects to exercising this option, it will not be used. The 2014 rule change for targeting fouls ingames without Instant Replay provides the option for the referee to review video of first-halftargeting fouls at halftime. The decision regarding whether to exercise this option must be madeat least one hour before the coin toss.

Purpose: Instant replay is a process whereby video review is used to confirm, reverse or let standcertain on-field decisions made by game officials.

Philosophy: The instant replay process operates under the fundamental assumption that the rulingon the field is correct. The referee may reverse a ruling if and only if the video evidence

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convinces him beyond all doubt that the ruling is incorrect. Without such indisputable videoevidence, the referee must allow the ruling to stand.The protocol for the review process is as follows:1. Assuming that the review option will be exercised, as a part of his pregame duties the Refereewill meet with a representative of game management to establish the following:

The source of the video to be used for review, as determined by this hierarchy of availability:

1. Television feed2. Internet streaming (when there is no TV)3. Coach’s video (when there is neither TV nor Internet streaming)4. Other source (when none of the above is available)

● Only one source of video need be used, however the goal is to get the call correct. If thevisiting team has clear footage to be reviewed, the Head Referee may make a decisionusing both sources.

● Only the referee and calling official will review the video of the call on the field beingdisplayed on a tablet no smaller than 9.7” diagonal tablet device. If a laptop or desktopcomputer / monitor is to be used, the minimum screen size must be larger than 13”. Nocell phones may be used as a part of the review; nor should the screen of a video camerabe used for such review.

● The location of, and security arrangements for the secure area that will be made availableat halftime for the review must be clearly marked and articulated to the Head Referee aspart of the game prep process.

● There must be an Identification of the individual who will provide technical assistance tothe officiating crew for the review. It is recommended that this person not be a coach ofeither team, if a coach must be the technical support person, they may not comment,suggest, or in any way interfere with the halftime review process.

● The school technician will bring the video to review to the secured area for the officialsand will have the video ready to review no later than 10 minutes remaining in the half.The video must be able to forward, reverse, advance in slow motion and pause during thereview process.

5. The Referee and calling official will conduct the review under the fundamental assumption ofInstant Replay: the ruling on the field is correct and may be reversed only on the basis ofindisputable video evidence.

6. The decision of the Referee is final and may not be appealed.

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7. Upon arriving at a decision, the Referee will inform each Head Coach as soon as possible ofthe outcome of the review—i.e., whether the player in question will be allowed to return to thegame for the second half.8. Prior to the second-half kickoff the Referee will announce to the stadium the outcome of thereview.

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Men and Women’s Soccer

I. Conference Championship and Regular-Season Contest Regulations

1. The conference champions will be decided by a postseason tournament. Seeding for thepostseason tournament will be decided by the order of finish determined in a single round-robinregular season. A point system will be used to determine the conference champion. Three pointswill be awarded for a win and one point for a tie. The conference tournament will be played overthe course of two weekends with the higher seeded squad hosting the quarterfinals (1 vs. 8, 2 vs.7, 3 vs. 6, 4 vs. 5) in the first weekend. The highest remaining seed will host the semifinals(Friday) and championship match (Sunday) on the second weekend. The winner of theconference tournament receives an automatic bid to the NCAA championship.

2. In case two or more teams tie for the regular season championship, a tie-breaker system willbe used to determine the seeding of the tournament, but each will share the points for theaverage of the two or more spots in the standings.

3. All ties will be broken in the order in which they occur, from top to bottom in the standings.When comparing tied teams against positions lower in the standings which are also tied, thoselower tied teams shall be considered as a single position for purposes of comparison. (Example:Team A and Team B, who tied for first place, would compare against Team X and Team Y, whotied for third place as follows: Team A would compare its combined record against bothTeam X and Y vs. Team B’s combined record against both X and Y.

Two-Team Tie:

A. Head-to-head-competition.

B. Points (3-win, 1-tie, 0-loss) earned against succeeding teams inthe standings.

C. Points (3-win, 1-tie, 0-loss) earned in away games (only if teamsplay the same number of away games).

D. Fewest goals against in conference play.

E. Most goals scored in conference play (maximum three goals/game).

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F. If the two teams are still tied, the team that was the visiting teamreceives the higher seed.

Multiple (Three or more teams) Tie:

a. Compare the combined record of each of the tied teams againstthe other teams involved in the tie until an advantage is gained.(Example: Team A’s combined record against both Teams B andC, as compared to Team C’s combined record against Team A and TeamB).

b. If the multiple tie still exists, compare each of the tied teams’records against succeeding teams in the standings until the tie isreduced to a two-team tie, at which time revert to the two-team processor until the tie is broken.

c. If multiple ties still exist, goals allowed versus teams involved in thetie with the team allowing the fewest goals being awarded the highestseed.

d. If multiple ties still exist, goal differential among tied teams will beused to declare a top seed.

e. Goals allowed versus all SAA teams.

f. Goal differential versus all SAA teams.

(Note: Once ties are broken and only two teams remain tied, SAA policy mandates that we revertback to head-to-head as the tie-breaker procedure.)

4. All uniforms, socks and equipment must be in compliance with NCAA rules and regulations.The home team will wear the white or light-colored home uniform and socks on Friday and thedark/away uniforms and socks on Sunday when teams are involved in two-game weekend series.The visiting team should bring both sets of uniforms and socks for each two-game road trip.Each visiting team should check with the home team prior to every game to ensure a mix-updoesnot occur.

5. Schools must follow NCAA guidelines for properly outlining fields of play. In order to host anSAA Tournament contest, a minimum field size of 65 yards by 115 yards; and a maximum of 75yards by 120 yards must be used by the host institution.

6. For conference contests, it is recommended that the visiting coach be given a printed copy ofthe game statistics before departing from the opposing campus.

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7. Per NCAA guidelines, artificial noise-makers are not allowed at SAA Tournament contests.

8. Sunday conference game kick offs should be uniform with the first match at noon local timeand the second match at 2:30 p.m. or as soon thereafter (with the 20-minutes on field warm uptime still in effect). Sewanee stated that there would be an exception only in the case of FieldHockey having a game on the same day since they share the field. Berry has indicated that theyare restricted to a 1:00 p.m. start and will comply with noon, 2:30 p.m. if approved by theiradministration.

II. Scheduling

1. The commissioner will schedule all games between conference teams in direct consultationwith the Chair of the Soccer Council.

2. No conference games will be scheduled the first three weekends of the season, if possible.

3. The first draft of the conference schedule will be determined by the Commissioner andreturned to the coaches by August 1, one-year in advance. Remaining games will be scheduledby the schools and submitted to the commissioner by February 1.

4. The final copy of the upcoming conference schedule will be presented by April 1. Anychanges after this meeting are subject to agreement by the respective coaches and commissioner.

5. Game times will be set in agreement between the competing teams. Sunday’s matches will beplayed at 1:00 p.m. and 3:00 p.m. and follow the conference guidelines for that given year.Recommended Friday starting times are 2:00 p.m. and 4:00 p.m., but competing teams shouldschedule those games as necessary to accommodate class schedules and/or the amount ofdaylight available. Game times may be adjusted to accommodate travel by the visiting teams orother reasons pertaining to campus activities, but only through consultation with the conferenceoffice. A minimum of 20 minutes of warm-up on the game field will be allowed after theconclusion of the first game and before the start of the second game as part of a SAAdoubleheader. Consideration should be given to special pregame and halftime activities(Homecoming, Parent’s Weekend, Senior Day, etc.). Those activities should begin early enoughso it does not affect the starting times of games.

6. If an institution travels to a game site and weather (or other factors out of human controls)occurs and prevents the completion of a series, the visiting team may not travel back to theoriginal site to make up games. Once a team arrives on site and then departs, the games may notbe played. Modifications and or changes made to game dates and/or times that both parties agreeto, and with the approval of the conference office may occur prior to departure, or once on thegame site. Both teams and both ADs must agree.

If a game is played and halted, that game may be continued the next day only if the continuationoccurs during the time that the visiting team had already planned to be there. Otherwise, the

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game will either be a shortened game and count in the standings if it meets the sport rules, or willbe a no contest. All reasonable efforts will be made to play all games, but the SAA supports apolicy to lessen the added cost and potential of classes missed that make ups create in aconference as geographically challenged as ours.

III. Officials

1. The three-team official system with NISOA officials will be provided by the host institutionfor all conference competition.

2. Four ball-chasers and four game balls must be provided by the host institution for allconference competition and these individuals shall be appropriately positioned around the field.ball-chasers shall wear a vest or jersey to distinguish them from the players, coaches and officialsand must at least 10-years-old.

3. The host institution shall provide nine soccer balls, including one being a game ball forpregame warm-up to the visiting teams in conference matches. This shall be done at least 45minutes prior to kickoff. The visiting team must return the practice balls bagged to the hometeam just prior to kickoff.

IV. Ejections

A report on any ejections from athletics events involving conference teams must be reported tothe conference office within 48 hours after the contest by the host institution. If the contest is anon-conference event, the member institution is responsible for notifying the conference office ofany ejections within 48 hours. An ejection could result in disciplinary action by the individual’sinstitution and/or the commissioner. The Athletics Directors Advisory Council will serve toassist the commissioner on any such rulings involving potential suspensions of student athletesand/or coaches as it relates to potential violations of the SAA Code of Ethics.

V. Travel Squad Size

Travel squad size is limited to the NCAA maximum plus 10 percent rounded up for regularseason and conference championship games. Games that do not require an overnight stay or thatare played during institutional breaks are waived from this limitation.

VI. Scouting

1. Coaches are permitted to scout and provide information within the conference.

2. Conference members may not provide information on conference teams to non-conferencemembers.

VII. Match Video Sharing

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1. The host school must provide match film to the visiting conference team within 36 hours ofthe match.

VIII. Coaches Meeting

1. All coaches will meet annually at the United Soccer Coaches national convention, or byconference call, to make recommendations to the Athletics Directors Council for changes inthese operating manual policies. Coaches unable to attend will participate in the meeting viaconference call and the chair of the Soccer Council is responsible for making thesearrangements. Coaches are urged to join the United Soccer Coaches and use the college soccerwebsite (https://unitedsoccercoaches.org/).

IX. Awards

1. The conference office will provide a championship trophy to each conference champion and tothe regular season champions.

2. The conference office will administer the selection process for the All-Conference Teams, thePlayers of the Year (Offensive and Defensive), Newcomer of the Year and the Coach of the Year.

3. The online nomination process for All-SAA opens on Monday following the final regularseason contests and will remain open until Wednesday at 6:00 p.m. (EST). Coaches voting willbe conducted online prior to the conference tournament starting. Players will appear on the ballotgrouped with players of similar position (GK, F, MF, D) with individual overall statistics andconference statistics listed on the ballot.

Coaches will have until the following Wednesday at 6:00 p.m. (EST) after the quarterfinal roundof the SAA Tournament to vote. The Monday following the completion of the SAA Tournamentat noon, the league office will announce the All-SAA Teams.

4. Coaches may not vote for their own players (or themselves for Coach of the Year) on the finalballot.

5. Coaches will rank players on each of the online positional ballots to determine the top playersat each position. The All-SAA First Team will consist of one goalkeeper, three defenders, threemidfielders, three forwards and one at-large honoree - can be any position) to the First Team, 11players (one goalkeeper, three defenders, three midfielders, three forwards and one at-largehonoree - can be any position) to the Second Team. The voting process will determine the top 10players for each and the at-large honoree (11th player) to each the First and Second Team will bethe player receiving the most points in the vote not making the First or Second Team. Playersreceiving at least two points will be named to the Honorable Mention All-Conference Team

6. A separate ballot will determine the Defensive and Offensive Players of the Year, andNewcomer of the Year. Each coach may nominate one player from their team for OffensivePOTY, Defensive POTY and Newcomer of the Year. The Newcomer of the Year will be a player

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in his or her first year of collegiate soccer. Coaches will email their vote for Coach of the Year tothe conference office.

A. Coaches must fill out ballots completely at every position. No exceptions.Failure to do so could result in loss of all-conference awards.

7. Every week along with conference statistics, there will be a Defensive and Offensive Player ofthe Week selected. Nominations for Player-of-the-Week should be submitted to the conferenceoffice by 1:00 p.m. (EST) each Monday during the season. The conference office will namePlayers-of-the-Week each for men and women.

8. An All-SAA Sportsmanship team will be selected after the end of the SAA season. Each menand each women’s team will elect one member from their team who displays good sportsmanshipthroughout the season to be a member of the All-SAA Sportsmanship team. These individualswill be selected by the team and head coach, with the head coach sending the selection to theconference office at the end of the season. Only one student-athlete from each team may beselected. All institutions will have one representative, with final team choice selected by the headcoach.

10. Coaches are required to vote for All-Region and All-America awards (Note: Coaches mustbe a member of United Soccer Coaches to vote for these awards.) Per current United SoccerCoaches guidelines, coaches are prohibited from soliciting votes for any student athlete forAll-Region and/or All-America.

11. An All-Tournament team will be selected during the postseason conference championshiptournament and coordinated by the SIDs. The team will be comprised of six players in additionto a most valuable player and will be selected in the following manner:

Each coach from the third and fourth-place teams will nominate one player each forinclusion on the All-Tournament team. The first and second place team will nominate twoplayers each for the All-Tournament team. The first-place team will also nominate thetournament MVP.. The coaches should communicate with the host institution’s SID tomake sure the All-Tournament Team selections are sent to the conference office.

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Volleyball

I. Conference Championship and Regular-Season Format

1. The conference champion in volleyball receives an automatic bid to the Division IIIchampionship and is determined by a postseason conference tournament. Match format will beconducted under NCAA, NAGWS and USVBA rules and consist of a three-out-of-five rallyscoring format to 25 points in Games 1 through 4 and rally scoring to 15 points in the decidingGame 5.

2. The SAA will play a double round robin regular season schedule. Seeding for the tournamentand Commissioner’s Cup points will be awarded from the results of the regular season schedule.

The conference tournament format will be a single elimination bracket for Friday, Saturday,and Sunday. Quarterfinals are played on Friday, semifinals on Saturday, and thechampionship match on Sunday.

The host institution shall also provide necessary court help, a three ball-shagger system (twoball-shaggers in addition to two linespersons) and music (if available) for SAA contests.

It is encouraged for the host school to live webcast all tournament matches. It is required thatthe championship match be webcasted live.

3. The Molten IV58L-N Super Touch NCAA volleyball is the official volleyball of theconference and will be used for all conference matches. A minimum of 15 practice balls must beprovided for each match.

4. All members of a team must wear identical school uniforms including warm-up uniforms.

5. The following warm-up format will be used for all conference matches:

Game Clock:60 Court available – shared warm-up:30 Coin toss:19 Visiting team court:15 Home team court:11 Visiting team court:06 Home team court:01 Team huddle / announcements:00 National Anthem / player introsBegin match

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Game court availability for regular season matches should be uniform across the SAA. Gamecourts must be made available at least two hours prior to match start time to accommodatethe home team’s serve and pass from two hours to one and one half hours before the matchand the visiting teams serve and pass from one and one-half hour before the match until onehour before the match. Both teams should have sole access to the court during these periods.

II. Regular-Season Scheduling

1. Each team will play a double round-robin format using a travel partner format. Travel partnersare as follows:

BSC/MillsapsSewanee/CentreRhodes/HendrixOglethorpe/Berry

2. Final regular season standings will be used to seed for the conference championshiptournament. The SAA Tournament will be held at the highest seed.

3. Hosts for conference tournaments must have a minimum of two regulation courts.

III. Regular-Season Tie-Breaker

1. Match record - total competition vs. conference opponents2. Match results - head-to-head competition against tied teams3. Set record - head-to-head competition against tied teams (sets won/sets played)4. Set record - total competition vs. conference opponents (total sets won/total sets played)5. Point differential of matches against tied teams6. Total point differential vs. all conference opponents7. Flip of a coin

IV. Officials

1. Host schools will provide two officials, two linespersons and two scorekeepers per court.Linespersons and scorekeepers should be experienced in calling volleyball matches and schoolsshould arrange for a training session prior to the start of the season. Scorekeepers should view ascorekeeping video prior to working any conference match. Team scorekeepers should be anon-team member designated as the official scorekeeper for each team. Home team is mandatedto provide statistical support for all home contests and provide those statistics to the visiting SIDand conference office within three hours.

2. It is required that first and second referees have a minimum of state NAGWS certification,USAV certification or PAVO certification for all conference competition.

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3. For all conference matches, it is recommended that linesmen and scorekeepers be non-studentsand PAVO certified or any other recognized volleyball national certification (USAV, NFHS, etc.).

4. A committee consisting of the host school’s SWA, or designee, and match official will rule onprotests made no later than 10 minutes after the conclusion of the match. Each school shallassign an on-site tournament director for conference competition and this person should bevisible and available at all sites during the competition. This person’s name and contactinformation should be included in the pre-tournament packet sent to schools.

V. Ejections

A report on any ejections from athletics events involving conference teams must be reported tothe conference office within 48 hours after the contest by the host institution. If the contest is anon-conference event, the member institution is responsible for notifying the conference office ofany ejections within 48 hours. An ejection could result in disciplinary action by the individual’sinstitution and/or the commissioner. The Athletics Directors Advisory Council will serve toassist the commissioner on any such rulings involving potential suspensions of student athletesand/or coaches as it relates to potential violations of the SAA Code of Ethics.

VI. Travel Squad Size

Travel squad size is limited to the NCAA maximum plus 10 percent rounded up for regularseason and conference championship games. Games that do not require an overnight stay or thatare played during institutional breaks are waived from this limitation.

VII. Scouting

1. Coaches are allowed to scout opponents during on-site competition when two or moreconference teams are participating. This includes regular-season and postseason conferencetournaments and any other tournament in which conference teams are present. Travel to scoutconference opponents is still prohibited. Videotaping of other conference teams is prohibited.

2. Conference members may not provide information about conference teams to conference ornon-conference members.

3. Home team must video from the endline in such a way that you can see the entire court andcan see the ball in the frame at all times.

4. Schools must upload all matches to the film exchange site that is shared with all conferenceopponents within 48 hours of the match being completed.

VIII. Coaches Meeting

The Volleyball Council will meet annually during the AVCA convention if all coaches arepresent to make recommendations to the Athletics Directors Council for changes in these

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policies. If all coaches are not present, then the meeting will take place during the spring viaconference call. The meeting will be conducted by the chair of the Volleyball Council. Allcoaches are encouraged to be members of the AVCA.

IX. Awards

1. The conference office will provide a championship trophy to the conference champion.

2. The conference office will administer the selection process for the All-Conference Teams, thePlayers of the Year and the Coach of the Year.

3. The following selection process will be used for all-conference selection:

4. The online nomination process for All-SAA opens at 6:00 p.m. (EST) the Sunday of the finalregular season contests and will remain open until 8:00 a.m. (EST) on Tuesday. Coaches votingwill be conducted online from Tuesday at 9:00 a.m. (EST) until Thursday at 6:30 p.m. (EST) theweek prior to the conference tournament.

The SAA will release All-SAA awards on Tuesday following the conference at 9:00 a.m. (EST).

5. Coaches should only nominate athletes who they feel are worthy candidates of All-Conferenceconsideration but there is no limit of nominations per school.

6. The final ballot will include:Player of the YearNewcomer of the YearDefensive Player of the YearCoach of the YearFirst Team All-SAA (nine positions)Second Team All-SAA (nine positions)Honorable Mention (all who received at least two votes)

7. The format for voting will be: Each coach will nominate and vote based on position. Thoseposition categories will be OH/RS, MB, S, Libero. Coaches will rank their choices when theynominate.

8. A coach may not vote for a player from her/his own team or herself/himself. If there is a tie forthe last spot on the second team, then both players who tie for the final spot will both be namedSecond Team All-Conference. The First-Team should have 3 OH / RS, 2 MB, 1 S, 1 Libero and2 at-large. The second team will be voted on and decided using the same format. The SAA officewill then fill out both first team and second team based on the positions above and then take thenext two highest point recipients as the at-large selections. Honorable Mention will be all votegetters receiving at least two votes. There will be separate ballots to determine Player of theYear, Defensive Player of the Year and Newcomer of the Year. Each coach may nominate oneplayer from their squad for each of those awards. To qualify for the Newcomer award, a

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candidate must either be a freshman or a transfer competing in their first year. The Coach of theYear vote will be conducted via email between the coaches and the conference office. Coacheswill conduct a conference call to discuss nominations prior to the All-Conference voting.

9. An All-Tournament team will be selected during the postseason conference championshiptournament and coordinated by the SIDs. The team will be comprised of six players in additionto a most valuable player and will be selected in the following manner:

Each coach from the third and fourth-place teams will nominate one player each forinclusion on the All-Tournament team. The first and second place team will nominate twoplayers each for the All-Tournament team. The first-place team will also nominate thetournament MVP. The coaches should communicate with the host institution’s SID tomake sure the All-Tournament Team selections are sent to the conference office.

10. An All-SAA Sportsmanship team will be selected at the end of the SAA regular season whenAll-SAA Nominations are received. Each team will elect one member from their squad whodisplays good sportsmanship throughout the season to be a member of the All-SAASportsmanship team. These individuals will be selected by the team and head coach, with thehead coach sending the selection to the conference office at the end of the season. Only onestudent-athlete from each team may be selected. All institutions will have one representative,with final team choice selected by the head coach. The award will be publicized with otherconference awards at the end of the season.

11. A weekly “Offensive Player of the Week” and “Defensive Player of the Week” will benominated by each school online and subsequently selected by the coaches online. Nominationsare due at 1:00 p.m. (EST) each Monday. Coaches are expected to cast their votes for Player ofthe Week by 3:00 p.m. (EST) each Monday. As soon as a consensus has been reached though thecoaches voting, the conference office will announce the weekly winners.

X. In-Game Statistics

1. All SAA host institutions will provide statistics to both teams in-between each set of thematch.

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Men and Women’s Basketball

I. Conference Regular-Season Format

1. The conference champion will be determined by a postseason conference tournament featuringall eight teams (seeded by regular season play) for men and women.

2. Regular season play will consist of a double round-robin format using the designated travelpartners set by the Conference. Travel partners will be:

Berry/OglethorpeCentre/SewaneeBirmingham Southern/MillsapsHendrix/Rhodes

3. The conference champion will be determined by the winner of the postseason tournament andthe champion receives an automatic bid to the NCAA championship.

4. If a tie occurs in the final standings, the following tie-breaker system will be used to determinethe participants in the conference tournament:

1. Winning Percentage2. Best record in head-to-head competition between the tied teams.3. Record against top teams in descending order.

a. If more than two teams are tied in the standings, the record vs. combined teamswill be used

4. Home wins in descending order.5. Toss of a coin by the SAA Office

If three or more teams are tied, the head to head records within the group will be compiled andties will be broken by the rank order of the head to head results. If the tied teams finish with thesame composite record, the method of working down through the remaining teams (third place,fourth-place, etc.) until one team has a better record is used.

Then follow the criteria listed above. Once one school has been pulled out, revert back tohead-to-head. In case of multiple ties through the standings (e.g., tie for first and tie for fourth),the highest tie is broken first and lower tie is broken second.

All contests shall be conducted under current NCAA rules.

II. Regular-Season Scheduling and Contest Regulations

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1. The conference schedule shall be conducted over the final nine weekends of the regularseason, with the exception of travel partner contests.

2. Each school will determine the order of play, with the default being the women play first, andthe men playing second in all conference games. Game times will be 6:00 p.m. and 8:00 p.m.local time on Friday and 1:00 p.m. and 3:00 p.m. on Sunday, unless changes are made to gametimes to accommodate visiting teams’ travel schedules. Visiting schools may request to changethe game times to Noon and 2:00 p.m. on Sunday, but any change must be agreed upon by allparticipating institutions.

Teams may propose giving each school the right to play Saturday games instead of Sunday ifboth schools agree (both coaches, both athletic directors, conference office) to save money. TheSAA Commissioner will resolve any disputes regarding game time changes. Any changes ingame times for travel must be sent to the conference office and respective supervisor of officialsno later than November 15 before the start of each season.

Travel partners may schedule their games any time during the regular season. Schools must agreeon the date and time selected for each game. Game dates and times should be set no later thanOctober 1 prior to the beginning of the upcoming season. Men and women will play in adouble-header.

3. The following timetable must be used for all conference games during theregular season:

Start clock at 30 minutes for pregame. The 30-minute pregame periodshould conclude with at least five minutes of actual time remaining prior to tipoff to allow for theNational Anthem (when applicable).

Example – At 5:25 p.m., begin 30-minute pregame clock to end at 5:55 p.m., then play NationalAnthem and introduce starting lineups. Game begins at 6:00 p.m.

Play or sing the National Anthem before the first game only when double-headers are played orbefore the first game of the conference tournament. This should be done immediately before thestarting lineups are introduced.

- Visiting team and coaches introduced first, home team and coaches second.

4. Any conference games canceled due to weather or some unavoidable circumstance should berescheduled. Travel conflicts due to weather will not affect a travel partner’s schedule. Theathletics directors, in consultation with the SAA Commissioner, will handle arrangements anddecisions concerning play or postponement of games.

5. The home team will wear the white or light-colored home uniform on Fridays and thedark/away uniforms on Saturdays or Sundays. Therefore, the visiting team should bring both sets

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of uniforms for each road trip. Each visiting team should check with the home team prior toevery game to ensure a mix up does not occur.

6. The host team shall provide practice and game balls. At least six practice balls shall beprovided and they shall be the Wilson Solution for men and women. It is required thatconference members use the Wilson Solution basketballs in all conference games. The hostschool must provide for practice time and balls for the visiting team on the day prior to thescheduled contest. However, the visiting team must confirm any arrangements with the hostinstitution by a reasonable time.

7. In the spirit of cooperation, the home team will provide time set aside for thevisiting team to practice – Friday morning shoot-around, Saturday morning shoot around orSunday morning shoot-around.

8. All schools will provide media timeouts for men’s or women’s basketball games. The mediatimeouts will be standardized for all contests under the NCAA’s recommended full complementand are used in NCAA Tournament play as outlined in the Men’s and Women’s Basketball RulesBook. There will be media timeouts in SAA Tournament contests.

III. Officials

1. Each school should secure officials through the SAA Coordinator of Officials. Three officialswill work all games.

2. Coaches will use the referee rating system provided by the Coordinator of Officials. Anyissues with officials should be reported to the conference office and/or the applicable officialsCoordinator.

3. Conference schools will be responsible for paying the officials and coordinators for allconference and non-conference games.

4. The SAA, in consultation with the Coordinators, will use the conference’s regulations ongame management and crowd control for men’s and women’s basketball.

5. If a player is ejected from a game and the official does not inform the official scorekeeper onthe exact nature of the ejection, the official scorekeeper shall have the official timer sound thescoreboard horn and determine with the official the exact reason for the ejection. This shall bedone before play resumes. The official scorekeeper shall record all ejections and explicit reasonsfor the ejections in the official scorebook and final box score. Both head coaches shall be notifiedby an official of the exact nature of the ejection prior to the continuation of play.

6. The sports information director or person in charge of the scorer’s table (game manager) mustensure that the final box score indicates the technical foul, subsequent ejection and reason for theejection. Any player or coach ejected from the game shall be completely removed from theplaying court and not be involved in the game. He or she shall remain in a closed locker room

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away from the court, or leave the arena. No contact with other team members shall be allowed torelay instructions pertaining to the game.

7. A report on any ejections from athletics events involving conference teams must be reported tothe conference office within 48 hours after the contest by the host institution. If the contest is anon-conference event, the member institution is responsible for notifying the conference office ofany ejections within 48 hours. An ejection could result in disciplinary action by the individual’sinstitution and/or the commissioner. The Athletics Directors Advisory Council will serve toassist the commissioner on any such rulings involving potential suspensions of student-athletesand/or coaches as it relates to potential violations of the SAA Code of Ethics

IV. Travel Squad Size

Travel squad size is limited to the NCAA maximum plus 10 percent rounded up for regularseason and conference championship games. Games that do not require an overnight stay or thatare played during institutional breaks are waived from this limitation.

V. Scouting

1. Conference members may not provide information on conference teams to conference ornon-conference members.

2. There will be a videotape exchange through Synergy in lieu of scouting.

3. SAA members will have unlimited access to all the games played by conference membersthrough Synergy. Home teams are responsible for the uploading of all conference games and allweekend conference games should be uploaded and accessible by Monday at 2:00 p.m. (EST).All SAA games from the most recent weekend will be blocked from view (by Synergy) untilMonday at 2:00 p.m. (EST). Non-conference games shall be uploaded by the participatingconference team within48 hours of completion of the game.

The following must be shown on all films as part of the exchange policy:● Starting lineups● Visual quality to ensure that jersey numbers and colors can be seen at all times.● Scoreboard filming during timeouts and before free throws.● Sound should be included.

4. The home team is responsible for filming each conference game and may provide the visitingteam on a jump drive with at least 16gb of memory. DVDs will not be accepted. Visitingopponents will provide jump drives to host in the event that they would like a copy of film sameday as opposed to waiting for synergy release. Film must also be uploaded to the Synergywebsite by midnight on the date the teams played.

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Road non-conference games should be uploaded within 24 hours of the time the team arrivesback home. Failure to comply with film uploading policy will result in a 1st time grace period foroffenders and a 2nd offense would result in that program’s Synergy account being limited to theVideo Express function only until the game is uploaded. Any instance of ‘failure to comply’ willbe determined by the league office and also recorded by the league office. It is understood thatthere may be circumstances which affect the ability to upload that would not count as an offenseof ‘failure to comply’. The league office will notify the offending program’s Athletic Directorwith each infraction.

5. There will be no on-site scouting of conference teams by representatives of conferencemember schools. When participating in a tournament in which another conference member isalso playing, it is permissible to be in attendance during a game in which that conference team isplaying. However, no formal scouting can occur.

6. The host institution will provide the visiting team meeting space and gym time after 3:30 p.m.on Saturday for a weekend series, and also must provide access to the women’s team to the gamefloor at 11:00 a.m. (EST) on Sundays.

VI. Coaches Meeting

All coaches will meet annually in the spring via conference call to make recommendations to theAthletics Directors Council for changes in these policies.

VII. Awards

1. The conference office will provide a championship trophy to the conference tournamentchampion.

2. The conference office will administer the selection process for All-Conference Teams, Playerof the Year, Newcomer of the Year, Defensive Player of The Year, and Coach of the Year.

The online nomination process for All-SAA opens at 6:00 p.m. (EST) the Sunday of the finalregular season contests and will remain open until 8:00 a.m. (EST) on Tuesday. Coaches votingwill be conducted online from Tuesday at 9:00 a.m. (EST) until Friday at 6:30 p.m. (EST) theweek prior to the quarterfinal round of the conference tournament.

All-SAA awards will be released on the Monday after the conference tournament is concluded.The announcement will go public at 9:00 a.m. (EST).

Each coach will nominate players with comprehensive statistics and rank his or her players inranking order rather than alphabetically. Coaches will rank players from one through 12 with afirst place vote worth 12 points, second-place worth 11, etc. Coaches may not vote for their ownplayers on the final ballot. The All-SAA Team will consist of the 15 players with the most voteswith the top-five being recognized as First Team, second five as Second Team and other votegetters will be listed as Honorable Mention. Ties will not be broken. The player with the most

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points will be named Player of- the-Year. On separate ballots, the Newcomer of the Year andDefensive Player of the Year will be selected through coaches voting. Each coach may nominateone player from their squad to each Newcomer of the Year and Defensive Player of the Yearballots. To qualify for Newcomer of the Year, a student-athlete must either be a freshman ortransfer playing their first year of eligibility.

4. The Coach of the Year will be voted upon by the basketball coaches after the season andadministered by the conference office. Coaches may not vote for themselves.

5. Conference awards will be announced prior to the quarterfinals of the conferencechampionship tournament.

6. An All-Conference Sportsmanship team will be selected during the All-SAA nominations andvoting.. Each men and women’s team will elect one member from their team who displays goodsportsmanship throughout the season to be a member of the All-Conference Sportsmanship team.These individuals will be selected by the team and head coach, with the head coach sending theselection to the conference office at the end of the season. Only one student-athlete from eachteam may be selected. All institutions will have one representative, with final team choiceselected by the head coach. The award will be publicized with other conference awards at theend of the season.

VIII. Conference Postseason TournamentFor a complete guide to the SAA Basketball Championship Tournament, refer to the SAABasketball Championship Manual.

1. General Guidelines

Saturday - Quarterfinals2:00 p.m. - No. 8 at No. 12:00 p.m. - No. 7 at No. 22:00 p.m. - No. 6 at No. 32:00 p.m. - No. 5 at No. 4 The semifinals and championship games will be played at the highest remaining seed after thequarterfinals. Both semifinals games will be played on Saturday and the championship game willbe played on Sunday. The quarterfinals games are scheduled for Sunday, however, upon theagreement by both coaches, athletic directors, and school Presidents, quarterfinal games may bemoved to Saturday due to travel requirements and missed class concerns.

The following Saturday – Semifinals at the highest remaining seed3:00 p.m. Winner of 1/8 vs Winner of 4/55:00 p.m. Winner of 2/7 vs Winner of 3/6

Sunday – Finals2:00 p.m. Championship Game

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Note: If a host school ends up hosting both the men and women’s tournament semifinals andchampionship, see championship manual for all game times adjustments.

3. The conference office will designate an assigning agency/supervisor of officials to assignofficials for all games in the conference tournament. If necessary, more than one assigningagency/supervisor of officials can be used to assign officials. Any agency/supervisor of officialsdesignated by the conference office must be certified to assign officials to the NCAA Division IIITournament. No team can have the same officials on the second day of the conferencetournament as they had on the first day. No official can work more than one game per day.

4. The Wilson Solution basketball is the official basketball of the conference and will be used inall tournament games.

5. Game times may not be adjusted for any reason unless approved by the tournament directorand conference office, in consultation with the participating teams. Therefore, pregame protocolbefore each game will be strictly enforced.

6. An all-tournament team consisting of at least five players, including a Tournament MVP willbe selected. The selection will be handled by the SAA Coaches, with the assistance of the SAASIDs.

7. Designation of team benches and uniforms for each game will be determined by thetournament director and conference office. Higher seed wears its home uniform for all games. Ifseeds are equal from opposite divisions for a game, a coin flip will determine the home team anduniform. All teams, including the host school, are limited to 17 players in uniform for alltournament games. Players not a member of the 17-player active roster may sit on the teambench, but not in uniform. Players may wear a team warm-up or wind suit and sit on the teambench as long as space is available.

8. The host institution will provide athletics trainers on site for all games, shoot around, andpractices.

9. Host Institutions will provide a list of hotels to all conference schools by Monday before thetournament, but each participating team is responsible for securing its own accommodations.

10. Host Institution will staff all games. All games will be videotaped by staff from the hostinstitution working the games. The conference commissioner will oversee the sports informationoperations for the tournament.

11. Scouting rules, including NCAA tournament rules and live scouting, will be enforced. Eachgame during the tournament will be taped by the host institution and available to participatingteams following each game.

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12. Prior to the beginning of the competition each day, the National Anthem will be played orsung before the first game and the American flag displayed. It will be announced that this is aSouthern Athletic Association event and the conference crowd control policy read before everygame.

13. Teams are permitted to use an auxiliary gym prior to the start of any game as long as thatfacility’s administration approves.

14. The following shoot-around schedule will be used. Teams are required to contact the hostinstitution and tournament director if they are not going to utilize their scheduled practice times.Teams may not switch scheduled shoot-around times for any reason unless approved by thetournament director and conference office.

* - Pregame clock is set at 30:00 before remaining scheduled games and all games will utilize thefull pregame clock. Teams are not allowed on the floor until the 30:00 pregame clock is set. Nogame will begin prior to its scheduled starting time. However, games that start later than thelisted starting time will be allowed the full 30:00 pregame time. The 30:00 pregame clock willend approximately FIVE minutes prior to the published starting time.

Saturday shoot around times9:00 - 9:55 a.m. - Worse Seed of Semifinal Game 110:00 - 10:55 a.m. - Best Seed of Semifinal Game 111:00 - 11:55 a.m. - Worse Seed of Semifinal Game 212:00 - 12:55 p.m. - Best Seed of Semifinal Game 2

Sunday - Finals9:00 - 9:55 a.m. - Winner Semifinals Game 110:00 - 10:55 a.m. - Winner Semifinals Game 211:00 a.m. Arena cleared.1:00 p.m. Arena available for finalists. Clock set at 55:00.

15. Should the Conference postseason tournament be cancelled or not played to completion, theregular season top seed will be declared the SAA automatic qualifier for the NCAA tournament.

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Men and Women’s Swimming and Diving

I. Conference Championship - Swimming

Section 1A - Scoring and Participation

1. All conference men’s and women’s swimming and diving teams will compete in theconference championship.

2. The team champions will be the teams with the highest point totals according to NCAAscoring procedures. Ties will not be broken.

3. A “Sixteen Competitors Qualify” (Rule 7, Section 8, Article 4 in the NCAA Rule book) is inplace. The point system should be identical to NCAA rule, and the 8th and the 16th placefinish (when 7 teams were racing) will simply not be scored.

Section 1B - Location and management

1. The location will be determined at least 18 months in advance by the AD’s Council on adviceof the sport council.

2. The host school should hire a meet director to handle the administrative responsibilities forthe championships and it is recommended that a head diving official be selected to overseeall diving events.

3. The host institution will coordinate with the SAA office to assure that results are posted tothe web after every session. Team scores will be announced and/or displayed at least threetimes during each finals session.

4. The host head coach will send out information to conference members at least two monthsprior to the championship.

5. Officials must be certified by a national governing body of swimming (CSCAA, USASwimming, or YMCA). Four officials must be present to judge the relay takeoffs in order toensure dual confirmation of false starts.

6. The meet director should go over the SAA rule book with meet officials and referees prior tothe meet. Officials and referees should check with the committee chair on any rules that arenot covered in the NCAA Swimming Rule Book or where there might be some conflict.

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7. Prior to the beginning of each nightly championship session, the following protocol isrecommended:

● The National Anthem will be played or sung, and the American and SAA flags displayed.● It will be announced that it is a Southern Athletic Association championship.

8. Time trials can occur only before or after any session of the meet and during regularlyscheduled breaks.

9. The meet committee will consist of the head meet official and the head coach (who will serveas chair) from last year’s championship. Two additional head coaches will be namedimmediately prior to the competition on the first day of the meet, one who will serve as analternate when one of the committee coaches is directly involved with a decision.

10. All protests must be made no later than 15 minutes following the last participant to finish anevent and a majority vote from the committee will rule.

Section 1C - Facilities

1. The facility should be an eight-lane pool of at least 50 meters with 25 yards of competitionarea and additional water space of eight lanes to conduct continuous warm-up andwarm-down activities.

2. It is preferred that the diving pool not be located over the competition course. Maxi-flexboards for 1- and 3-meter competition are preferred.

3. Deck seating should be for at least 350 athletes and spectator seating for 400.

4. Automatic timing system with multiple lane readout timing board and Hy-Tek meet softwareare necessary for hosting.

5. Seating locations for competing teams at off-campus facilities will be determined bycombined order of finish in previous year’s meet. When hosted at an on-campus facility, thehost institution has first choice followed by last year’s championships’ combined order offinish. Conference members are not required to meet the seating minimums in hosting thechampionships on-campus.

Section 1D - Relays

1. All relays will swim as timed finals.

2. The top 18 relay teams will be scored (44-38-36-34-32-30-28-26-24-20-16-14-12-10-8-6-4-2), but only “A” relay teams can score in the final and “B” relay teamscan score in the consolation. “C” relay teams and below are for exhibition only.

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3. There will be an opportunity to swim relays during each prelim session as exhibition (Note:this counts as a time standard trial for NCAA qualifying purposes).

4. If nine relay teams compete in a nine-lane pool, the slowest A relay will be assignedninth-place since no B relay can outscore it.

5. If an eight-lane pool is used, and there are more than 8 “A” relays, only the number of relaysexceeding eight will be moved to the “B” heat, and seeded according to NCAA Swimmingrules.

6. Judges’ decisions will be used to ensure no A relay is outscored by a B relay

7. Relay take-off pads will be used if available at the host facility

Section 1E - Entries, and Squad Size

1. Rules regarding entries, seeding, scoring and conduct of the meet shall be consistent with theNCAA rule book and championship book guidelines and regulations. Exhibition swimmersmust be declared by the scratch deadline on Wednesday, February 16 (3 p.m.), and cannotadvance to the finals or score.

2. Entry deadlines will be established by the host institution and entries must be e-mailed usingHy-Tek software.

3. Coaches must declare all athletes who are exhibition or non-scoring. If the current allowablelimit is 18, then the 19th athlete to compete would be declared exhibition.

4. An institution shall be allowed not more than 18 scoring competitors.

5. An entrant who swims will be counted as one competitor; an entrant who swims and diveswill be counted as one competitor; and an entrant who only dives will be counted as one-thirdof a competitor in the total team limit.

6. Coaches may adjust “B” relay times. All times, other than “B” relay teams, must be achievedin a bona fide competition and submitted to the conference office for top-times listing.

7. Should a squad size exceed the maximum allowed using that formula and should that coachfail to declare the appropriate number of athletes exhibition by the scratch deadline, thedetermination of which athletes are deemed exhibition shall be based on the following:

Based upon when the athletes actually compete or are scheduled to compete (in case of falsestarts), all athletes that have exceeded the maximum allowable squad size limit will be declaredexhibition. If an athlete is entered in an event, but a false start occurs or a false start is declared,that athlete is considered to have competed in that event. If an athlete is entered and notscratched by the scratch deadline for that event but fails to compete, that is also counted as an

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event. Relay participation counts as an event, unless that particular relay has been declaredexhibition. Any individual events that have been declared exhibition by the scratch deadline donot count as an event.

Section 1F - Scratches

1. The scratch deadline will be enforced.

2. After all scratches have been administered by meet management, the entry sheet for eachschool will be printed and coaches will be allowed to make any corrections necessary as aresult of his/her oversight or meet management’s oversight. This list will be distributedWednesday night at the official coaches meeting.

3. The following scratch deadline will be followed.

● Thursday’s Swimming events – scratches are due at 3:00 p.m. on Wednesday.● Friday’s Swimming events - scratches are due 60 minutes after the conclusion of the

Prelims on Thursday.1. Saturday’s Swimming events - scratches are due 60 minutes after the conclusion of the

Prelims on Friday.

II. Conference Championship - Diving

1. All conference men’s and women’s swimming and diving teams will compete in theconference championship.

2. The team champions will be the teams with the highest point totals according to NCAAscoring procedures. Ties will not be broken.

Section 2A - Judging

1. There will be one judging panel for diving that will be comprised of a mix of coaches andofficials or just coaches. Also note Section 1B-3 recommendation to hire a diving directorwho may also serve as a judge. It is recommended that these officials be different than theswimming officials.

2. The head diving referee (neutral, i.e. not directly associated with SAA schools) will also becompensated inline with that of other swimming officials.

Section 2B – Format

1. The men will dive 1-meter on Wednesday, the women will dive 1-meter on Thursday, themen will dive 3-meter on Friday and the women will dive 3-meter on Saturday.

2. There will be a 10-minute break each day after six rounds.

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3. The top 18 divers will compete and complete their entire dive list.

4. If divers must be cut, they will be cut based on the optional list.

5. The diving order will start with the optional dive list if this format is used at the NCAAchampionship.

Section 2C - Entries

1. Dive sheets are due for the Wednesday and Thursday diving events by 3:00 p.m. onWednesday.

2. Dive sheets for the Friday diving event are due at the start of diving competition onThursday.

3. Dive sheets for the Saturday diving event are due at the start of diving competition on Friday.

4. All student-athletes must have participated in a minimum of one swim / dive competitionprior to the SAA Championships in order to be eligible. If an injury or illness interferes withthis requirement, the coach of the athlete will be able to make a case in writing for thatathlete to be reviewed by the Meet Committee.

III. Conference Championship - Order of Events

Coaches Meeting - 4:00 p.m.

Day One – Wednesday (Night)National Anthem

Event 1 Women’s Medley Relay 5:30 p.m.Event 2 Men’s Medley Relay20-minute breakEvent 3 Women’s 800 Free RelayEvent 4 Men’s 800 Free Relay10-minute break

Event 5 Men’s One Meter Diving 7:00 p.m. local

Day Two - Thursday (Morning)Event 6 Women’s 500 Freestyle prelims 10:00 a.m.Event 7 Men’s 500 Freestyle prelimsEvent 8 Women’s 200 IM prelimsEvent 9 Men’s 200 IM prelimsEvent 10 Women’s 50 Freestyle prelimsEvent 11 Men’s 50 Freestyle prelims

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Event 12 Women’s 200 Free Relay prelimsEvent 13 Men’s 200 Free Relay prelimsEvent 14 Women’s One Meter Diving 1:00 p.m.

Day Two - Thursday (Evening)Awards Women’s One Meter Dive 6:00 p.m.

Men’s One Meter DiveWomen’s 500 FreestyleMen’s 500 FreestyleNational Anthem

Event 15 Women’s 500 Freestyle FinalEvent 16 Men’s 500 Freestyle FinalEvent 17 Women’s 200 IM FinalEvent 18 Men’s 200 IM FinalAwards Women’s 200 IM

Men’s 200 IMEvent 19 Women’s 50 FreestyleEvent 20 Men’s 50 Freestyle20-minute breakAwards Women’s 50 Freestyle

Men’s 50 FreestyleEvent 21 Women’s 200 Freestyle Relay FinalEvent 22 Men’s 200 Freestyle Relay FinalAwards Women’s 200 Freestyle

Men’s 200 Freestyle

Day Three - Friday (Morning)Event 23 Women’s 400 IM prelims 10:00 a.m.Event 24 Men’s 400 IM prelimsEvent 25 Women’s 100 Butterfly prelimsEvent 26 Men’s 100 Butterfly prelimsEvent 27 Women’s 200 Freestyle prelimsEvent 28 Men’s 200 Freestyle prelimsEvent 29 Women’s 100 Breaststroke prelimsEvent 30 Men’s 100 Breaststroke prelimsEvent 31 Women’s 100 Backstroke prelimsEvent 32 Men’s 100 Backstroke prelims20-minute breakEvent 33 Women’s 400 Medley Relay prelimsEvent 34 Men’s 400 Medley Relay prelimsEvent 35 Men’s One Meter Diving 1:00 p.m.

Day Three - Friday (Evening)

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Awards Men’s Three Meter Diving 6:00 p.m.National Anthem

Event 36 Women’s 400 IM FinalEvent 37 Men’s 400 IM FinalAwards Women’s 400 IM

Men’s 400 IMEvent 38 Women’s 100 Butterfly FinalEvent 39 Men’s 100 Butterfly FinalAwards Women’s 100 Butterfly

Men’s 100 ButterflyEvent 40 Women’s 200 Freestyle FinalEvent 41 Men’s 200 Freestyle FinalAwards Women’s 200 Freestyle

Men’s 200 FreestyleEvent 42 Women’s 100 Breaststroke FinalEvent 43 Men’s 100 Breaststroke FinalAwards Women’s 100 Breastroke

Men’s 100 BreaststrokeEvent 44 Women’s 100 Backstroke FinalEvent 45 Men’s 100 Backstroke FinalAwards Women’s 100 Backstroke

Men’s 100 Backstroke20-minute breakEvent 46 Women’s 400 Medley Relay FinalEvent 47 Men’s 400 Medley Relay FinalAwards Women’s 400 Medley Relay

Men’s 400 Medley Relay

Day Four - Saturday (Morning)Event 48 Women’s 200 Backstroke prelims 10:00 a.m.Event 49 Men’s 200 Backstroke prelimsEvent 50 Women’s 100 Freestyle prelimsEvent 51 Men’s 100 Freestyle prelimsEvent 52 Women’s 200 Breastroke prelimsEvent 53 Men’s 200 Breaststroke prelimsEvent 54 Women’s 200 Butterfly prelimsEvent 55 Men’s 200 Butterfly prelims20-minute breakEvent 56 Women’s 400 Freestyle prelimsEvent 57 Men’s 400 Freestyle prelims

End of morning prelims

Event 58 Women’s 1650 Freestyle - NoteEvent 59 Men’s 1650 Freestyle - Note

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Event 60 Women’s Three Meter Dive 1:00 p.m.

Note: The top-8 women and men’s swimmers will swim in the finals. The remaining swimmerswill compete in the morning following the break alternating between women and men’s heatsfrom fastest to slowest. Beginning start time to be determined after scratches have made.

Day Four - Saturday (Evening)Awards Women’s Three Meter Diving 6:00 p.m.

National AnthemEvent 61 Women’s 1650 Freestyle FinalEvent 62 Men’s 1650 Freestyle FinalAwards Women’s 1650 Freestyle

Men’s 1650 FreestyleEvent 63 Women’s 200 Backstroke FinalsEvent 64 Men’s 200 Backstroke FinalsAwards Women’s 200 Backstroke

Men’s 200 BackstrokeEvent 65 Women’s 100 Freestyle FinalsEvent 66 Men’s 100 Freestyle FinalsAwards Women’s 100 Freestyle

Men’s 100 FreestyleEvent 67 Women’s 200 Breastroke FinalsEvent 68 Men’s 200 Breaststroke FinalsAwards Women’s 200 Breaststroke

Men’s 200 BreastrokeEvent 69 Women’s 200 Butterfly FinalsEvent 70 Men’s 200 Butterfly FinalsAwards Women’s 200 Butterfly

Men’s 200 ButterflyEvent 71 Women’s 400 Freestyle FinalsEvent 72 Men’s 400 Freestyle FinalsAwards Women’s 400 Freestyle

Men’s 400 Freestyle

Finals AwardsWomen’s and Men’s High-Point Divers-of-the-MeetWomen’s and Men’s High-Point Swimmers-of-the-MeetWomen’s and Men’s Coaching Staffs-of-the-YearWomen’s Final Team Standings / Team ChampionMen’s Final Team Standings / Team Champion

IV. Team Travel

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1. Teams may leave after classes on Tuesday immediately before the championships to travel aslong as each conference school monitors its academic schedule and student-athletes attendclasses on Tuesday.

2. Teams may not practice at the facility until Wednesday as determined by the host facility andconference office.

3. All costs and all arrangements for alternative practice sites (i.e., not the competition site sincethat is prohibited) lie with the traveling school, not the host school.

V. Coaches meeting and leadership

A pre-championship coaches’ meeting will be held at a 4:00 p.m. by the host institution onWednesday prior to the championship. Coaches’ meetings will be held approximately 60minutes before the start of each session (preliminaries and finals) throughout thechampionship, and all coaches are required to attend all meetings.

The coaches will also meet via conference call during the spring for their annual Councilmeeting to make recommendations to the Athletics Directors Council for changes in thesepolicies. Coaches also have the option of having their council meeting at their conventionwith those who could not attend participating via a conference call.

The Chair of the Swimming and Diving Council serves a one-year term.

VI. Awards

1. The conference office will provide a championship trophy to each team champion.

2. The high-point swimmer for men and women will be selected by taking the individual pointtotal and adding one point for each NCAA “B” cut or and two points for each NCAA “A”cut. If there is still a tie, meet records will be used as a criteria to break the tie. Swimmingrelay leadoff does not count.

3. The high-point diver for men and women at the conference championships will be selectedby totaling scores on both the 1- and 3-meter boards (place points) and using event points asa tiebreaker.

4. Coach of the Year for men and women will be named by a vote of the conference coaches.Each coach will vote for only one place. Coaches may not vote for their own staffs. Votingwill take place on Saturday of the conference championships and recognized with theindividuals awards at the conclusion of the championships.

5. The All-SAA team will consist of the top- three finishers in each individual event and the topthree relay teams in each event.

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6. The top-eight swimmers and the top relay team in each event will be recognized during thechampionships’ awards ceremonies as established by the Swimming and Diving Council.Awards will be handed out immediately after the conclusion of each full event (i.e. -Women’s 200 IM final, awards for Women’s 200 IM, Men’s 200 IM final, awards for Men’s200 IM). The top eight divers in each event will be recognized in awards ceremonies duringthe swimming finals each night. Wednesday’s divers will be recognized on Thursday.

7. A Swimmer of the Year and Diver of the Year for each gender will be determined by the highpoint getters for swimming and diving at the championship meet. A Newcomer of the Yearfor each gender will be determined by the high getter of a freshman or first year transfer atthe Championship meet.

8. A Male and Female Swimmer of the Week and male and female Diver of The Week will beselected as outlined by the coaches and conference office. When submitting nominations,coaches must submit places and times for swimmers in any competition, places and totalpoints for divers in any competition. Coaches may vote for their own athlete(s) for swimmerand diver of the week.

9. Host institutions will coordinate with the SAA office to provide for awards standphotography.

10. An All-SAA Sportsmanship team will be selected the week following the SAAChampionship meet. Each men and each women’s team will elect one member from theirteam who displays good sportsmanship throughout the season to be a member of theAll-SAA Sportsmanship team. These individuals will be selected by the team and headcoach, with the head coach sending the selection to the conference office at the end of theseason. Only one student-athlete from each team may be selected. All institutions will haveone representative, with final team choice selected by the head coach. The award will bepublicized with other conference awards at the end of the season.

VII. Records and Statistics

1. The conference office will maintain a list of top-20 times for each event. Coaches and/orSIDs must report all times listed as meet results, not best times, from the previous week’scompetition to the conference office or their designee no later than each Wednesday at 4:00p.m. (EST). This list will also be updated after the conference championships and NCAAchampionships. The conference office will use the Hy-Tek team statistics manager tomaintain swimming and diving times and scores on the conference website and coaches arerequired to submit all times and entries using Hy-Tek software. Coaches must report all timesto the conference office or there designee. Any times not reported cannot be used as entrytimes for the conference championship. All times must be achieved in bona fide competition.

2. Coaches must post all meet results on their school’s website or they must send the results toall conference schools within seven days.

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3. Additionally, coaches have one week to correct times on the top-time list to ensure accuracyas the season progresses.

4. All teams will be coded as follows: RHO - Rhodes College; CEN - Centre College; SEW -Sewanee-U. of South; HDX - Hendrix College; BER - Berry College; BSC –Birmingham-Southern

5. Both conference “open” and “meet” records will be listed on programs, psych sheets, heatsheets and results at the championships. Lead-off swims on relays count as “meet” or “open”records and do not count towards Swimmer-of-the-Year (meet) honors.

6. The Council will keep the SAA championship meet records, which can be accomplished onlyat the conference championship. SAA open records, which can be accomplished by anycurrent conference school during at any meet in school history, shall be maintained. Anall-time conference record will be added, which will be a record set at any meet while theschool has been and is a current conference member. This would include all years, beginningwith 1999.

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Baseball

I. Conference Championship

1. The SAA tournament champion receives an automatic bid to the NCAA championship.

2. Nine-inning games will be played in the conference championship tournament. The 10-runrule is used in all games with the exception of the final contest at each site used to determine ourchampionship series finalists and at the best two out of three final championship series.

3. Regular season standings are determined by winning percentage.

4.The seeds will be determined by regular season play. The highest remaining seed after the firstround will be the host institution for the baseball championship. For the first round of SAA play,seeds #1 and #2 will host. The first round will each be a four team double elimination formattournament with 1, 4, 5, and 8 playing at the top seed and 2, 3, 6, and 7 playing at the secondseed. The higher seed will always be the home team in the first round. The higher seed will bethe home team in games 1 & 3 in the championship round.

5. The main championship weekend for all sports will be the last weekend in April. If the lastday of April falls on either Friday or Saturday, that weekend will be the main championshipweekend. Exceptions will be made for sports championships that play their quarterfinals,semifinals, or baseball tournaments during that main weekend. In that case, and with only twoteams remaining, those teams can decide an appropriate day and time to play their championshipcontest(s). If those teams cannot determine a time to play, the default day and time will be theday of NCAA selection at noon.

6. The host institution must schedule and provide practice time (if requested) for each of thecompeting teams on the tournament playing field at least one day prior to the tournament.Following the start of the tournament, no batting practice will be allowed on the field but analternate site or batting cages may be utilized. Regular pregame infield practice on the playingfield will be allowed as part of the normal warm-up format by both teams before each game.Each team should be scheduled for infield practice prior to the game according to the format.The home team should be scheduled first for infield practice.

7. The host of the conference championship will secure an extra playing field with lights in caseinclement weather causes the baseball championship to become backed up and games need to beplayed simultaneously. If the host institution does not have a lighted field, then two fields will beused to conduct the tournament.

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8. At least 3 1/2 hours shall be allowed in the schedule between starting times for tournamentgames.

9. The Rawlings FSR1NCAA is the official baseball of the conference and should be used for allSAA play.

10. A rules interpretation committee will be formed and composed of the host school’s primaryathletics administrator (or designee), the umpire-in-chief and one baseball coach. At least two ofthese individuals will attend all times. Three-person umpire crews will work all conferencetournament games for all rounds of play. The host institution is responsible for the cost of theumpires for all games. A committee to make decisions and adjustments for the conferencechampionship tournament will consist of the commissioner, current Baseball Council chair andthe previous chair.

11. All games will be conducted according to NCAA rules. The halted game rule will be utilizedin the conference championship as outlined in the NCAA Baseball Rules Book. If Day 1 israined out, the tournament will begin on Day 2 and proceed as planned. If the entire tournamentis rained out, the rules committee will meet to decide upon the best representative of theconference for the NCAA championship.

12. Teams must have mandatory home and away uniforms for the championship.

13.Travel rosters for all SAA tournament games for all teams are standardized to the NCAAallowable, plus 10%, rounded up

II. Regular-Season Scheduling and Contest Regulations

1. The regular season series between schools are played in a round robin format. Games will be adoubleheader on Saturday (9-7 innings) and a single game on Sunday. If either game or bothgames on Saturday are rained out a 9-7 doubleheader will be played on Sunday, if possible.Teams can agree, with approval from the conference office, to play a Friday singlegame/Saturday doubleheader (9-7) to accommodate class issues or religious holidays. Thestandard series schedule will be Sat/Sun unless ADs from both institutions agree to amodification of Friday/Saturday. Both must agree and the SAA Office must approve. Sundaycontests must start at noon for travel reasons unless the 2 schools and ADs agree on a differenttime.

2. If an institution travels to a game site and weather (or other factors out of human controls)occurs and prevents the completion of a series, the visiting team may not travel back to theoriginal site to make up games. Once a team arrives on site and then departs, the games may notbe played. Modifications and or changes made to game dates and/or times that both parties agreeto, and with the approval of the conference office may occur prior to departure, or once on thegame site. Both teams and both ADs must agree.

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If a game is played and halted, that game may be continued the next day only if thecontinuation occurs during the time that the visiting team had already planned to be there.Otherwise, the game will either be a shortened game and count in the standings if it meets thesport rules, or will be a no contest. All reasonable efforts will be made to play all games, but theSAA supports a policy to lessen the added cost and potential of classes missed that make upscreated in a conference as geographically challenged as ours.

Teams are required to have the following:

1. A full infield tarp to cover the entire infield.2. Fields must be fully enclosed by fences with the proper usage of foul poles, etc.

3. To determine standings in case of a tie, the following guidelines shall be used in thisorder: Regular season standings are determined by winning percentage first.

● Head-to-head record during the conference series between the two teams that are tied. Ifmore than two teams are tied, use the tie breaking procedure detailed in B below.

● Record vs. highest seeded team in the conference continuing in a descending manneruntil tie is broken. If three teams are tied, we use the same procedure until one team ispulled out, then we return to head to head first, before using any other tie-breaker.

● Coin flip by the commissioner.

4. The SAA schedule will be organized by the baseball chair and approved by theCommissioner in the fall each year for the season that would begin in the spring of thefollowing year. (Approximately 15 months).

5. The 10-run rule will be used in every game, except the tournament as described above.

6. Each school will provide the same standard for batting practice times.

7. For regular season conference contests, home teams may dress and play as many playersas they desire.

8. Standardized Batting Practice Times for all Regular Season SAA Games (Any change inthe visiting team(s) times should be communicated and agreed upon with the visitingcoach.)

1:00 p.m. game:10:55 – 11:35 Home team BP11:35 – 12:15 Visiting team BP12:20 – 12:30 Home In & Out12:30 – 12:40 Visiting In & Out12:40 – 1:00 Field Maintenance, umpire meeting and national anthem

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1:00 First pitch

This is an example of the standard BP times, everyone should adjust depending on game time.

III. Inclement Weather Protocol:

1. If both sites are not available to play at all, the SAA tournament winner will be the SAARegular season champion. If only one site is available to play, then the winner of the site willplay the highest seed from the regular season in the tournament that did not get to play.

2. If day one is started, but cannot be completed during the tournament, then #1 still applies.

3. If day one can be completed, then the winner of the tournament will be the highest seededteam that is undefeated.

4. If day two is completed, then the tournament winner will be the highest seeded team stillundefeated.

5. If only one game can be played on day three, then the tournament champion will be thehighest seeded team still in the tournament.

6. If the tournament has to be played in one day, then the tournament becomes a singleelimination tournament.

III. Officials

Umpires will be assigned by the home team for all conference games and series. Umpires shallbe approved for intercollegiate contests by a recognized assigning agency. Two-person umpiringcrews will be used for all regular season conference series.

IV. Ejections

A report on any ejections from athletics events involving conference teams must be reported tothe conference office within 48 hours after the contest by the host institution. If the contest is anon-conference event, the member institution is responsible for notifying the conference office ofany ejections within 48 hours. An ejection could result in disciplinary action by the individual’sinstitution and/or the commissioner. The Athletics Directors Advisory Council will serve toassist the commissioner on any such rulings involving potential suspensions of student-athletesand/or coaches as it relates to potential violations of the SAA Code of Ethics.

V. Travel Squad Size

Teams are permitted to travel to away games that don’t require an overnight stay or during breakperiods with an unlimited travel squad. The council wishes, for the sake of competitive equity to

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restrict the eligible roster size to the standard of NCAA allowable, plus 10 percent, rounded up asthe permissible competition size.

VI. Scouting

There will be no on-site scouting of conference teams by representatives of conference memberschools. When participating in a tournament in which another conference member is alsoplaying, it is permissible to be in attendance during a game in which that conference team isplaying. However, no formal scouting can occur. Scouting is permissible at the conferencechampionship tournament. Conference members may not provide information on conferenceteams to non-conference members.

VII. Coaches Meeting

All coaches will meet annually via conference call to make recommendations to the AthleticsDirectors Council for changes in these policies.

VIII. Awards

1. The conference office will provide a championship trophy to the winner of the conferencetournament. The conference office will administer the selection of all-conference teams andawards.

2. There will be an All-Conference First Team and Second Team selected. Each team iscomprised of the following:

● One first baseman● One second baseman● One shortstop● One third baseman● Three outfielders● One designated hitter● Three pitchers● One relief pitcher● One catcher● One utility player

Players will be grouped on the ballot by position and coaches will rank players within eachpositional category. The top vote getters among the infielder positions will be placed on the FirstTeam with the next highest vote getter at each position making the Second Team. The top threeoutfielders will make the First Team and the next three the Second Team. The top designatedhitter will be placed on the First Team with the second vote-getter making the Second Team. Thetop catcher will make the First Team and the next will be placed on the Second Team.

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There will be a separate ballot to determine the Player of the Year, Pitcher of the Year, andNewcomer of the Year (freshman or first-year eligible transfer). Each coach may nominate oneplayer from their squad for each of these awards. The Coach of the Year will be selected viaemail vote to the conference office.

3. Any players nominated and receiving any votes or points in the selection process will benamed honorable mention. Each school will also be allowed to move one player up from eitherHonorable Mention to the Second Team. These players will be included in addition to the actualplayers voted on to the team. The conference office will notify each coach of any member of histeam who is selected to one of the All-Conference teams and then let the coach pick whichplayer to promote.

4. Coaches may not vote for themselves or their own players on the final ballot.

5. The online nomination process for All-SAA opens at 6:00 p.m. (EST) the Sunday afteropening round tournaments of the SAA Championship and will remain open until 8:00 a.m.(EST) on Tuesday. Coaches voting will be conducted online from Tuesday at 9:00 a.m. (EST)until Wednesday at 6:30 p.m. (EST) the week prior to the conference tournament opening pods.The conference office will compile the SAA All-Conference Baseball Team (including eachcoach’s automatic promotion of one player up from Honorable Mention to the Second Team orup from the Second Team to the First Team) and will be announced at the completion of the SAATournament.

The announcement of the All-SAA awards will be released on the Tuesday following the SAAChampionship final round.

6. During the regular season, the conference office will select a Player and a Pitcher of the Weekeach Monday. Nominations are due to the conference office by Monday at 1:00 p.m. (EST) andthe results will be publicized on the conference website. A minimum of half the conferenceprograms must complete for the award to be awarded that week. If less than half of theconference programs complete, all games played prior to the next weekly award may count in thenomations.

7. An All-Tournament Team will be selected at the conference championship tournament by thefour head coaches participating and the host school’s head coach (if the host school is notparticipating). The host SID can assist the coaches in assembling the team. The coaches shouldwork with the host SID to ensure the team is formed and the conference office is alerted. Theteam will be made of one player from the six teams that didn’t move to the championship round,two players from the teams in the championship round plus the MVP from the championshipteam.

8. An All-SAA Sportsmanship team will be selected the week following the end of the SAAregular season. Each team will elect one member from their team who displays goodsportsmanship throughout the season to be a member of the SAA All-Conference Sportsmanship

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team. These individuals will be selected by the team and head coach, with the head coachsending the selection to the conference office at the end of the season. Only one student-athletefrom each team may be selected. All institutions will have one representative, with final teamchoice selected by the head coach. The award will be publicized with other conference awards atthe end of the season.

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Men and Women’s Golf

I. Conference Championship - General Overview

1. All conference men’s and women’s golf teams will meet for the SAA Golf Championship tocompete for the conference championship during the last full weekend of April.

2. The conference Men’s and Women’s golf tournaments will be 54 holes played over three days(Friday, Saturday and Sunday) with 18 holes attempted each day - with allowances for more orless holes per day based on weather. The Games Committee will take into account Sunday nighttravel distances home when setting the Sunday tee times.

3. Men’s SAA Conference Championship - six-person teams with the best four scores will becounted and scored for each round. For the Women’s Championship - six players may play, but ateam must declare which five players will count prior to the first tee. Teams must have at leastfour golfers to count a team score. To receive the conference AQ, you must meet the NCAAminimum standards. If the winning team does not meet that standard, the second-place team willreceive the conference AQ.

a) The NCAA currently allows Women’s golf teams to play six---declare which five they arescoring before the event—and count four of those five. The only format the NCAA currentlyrecognizes for scoring Women’s NCAA Golf is 5-4. We will allow teams to bring six womenand declare their five on paper at the Thursday night coaches meeting and make known to allwho the sixth player is. If a change is made after the coaches meeting, but before the team’sinitial player tees off the next morning/afternoon, due to illness, injury or circumstancesnecessitating that late change must be documented by the three person SAA Games Committee.Once play has begun the sixth player will be indicated by the Games Committee on thescoreboard and in the Golfstat lineup as an individual for the women.

b) The NCAA rule allows for line-up changes right up until the first player on your team takes aswing to start play of your team. It is recommended that the player not counting in the lineup forthe tournament be listed in the six spot on the scoreboard but it is NOT required. In case of aninjury or a late illness before the first round it may not be possible to use the sixth slot on thescoreboard.

c) There are no qualifying scores for SAA golf with regards to the number 1-5 competitors. Inregard to the 6th player there will be parameters placed on that position. In order to bring anumber six competitor that player has to have competed in a minimum of six rounds during thefall and/or spring season and have a Golfstat documented scoring average of 110 or lower in atleast five rounds in order to play in the six position. We are committed to growing the game of

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women’s golf in the SAA but not at the expense of wearing out our welcome with the hostcourses.

d) When a scoring tent or table is unavailable for every group (at the conclusion of a shotgunstart), scorecards are not official until they are gathered and turned in by the coach to thetournament director/Golfstat inputter, or such an official. The scoring area for a shotgun finishwill be designated by the Games Committee.

4. Additional Information

A. The Games Committee will establish parameters calculated based on travel distance, daylight,weather forecast, etc. in establishing and adjusting tee times to accommodate delays. The GamesCommittee will make daily decisions on the number of holes attempted to be played Friday,Saturday and Sunday to ensure a maximum number of holes can be completed for theChampionship. Every effort will be made to complete 54 holes.

B. The established “start time” is a sliding scale that can be adjusted to accommodate thenumber of holes needed to finish 54 holes, 45 holes, 36 holes or 27 holes for the men’s field. Thestart time will be set on or before Thursday night at the coaches meeting for the championshipseach year. It will be re-evaluated daily throughout the tournament weekend.

C. In the women’s SAA Championship, the NCAA mandates completing rounds in sets of 18hole increments. It is conceivable on a Sunday the men would start a final 9-hole push for a totalof either 27 or 45 holes while the women may finish just 18 or 36 holes if daylight only allowsfor less than a full 18.

D. The SAA Games Committee may meet via phone/email before the event for championshipsdiscussion. The committee should meet as often as needed throughout the extent of theChampionship to address any issues with weather or other delays.

5. Contestants, including the designated coach, are recommended to wear uniforms of the samecolor during competition or practice at the SAA Championship. Walking or Bermuda shorts arepermitted, provided they are team shorts and are of the same color. Slacks or shorts may be wornat the individual’s discretion, provided they are of the same color and are considered the teamuniform. If a student-athlete wears headgear during competition, it must display only aninstitutional, conference or NCAA logo, or no logo. If there is no logo, a coach’s or teammembers’ headgear must be of an institutional color. A manufacturer’s logo may appear on theside or back of the item as long as it conforms to NCAA Bylaw 12.5.3. In the best interest ofintercollegiate golf and the championships, participants must wear appropriate golf attire at thetournament site. Please refer to the host institution’s pre-tournament mailing for the definition ofappropriate attire at the golf course.

6. The host institutions will notify all conference golf coaches by November 1 of each year on alltournament specifics and logistics. To qualify for NCAA standards, the Women’s yardage must

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be at least 5,800 yards. The recommended yardage for Men is a minimum of 6,500 yards for apar 72 to around 7,000 yards.

7. The host coach, host course and the Games Committee will assign practice round times usingarrival time information collected several weeks in advance.

8. First-round pairings will be drawn by the tournament Games Committee / Host Institutionbased upon the head-to-head rankings from Golfstat on the Wednesday the week prior to thechampionship. The three highest ranked teams on Golfstat will play last on the day one.

Second-round pairings will be based upon first-round results with the highest individual scoresplaying first and lowest individual scores playing last. No playing group will include more thanone player from each team in either round if at all possible. A shotgun start may be implementedon any day to accommodate potential weather delays or travel schedules. The Men’s or Women’sGames Committee may elect to alter the pairings as they see fit for pace of play. Ties for teams’pairing positions will be broken by the fifth score after Day One and the two-day totals of thedropped scores for the Championship. If still tied, fourth score is used descending down tonumber one.

10. When available, a scoreboard will be used to record all team and individual scores as roundsare completed. Results will be calculated and forwarded to all coaches and SIDs using Golfstat.

11. All eight SAA member institutions will be responsible for splitting equally all fees associatedwith the tournament. Primarily the golf course and driving range fees will be the bulk of theshared expense. Any ancillary fees associated directly with the tournament would be included.(i.e., rules officials, scoring and scoreboard personnel, Golfstat operator.) Volunteers areencouraged whenever possible at SAA Championship events.

12. Carts or caddies may not be used by participants in the SAA Championships, unless requiredby the course and approved in advance by the SAA Tournament Committee. Golf carts will beprovided for members of the committee, selected tournament officials, rules officials andcoaches. The only exception to these policies would be if the participant is permanently disabled.Then written approval from the NCAA Golf Committee must be submitted to the SAAConference Games Committee requesting the use of an electric golf cart two weeks prior to thestart of the championships.

A. Pull Carts for competitors in Women’s and Men’s NCAA golf have been approved forplay for regular season, SAA Championship and NCAA play. It is up to the institution tosecure the non-motorized push / pull cart.

B. Spectator carts have been approved for ALL spectators at SAA Championships. The hostclub and the host institution may set the price at their discretion. The host course has thefinal say on carts for spectators on a daily basis at their discretion.

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13. Unsportsmanlike Conduct (i.e. profanity, club tossing or throwing, willful acts of defacingthe golf course.). In addition to the following policies, coaches, administrators andstudent-athletes shall be subject to the misconduct policies described in the Division III GeneralSection and Bylaws 31.02.3, and 31.1.8 through 31.1.9. During the round, defined as from thetime the player makes his first stroke until the scorecard is submitted in the box, for the firstoffense of any act of unsportsmanlike conduct (i.e., willful acts of defacing the golf course, clubthrowing or breaking, abusive language, violation of the tobacco policy, or any acts contrary tothe spirit of the rules of golf) during the championships, the student-athlete and coach will benotified immediately on the golf course and provided a warning. The offending institution’sdirector of athletics could receive a letter from the SAA informing the institution that one of itsstudent-athletes had been warned for unsportsmanlike conduct during the championships. Thesecond offense of unsportsmanlike conduct will result in disqualification for that round and anyfurther unsportsmanlike conducts will result in disqualification for the championships. However,the committee shall have the right, without warning, to disqualify an individual for that round (orchampionships) for any flagrant act of unsportsmanlike conduct. Notwithstanding any penaltyassessed during the round, the golf committee may impose other penalties that it deemsappropriate pursuant to Bylaw 31.1.9.1 as described in the Division III General Section.

A. Any player disqualified or withdrawing from any round will not be allowed to count hisor her individual score towards his or her team’s score for that round. If a major breach ofthe rules occurs the Games Committee and Rules Committee may disqualify at theirdiscretion. The tournament Rules Committee will address further participation. If theplayer were allowed to continue, the player’s subsequent rounds would be allowed tocount towards his or her team daily score.

14. Per NCAA Bylaw 17.29, member institutions shall conduct all of their intercollegiatecompetition in accordance with the playing rules of the Association in all sports for which theNCAA develops playing rules. For those sports in which the Association follows rules that aredeveloped by other governing bodies and modified by the governing sports committee, theadopted playing rules shall be used. The governing sports committee will not consider anyresults for selection purposes that are not played in accordance with NCAA rules, or those rulesadopted by an outside organization. The NCAA Division III Men’s Golf Championships shall beconducted according to the USGA Rules of Golf with the exceptions listed below. Rules of Golfdecisions shall be final and cannot be appealed. The NCAA rule sheet shall be used during thechampionships. Advice – In accordance with the Note to Rule 8 of the Rules of Golf, each teammay appoint two coaches, whom may give advice to members of that team provided that:

A. A designated coach is defined as a member of the institutions coaching staff and is arecognized member as by institution’s athletic department and/or an employee of theinstitution to perform coaching duties and who serves in that capacity on a volunteer orpaid basis; and must be identified to the committee before giving advice; and must wearthe identification band, when provided. Note: Such person is considered an outsideagency and not part of his player’s side. They should give advice in a private manner thatdoes not unduly delay play. They should give advice to, and receive advice from, onlycompeting members of their team and not from any other representative of their team,

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any other team’s players or coaches or any other outside agencies. If, during a stipulatedround, such person does not act in accordance with the Note to this Condition, hisappointment is subject to revocation and he would be required to leave the course for theremainder of the round.

B. Prior to each round the head coach for the Women’s and Men’s team(s) from eachinstitution must submit to the Tournament Director/host the name(s) of designatedcoaches for each respective team. A maximum of two coaches may be listed and utilizedas “designated coaches” and there may not be any substitutions of coaches during around. The Tournament Director/host will be given a designated wristband to wear duringthe round.

C. It is permissible for a coach to be listed as a “designated coach” for their women’s andmen’s teams and to move back and forth between their teams and offer advice. Thiscoach will wear two wristbands to identify they coach both teams. It is permissible tochange the name(s) of who are the “designated coaches” from round to round. But notduring a round.

D. A maximum of two carts per institution for schools sponsoring two teams. Fans, parents,or players (acting as fans) cannot drive a “coach cart.” A coach is not considered part ofthe player’s side and therefore is not directly subject to the Rules of Golf; nevertheless,there are certain actions that a coach could take that might result in a penalty — e.g., if acoach’s actions were sanctioned tacitly or otherwise by the player, he might be penalized.Some examples of actions by his coach that could result in a penalty to the player wouldbe: improving a line of play; moving loose impediments or obstructions in violation ofthe Rules; disregard for the provisions of Rule 14-2, assistance and violation of puttinggreen and flagstick restrictions. Responsibilities of a competitor in this regard aresupported by Decisions 13-2/4, 13-2/33 and 13-2/36 of the Decisions on the Rules ofGolf. In the best interest of the competition, and in an effort to minimize any difficultsituations, the golf committee trusts that all competitors, coaches and officials respect theprinciple of obeisance to the Rules, proper conduct and fair play in the spirit of the game.

E. At the championships, the two designated coaches must be recognized institutionalrepresentatives. Neither of the two designated coaches may be a current student-athlete ora parent who is not also employed by the institution. A single cart will be assigned toeach institution’s designated coaches and individuals during practice and competitionrounds. The cart is to be used by the designated coaches only and should not be used totransport spectators, team personnel, athletics administrators, student-athletes, golf clubsor golf bags during competition rounds. Institutions will be responsible for the expense ofa second coach if they choose to send one to the championship.

15. Electronic measuring devices calculating distance and slope are permitted for use during thepractice rounds. During the competitive rounds, devices that measure other variables arepermissible and long as the slope feature is turned off.

16. Cell phone usage. Coaches may use cell phones. Players may use cell phones for calls indangerous situations when their group needs immediate assistance. They can call a coach, theclubhouse, a rules official, etc to report a dangerous situation with an animal, lightning, damage

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to the course, etc. The advent of “live player entry scoring” now has the players (one in eachgroup) with their phones in their hands for a few seconds after each hole. There is no texting,social media, personal calls or any general abuse of the privilege of entering scores allowed forthe live scoring tournament enhancement for our SAA Championship. During the SAATournament the First Offense: Warning; 2nd offense: 2 stroke penalty. A third offense wouldresult in a DQ from that round and any subsequent rounds as well.

II. Conference Championship - Procedures for Delays

In women’s SAA golf championship only:

1. If a hole-by-hole playoff is not possible, a tie for the overall team championship will beresolved by a match of scorecards. The overall team champion will be determined on the basis ofthe best total team score (using only the scorecards from the four scores that count as a part ofthe “daily team score”) for the last nine holes played during the final round of the competition.If the tying teams have the same score for the last nine holes played, the winner will bedetermined on the basis of the best total score for the last six holes played. If the tying teamshave the same score for the last six holes played, the winner will be determined on the basis ofthe best team score for the last three holes played. If the tying teams have the same score for thelast three holes played, a winner will be determined on the basis of their final hole played.

If the tying teams are still tied, the tiebreaker will revert back to the first nine holes played. If thetying teams are still tied, the tiebreaker will revert back to the first six holes played. If teams arestill tied, the tiebreaker will be the first three holes played. Finally, if ties have not been broken,the winner will be determined by total score on the first hole played. If the final round is playedas a shotgun start. Holes 10-18 are deemed to be the last nine holes played unless otherwisenoted in or before the coach’s meeting. The SAA Golf Games Committee may declare the finalnine holes to be different for the Men’s and Women’s championship if it is deemed morepractical. If it is not noted before the first round begins, holes 10-18 will be deemed the last nineholes.

*NOTE: Make sure to designate in the Coaches Meeting the “final nine holes” for both themen’s and women’s Championships. ** Designate playoff hole order if possible in the coachesmeeting.

If possible the host institution, the Games Committee and the course Director of Golf should“try” to preset the playoff holes in advance at the Coaches Meeting. As coaches we are awaredelays, weather, member-play behind our event can force changes to playoff holes. Dependingon number of teams or players the course head professional and/or Director of Golf (or hisdesignee) will have final say where we start our playoff hole sequence.

Important Note: If a team or teams involved in the tie-breaker have their fourth and fifth scorestied for the final round, making it difficult to determine who would be the fourth score for the“daily team score” the procedure will be as follows. The player, in a tie, who started the finalround in the lower position (closest to the number one position in the lineup), will be deemed to

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be the fourth score for purposes of putting together the daily team four scores. If the two or moreteammates are tied from the second round, revert back to the first round and if they are still tiedthe committee will revert back to the original starting position before the tournament began. It ismandatory for the teams’ lineup to be reshuffled according to scores with ties amongstteammates deferring to the previous days position in the lineup. If we are unable to re-pair forthe second and final rounds due to weather, daylight, etc. the fourth player will be determined byscore, not the position he or she is currently paired in due to delays.

If after using the eight different tie-breaker procedures after the final round, and the two or moreteams are still tied, the SAA will award the NCAA Automatic Qualifier to the highest rankedteam according to the GolfStat NCAA head-to-head rankings from the previous Wednesdaymorning directly before the SAA Championship weekend.

III. Conference Championship - Procedures for Playoffs

It will be important to complete the SAA Championship on Sunday and award the AQ. Factorsnot limited to darkness, weather and distance to travel back to our campuses that particular yearfor the playoff teams all will be carefully measured by the Games Committee.

1. Tie Breaker Policy - If the tie is broken with “actual play” on the course the winner of theplayoff will be the sole SAA Conference Champion and receive the SAA Conference AQ. TheSAA office will award points for the All-Sports Trophy based on the results at the conclusion ofthe on course playoff. Points will be dispersed on the final results. If a tie has to be settled by anystage of the “non-golf” tie breaking system in place at the current SAA championship the two, ormore, teams involved will both/all be declared Co-Conference champions. A second, third ormore championship trophies will be provided by the SAA office to all teams tied forthe championship. They will each receive full recognition as conference champions. The SAAConference AQ will be awarded to the winner of the tie-breaker in place for the championship. *

NOTE: Currently, the men and women’s event use DIFFERENT tie- breaker methods voted on inApril 2014 in Atlanta.

Non-playoff team tie breaker procedures for men:

1. Cumulative total of the non-counting scores from each playoff team’s fifth score. (Theonly time we default to using the sixth score is if the fifth score is unavailable)

2. Highest cumulative individual total. (Which means: the fifth highest cumulativeindividual total on your scoreboard)

3. Second highest cumulative individual total. (Which means: the fourth highest cumulativeindividual total on your scoreboard)

4. The third highest cumulative individual total. (Which means: the third……)

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5. The fourth highest cumulative individual total. (Which means: the second…..)

6. The fifth highest cumulative individual total. (Which means: the lowest cumulativeindividual total)

7. If still tied, the men’s champion would be decided by reverting back to the women’s SAAprocedure of matching scorecards in sets of nine-six-three-one, etc. See Appendix A forformat.

Non-playoff tie breaker procedures for womenA.

The women’s coaches were concerned about injury, illness or SAA Tournament rostersize making the fifth score impractical. The women are using the USGA non-playingscorecard match. The men voted in April 2014 to use the fifth score (of the six) knowingif a fifth score was unavailable due to illness, injury, WD, etc. the team would be allowedto count their sixth score against the other(s) fifth scores in a non-playoff tie-breaker –matching scorecards.

B. If the weather cooperates for the final round, and assuming a mid-afternoon finish,plentyof time will remain to conduct a playoff to determine the conference team champion andthe NCAA automatic qualifier. The player positions may not be changed for the playoff.Each group will have a marker or a rules official or a member of the Games Committee toofficiate. This official may be a Conference coach not involved in the playoff

C. If two teams are tied the SAA Games Committee will use the NCAA Championshipapproved playoff procedures and pairings. SEE APPENDIX A. The groups will play onehole at a time and settle the scores comparing the low four scores. If teams are still tied,in the same pairings and order, the next playoff hole will be started.

D. If three or more teams are in a playoff, the teams will be spread over the appropriatenumber of holes to accommodate simultaneous play. After each hole scores are gatheredand tabulated for the teams and a winner is declared or play continues in the same formatat the next hole. SEE APPENDIX B for multi-team NCAA playoff procedures. Thenumber one players are on 18, the number two players on 17, the number three player ison number 16, and so on…The Director of Golf at the course has the final say in holesused for the actual playoff.

E. Golfstat does not recognize ties broken in playoffs for individuals. The SAA GamesCommittee will make every effort to complete the individual playoff for medalist andSAA Individual Tournament Medalist on the course. If time or travel restrictions orweather does not permit a playoff, Co-Tournament Medalists will be recognized.

F. If the men or women’s SAA Player of the Year or SAA Newcomer of the Year are tiedafter the Championship, per 2018 decision, the tie will be broken with their Golfstat

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ranking. The highest ranked player according to GolfStat PRIOR to the SAAChampionship shall break the tie.

IV. Officials

1. The Games Committees will be appointed by the Men’s and Women’s Golf Councils and eachcommittee will consist of a minimum of three coaches from member institutions, including thehost institution if possible for both championships. This committee will be appointed one year inadvance at the conference championships at the regular meeting of the SAA Golf Council. Allgolf championship decisions are to be decided by this committee, in cooperation with theCommissioner.

2. A minimum of one certified tournament rules official on course per day is recommended andshould be provided by the host school. If possible this head rules official should attend thecoaches meeting prior to the start of competition. A Rules Committee will be created at eachSAA Championship site. It is recommended that it be made up of, but not limited to, rulesofficials, selected coaches, host golf professionals, etc.

1. USGA Rule 6-7 states, in part: “The player shall play without undue delay and inaccordance with any pace of play guidelines that the committee may establish “and thereafter prescribes penalties for slow play. Allotted Time — When play is in groups ofthree, groups will be required to play at the pace of play established by the committee.

2. The type of equipment (i.e., balls, clubs) to be used shall be determined by theindividual team and must be acceptable under USGA rules. The USGA one-ball rule(brand) will NOT be in effect. Golf bags should have the name or logo of the school onthem. Players and coaches will be required to use nonmetal spiked shoes during SAAchampionships competition.

V. Travel Squad Size

1. Travel squad size is limited to six players in uniform. Selected institutions may use playingmarkers to balance the pairings and even the field.

VI. Coaches Meeting

1. All Men’s and Women’s coaches will meet annually at the SAA Golf Championships to makerecommendations to the conference for changes in policies. Men’s and Women’s coaches areencouraged to meet separately to discuss matters pertaining to their respective championship.Then both groups will meet in a combined meeting. Every effort will be made to conduct thecoaches meetings prior to the beginning of each championship. It is recommended to be held onthe Thursday, the practice round day.

VII. Awards

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1. The conference office will provide championship trophies to the championship teams and anindividual plaque for both the Men’s and Women’s Player of the Year, Coaches of the Year andNewcomers of the Year.

2. If the championships are completely canceled due to weather, the Pre-Tournament GolfCommittee will select golfers to an All-Conference team, based largely on GolfStat performance.A First Team made up of five players, a Second Team made up of five players and an HonorableMention Team of five players would be selected.

3. The medalist of the conference championship will be declared Tournament IndividualMedalist. If there is a tie between two or more players, and a sudden death playoff is notplayed, the tied players will be declared Co-Tournament Individual Medalists.

A. In addition, a SAA Pre-Tournament Team is selected by the three-member SAAPre-Tournament All-Conference Committee. If any of those players do not finish withinthe top 10 and ties, they will be named either First Team or Second Team at the postround awards ceremony. The pre-tournament players are ranked according to theirGolfStat ranking as First Team, Second Team, or Honorable Mention before thetournament begins and adjusted after the championship for the post-round awards.

B. Commemorative SAA Conference All-Tournament flags (15 for Men and 15 for Womenis recommended) and will be purchased by the host school for the awards ceremony forthe All SAA All-Conference Teams.

C. The host institution will contact Prestige Flags at 800-876-5155 or www.prestigeflag.comand re-order commemorative SAA Flags for the men and women’s: Player of the Year,Coach of the Year, Newcomer of the Year and the two individual medalists.

D. If two or more players are tied for SAA Player of the Year and/or SAA Newcomer of theYear the tie will be broken by using the lowest GolfStat previous individual ranking.

4. The same pre-tournament SAA All-Conference committee will also compile a list ofnominees for SAA Newcomer-of-the-Year. Coaches may nominate their freshman/transferon the same form as the pre-tournament All-Conference team nominees are made. Thecommittee will rank the nominees for the Newcomers prior to the tournament and the committeewill name the Newcomer-of-the-Year at the conclusion of the championship based on their yearlong performance with some emphasis on play at the conference championship, if necessary.

5. The conference Coach-of-the-Year will be managed by the head coaches and a decision willbe made pre or post Tournament. Coaches may not vote for themselves.

6. An awards ceremony featuring the team champions, team orders of finish and top individualfinishers and ties for men and women along with Honorable Mention will take place at the golfcourse immediately following the conclusion of play. The SAA Men’s and Women’sPlayers-of-the-Year, Men’s and Women’s Individual Tournament Medalist, Men’s and Women’s

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Coach of the Year and the SAA Newcomer-of-the-Year and all 16 All-Sportsmanship recipientswill also be recognized. Teams are encouraged to remain for this ceremony. The host institutionor Chairman of the Games Committee is responsible for alerting the SAA office of the individualwinners for each award.

7. The SAA office will also administer a conference Golfer of the Week award. The Golfer ofthe Week will be administered in the spring. Nominations are due by noon (Eastern) onWednesday weekly and the winners announced by Thursday at noon (Eastern). A minimum ofhalf the conference programs must complete for the award to be awarded that week. If less thanhalf of the conference programs complete, all rounds played prior to the next weekly award maycount in the nomations.

9. An All-SAA Sportsmanship team will be selected the week following the end of the SAAregular season. Each team will elect one member from their team who displays goodsportsmanship throughout the season to be a member of the All-SAA Sportsmanship team. Theseindividuals will be selected by the team and head coach, with the head coach sending theselection to the conference office at the end of the season. Only one student athlete from eachteam may be selected. All institutions will have one representative, with final team choiceselected by the head coach. The award will be publicized with other conference awards at theend of the season.

VIII. Sportsmanship and Crowd Control

1. All coaches, student-athletes and spectators shall observe the conference policy on crowdcontrol and sportsmanship, which should be distributed at the conference championship andpublished in the conference championship program.

2. Spectators should remain on cart paths or in the rough, and approximately 15 yards from theplayers. There may be no communication between players and spectators that could be deemedadvice of any nature for the duration of the 18 holes. All institutional personnel, includingassistant coaches, with the exception of the designated coach, are considered spectators.

APPENDIX A

Tiebreaker

Sudden Death Tie Breaking ProceduresTeam ties shall be broken by a sudden-death playoff counting the low four scores of six relativeto par on each hole. Play shall continue with new scoring on each successive hole until a winneris determined. The games committee will determine the starting holes. If a playoff involves morethan two teams, a shotgun format shall be used. The team playoff will be conducted first, withthe playoff for individual spots to follow immediately after the conclusion of the team playoff.Once the shotgun sudden-death format is started, that format shall be used until a winner isdetermined.

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The games committee reserves the right to start a two-team playoff in a shotgun, five-hole formatif weather or daylight reduce the time remaining.

Sudden Death Playoff ProceduresTeams will draw for positions. For a two-team playoff, the winner of the draw shall have theoption of the A or B positions set forth below. For a playoff involving more than two teams, theteams shall assume the drawn letter position (A, B, C, etc.) set forth below:

Two teams (A & B; tee off alternately)#5A, #5B, #4A, #4B, #3A playoff hole #1 #3B, #2A, #2B, #1A, #1B playoff hole #1

Three TeamsA #6 B #6 C #6 playoff hole 6A #5 B #5 C #5 playoff hole 5A #4 B #4 C #4 playoff hole 4A #3 B #3 C #3 playoff hole 3A #2 B #2 C #2 playoff hole 2A #1 B #1 C #1 playoff hole 1

Four TeamsA #6 B #6 C #6 D #6 playoff hole 6A #5 B #5 C #5 D #5 playoff hole 5A #4 B #4 C #4 D #4 playoff hole 4A #3 B #3 C #3 D #3 playoff hole 3A #2 B #2 C #2 D #2 playoff hole 2A #1 B #1 C #1 D #1 playoff hole 1

Players will play the numbered position they held at the start of the final round.

Women’s Sudden Death Playoff ProceduresTeams will draw for positions. For a two-team playoff, the winner of the draw shall have theoption of the A or B positions set forth below. For a playoff involving more than two teams, theteams shall assume the drawn letter position (A, B, C, etc.) set forth below:

Two teams (A & B; tee off alternately)#5A, #5B, #4A, #4B, #3A playoff hole #1 #3B, #2A, #2B, #1A, #1B playoff hole #1

APPENDIX B

Women’s Sudden Death SHOTGUN FORMAT (Women using five players count four)

For a playoff involving more than two teams, the teams shallassume the drawn letter position (A, B, C, etc.) set forth below:

Three Teams

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A #5 B #5 C #5 playoff hole 5A #4 B #4 C #4 playoff hole 4A #3 B #3 C #3 playoff hole 3A #2 B #2 C #2 playoff hole 2A #1 B #1 C #1 playoff hole 1

Four TeamsA #5 B #5 C #5 D #5 playoff hole 5A #4 B #4 C #4 D #4 playoff hole 4A #3 B #3 C #3 D #3 playoff hole 3A #2 B #2 C #2 D #2 playoff hole 2A #1 B #1 C #1 D #1 playoff hole 1

Five TeamsA #5 B #5 C #5 D #5 E #5 playoff hole 5A #4 B #4 C #4 D #4 E #4 playoff hole 4A #3 B #3 C #3 D #3 E #3 playoff hole 3A #2 B #2 C #2 D #2 E #2 playoff hole 2A #1 B #1 C #1 D #1 E #1 playoff hole 1

Players will play the numbered position they held at the start of the final round.

The format in pairings for a playoff of six teams or more shall be consistent with the foregoingformat as determined by the games committee.

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Men Lacrosse

I. Regular Season Contest Regulations

1. The conference champion will be determined by a postseason conference tournament featuringall eight teams seeded from the regular season. Conference members sponsoring Men’s lacrosseshall compete in a single round-robin schedule (7 games) developed by the conference officeusing the modified travel partner system.

Travel partners are:Berry/OglethorpeCentre/SewaneeBirmingham Southern/MillsapsHendrix/Rhodes

2. The conference champion will be determined by the winner of the postseason tournament andthe champion receives an automatic bid to the NCAA Championship. However, a regular seasonchampion will be named and the All-Sports points awarded for final standings in the regularseason.

3. If a tie occurs in the final standings, the following tie-breaker system will be used todetermine the participants in the conference tournament:

1. Head-to-head play2. Goals surrendered vs. league opponents3. Coin flip

[note: if more than two teams are tied once the above tie-breaker protocol is used and only twoteams remain, we will revert back to head-to-head to resolve the final tie]

All uniforms and equipment must be compliant with NCAA rules and regulations. The hometeam will wear the white or light-colored home uniform. Visiting teams should check with thehome team prior to every game to ensure a mix-up does not occur.

5. Schools must follow NCAA guidelines for properly outlining field of play.

II. Scheduling

1. No conference games will be scheduled the first two weekends of the season.

2. Consideration should be given to special pregame and halftime activities (Parent’s Weekend,Senior Day, etc.). Those activities should begin early enough so it does not affect the startingtimes of games.

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3. Game times may be adjusted to accommodate travel by the visiting teams or other reasonspertaining to missed class time and campus activities for the home teams, but only throughconsultation with the conference office. A noon away game is the option for the opposing teamto eliminate teams from returning to campus late at night Sunday or early the morning Monday.

4. Teams should set pre-game clocks to end approximately five minutes prior to the scheduledmatch time to allow for the National Anthem (when applicable) and starting lineups. Thisprotocol will allow for games to start on time.

5. If an institution travels to a game site and weather (or other factors out of human controls)occurs and prevents the completion of a series, the visiting team may not travel back to theoriginal site to make up games. Once a team arrives on site and then departs, the games may notbe played. Modifications and or changes made to game dates and/or times that both parties agreeto, and with the approval of the conference office may occur prior to departure, or once on thegame site. Both teams and both ADs must agree.

If a game is played and halted, that game may be continued the next day only if the continuationoccurs during the time that the visiting team had already planned to be there. Otherwise, thegame will either be a shortened game and count in the standings if it meets the sport rules, or willbe a no contest. All reasonable efforts will be made to play all games, but the SAA supports apolicy to lessen the added cost and potential of classes missed that make ups create in aconference as geographically challenged as ours.

III. Officials

Three officials must be present at all conference games (regular season and postseason) and willbe provided by the host institution.

IV. Ejections

A report on any ejections from athletics events involving conference teams must be reported tothe conference office within 48 hours after the contest by the host institution. If the contest is anon-conference event, the member institution is responsible for notifying the conference office ofany ejections within 48 hours. An ejection could result in disciplinary action by the individual’sinstitution and/or the commissioner. The Athletics Directors Advisory Council will serve toassist the commissioner on any such rulings involving potential suspensions of student-athletesand/or coaches as it relates to potential violations of the SAA Code of Ethics.

V. Travel Squad Size

Travel squad size is limited to the NCAA Championship maximum plus 10 percent, rounded upfor players in uniform for regular season and conference tournament games. Games that do not

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require an overnight stay or that are played during institutional breaks are waived from thislimitation.

VI. Scouting

1. Coaches are permitted to scout and provide information within the conference, as long as norecording devices are used.

2. Conference members may request any two games from fellow conference members prior totheir scheduled contest. It is mandatory that all conference members comply with the tapeexchange policy.

3. The home team is responsible for filming each conference game for the visiting team and isalso responsible for supplying film exchange to the visiting team as quickly as possible at theconclusion of game, unless otherwise agreed upon by the visiting coach.

4. Conference members may not provide video on conference teams to non-conference members.SAA teams may provide any other form of scouting to opposing teams.

VII. Coaches Meeting

1. All coaches will meet annually by conference call to make recommendations to the AthleticsDirectors Council for changes in these policies. Coaches are encouraged to join the USILA andattend the annual convention.

VIII. Conference Postseason Tournament

1. FormatQuarterfinals - 3-seed hosts 6-seed; 4-seed hosts 5-seedSemifinals - 1-seed hosts – 1-seed vs 4/5 winner; 2-seed hosts 3/6 winnerChampionship, Saturday or Sunday – winner of two semifinal matches.

2. It is the responsibility of the host school to designate an agency/supervisor of officials toassign officials for all games in the conference tournament.

3. The higher seed will wear its home uniform for all games.

4. The Conference Championship host will staff all games. All games will be videotaped by stafffrom the host institution working the games. The host institution is responsible for the sportsinformation operations for the tournament. All schools are encouraged to travel with at least oneNATA certified trainer to the conference tournament.

5. During the Championship Weekend the host team provides film of the first game played to thewinning team of the second game played in the final four, so they have the opportunity to watchfilm prior to the Sunday championship game.

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IX. Awards

1. The conference will provide a championship trophy to the conference postseason tournamentchampion.

2. The conference office will administer the selection process for All-Conference Teams,Defensive and Offensive Players of the Year, Newcomer of the Year and Coach of the Year.

3. The online nomination process for All-SAA opens at 6:00 p.m. (EST) Monday after the finalregular season contests and will remain open until 8:00 a.m. (EST) on Wednesday. A conferencecall will take place during the week to discuss voting. Coaches voting will be conducted onlinefrom Wednesday at 9:00 a.m. (EST) until Thursday at 6:30 p.m. (EST) the week prior to theconference tournament. Each coach will nominate players from his own team based on order offinish, to be placed on the final ballots.

First Place Team (12)Second Place (11)Third Place (10)Fourth Place (9)Fifth through Eighth (8)

Players will appear on the ballot grouped with players of similar position with individual overallstatistics and conference statistics listed on the ballot. A coach may rank his own players in orderif he desires to assist the other coaches in the voting process. Coaches may not vote forthemselves or for their own players on the final ballot.

4. Each First, Second Team and Honorable Mention All-SAA will be composed of 13 players(one goalkeeper, three attack men, three midfielders, three defensemen and one long stickmidfielder, one short stick defensive midfielder, and one faceoff specialist. To select theAll-Conference Teams, each position will have a separate ballot where the coaches rank theplayers. The highest point-getting goalkeeper will be named to the First Team with the nexthighest being placed on the Second Team and the third highest Honorable Mention. The top threepoint-getting attack men make the First Team, the next three the Second Team and the next threeHonorable Mention, etc. to fill out the 13-member First Team,13-member Second Team and13-member Honorable Mention All-Conference Teams.

5. Defensive and Offensive Players of the Year and the Newcomer of the Year will be selectedthrough coaches voting on separate online ballots. Each coach may nominate one player fromtheir squad for each of these awards. The Newcomer of the Year will be a player in his first yearat a conference school (freshman or someone playing in his first year as a member of the team).Voting for Coach of the Year will be handled via email to the conference office. Coaches may notvote for themselves.

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6. Coaches will discuss the nominees and vote for every All-SAA award on a conference callwith their peers.

7. The conference will announce All-SAA Conference selections the week following the SAAChampionship.

8. Every week along with conference statistics, there will be an Offensive and Defensive Playerof the Week selected. Nominations for Players of the Week should be submitted to theconference office by 1:00 p.m. (EST) each Monday. The conference office will announce theSAA Players of the Week later in the day each Monday. A minimum of half the conferenceprograms must complete for the award to be awarded that week. If less than half of theconference programs complete, all games played prior to the next weekly award may count in thenomations.

9. An All-Conference Sportsmanship team will be selected the week following the SAAchampionship tournament. Each team will elect one member from their team who displays goodsportsmanship throughout the season to be a member of the All-SAA Sportsmanship team. Theseindividuals will be selected by the team and head coach, with the head coach sending theselection to the conference office at the end of the season. Only one student-athlete from eachteam may be selected. All institutions will have one representative, with final team choiceselected by the head coach. The award will be publicized with other conference awards at theend of the season.

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Women’s Lacrosse

I. Regular Season Contest Regulations

1. During the season, conference members sponsoring Women’s lacrosse shall compete in asingle round-robin schedule. There will be a conference championship tournament hosted by thetop seed institution. Every effort shall be made to play all tournament games on the scheduledday. Should it become necessary (due to unplayable conditions - e.g. inclement weather, etc.), ahigher seed may advance to the next round in order to complete the tournament. If thetournament has started and cannot be completed, the highest remaining seed shall be declared thewinner of the conference tournament.

2. In the event of a tie for any place in the standings, the following procedures shall be used tobreak the tie. In the case of ties among three or more teams, the criteria shall be applied in orderuntil a team is pulled out. At that point, the procedure reverts back to step No. 1 to continueranking the remainder.

1. Head-to-head competition between the tied teams (official SAA games only, if teamsplay each other more than once)

2. Goal differential between the tied teams with a maximum of a six-goal differential.The team with the lowest goal differential will be pulled into the lower seed for the tiedteams.

3. Conference goal differential with a maximum of a six-goal difference.

4. Coin toss or draw by the conference commissioner

3. All uniforms and equipment must be compliant with NCAA rules and regulations. The hometeam will wear the white or light-colored home uniform. Visiting teams should check with thehome team prior to every game to ensure a mix-up does not occur.

4. Schools must follow NCAA guidelines for properly outlining the field of play.

5. If an institution travels to a game site and weather (or other factors out of human controls)occurs and prevents the completion of a series, the visiting team may not travel back to theoriginal site to make up games. Once a team arrives on site and then departs, the games may notbe played. Modifications and or changes made to game dates and/or times that both parties agreeto, and with the approval of the conference office may occur prior to departure, or once on thegame site. Both teams and both ADs must agree.

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6. If an institution travels to a game site and weather, or other factors out of human control occur,and prevent the completion of a contest, the visiting team is not allowed to return to the originalsite to make up games. Once a team arrives on site and then departs, the games may not beplayed. Modifications to game dates and/or times that both parties agree to and are approved bythe conference office may occur prior to departure or once on the game site. Both teams and bothADs must agree with the modified plan.

If a game is played and halted, the game may be continued the following day only if thecontinuation occurs during the time the visiting team had planned to be at the game site.Otherwise, the game will either be shortened and count in the standings if it meets the sportrules, or it will be a no contest.

All reasonable efforts will be made to play all games, but the SAA supports this policy andpractice that lessens added cost and the potential of missed classes.

II. Scheduling

1. The conference championship will be a six-team tournament. The No. 1 seed will host the No.4 vs. 5 quarterfinal game and then play the winner of that game at home in the semifinals. TheNo. 2 seed will host the No. 3 vs. 6 quarterfinal game and then play the winner of that game athome in the semifinals.

1. The quarterfinal and semifinal games will take place on a Friday and a Sunday unlessaffected by a holiday.

2. The remaining top seed will host the championship match.3. The main championship weekend for all sports will be the last weekend in April. If the

last day of April falls on either Friday or Saturday, that weekend will be designated as thedesignated main championship weekend. Exceptions will be made for sportschampionships that play their quarterfinals and semifinals during that main weekend. Inthat case, and with only two teams remaining, those teams can decide an appropriate dayand time to play their championship contest(s). If those teams cannot determine a time toplay, the default day and time will be the day of NCAA selection at noon.

2. The first draft of the conference schedule will be determined by the commissioner andreturned to coaches no later than September 1. Remaining games will be scheduled by individualcoaches and submitted to the commissioner no later than February 1 one year in advance.

3. Consideration should be given to special pregame and halftime activities (Parent’s Weekend,Senior Day, etc.). Those activities should begin early enough so it does not affect the startingtimes of games.

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4. Game times may be adjusted to accommodate travel by the visiting teams or other reasonspertaining to missed class time and campus activities for the home teams, but only throughconsultation with the conference office.

5. Pre-game clocks will be set in accordance with the IWLCA and NCAA pregame protocols.

6. Game dates and sites may be adjusted for travel and financial reasons if both parties and theconference office agree. It may be feasible for conference matches to be played at a neutral site ifit is agreeable with both teams and conference office.

7. In the event of inclement weather that adversely affect the suitability of field conditions, thefollowing people will be involved in determining whether the field is safe for competition:athletics director or senior woman administrator from the host school (required), both coaches(required), facilities manager (recommended), umpire/officials (recommended), and/or athleticstrainer (recommended).

III. Officials

Three officials must be present at all conference games and will be provided by the hostinstitution.

The SAA office will hire an official assignor for women’s lacrosse. This will help secure the bestrated officials for the SAA Tournament and regular season.

COA certified Collegiate rated officials to be used as field officials for all SAA Tournamentgames:

IV. Ejections

A report on any ejections from athletics events involving conference teams must be reported tothe conference office within 48 hours after the contest by the host institution. If the contest is anon-conference event, the member institution is responsible for notifying the conference office ofany ejections within 48 hours. An ejection could result in disciplinary action by the individual’sinstitution and/or the commissioner. The Athletics Directors Advisory Council will serve toassist the commissioner on any such rulings involving potential suspensions of student-athletesand/or coaches as it relates to potential violations of the SAA Code of Ethics.

V. Travel Squad Size

Travel squad size is limited to the NCAA Division III Championship roster maximum plus 10percent rounded up for all regular season and conference tournament games. Games that do notrequire an overnight stay or that are played during institutional breaks are waived from thislimitation.

VI. Scouting

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1. Coaches are permitted to scout and provide information within the conference, as long as norecording devices are used.

2. Mandatory that all teams use the service designated for the IWLCA open exchange as well assubscribing to the conference breakdown library. All coaches are responsible for communicatingany difficulties uploading their game film in accordance with the IWLCA Film ExchangeGuidelines.

Any delays need to be reported to all SAA coaches for any game issues (conference ornon-conference) as soon as possible. The main concern is ensuring that games go to both theopen exchange as well as being submitted for breakdown to the conference exchangesimultaneously. Any issues should be brought to the attention of the offending coach as soon aspossible so they are aware of the issue.

3. The home team is responsible for filming each conference game for the visiting team.

4. Conference members may NOT provide video or scouting reports on conference teams tonon-conference members.

VII. Coaches Meeting

All coaches will meet annually by conference call to make recommendations to the AthleticsDirectors Council for changes in these policies. Coaches are encouraged to join the IWLCA,keeping in mind that membership is a requirement for All-Region/All-American honors.

VIII. Awards

1. The conference will provide a championship trophy to the conference champion.

2. The conference office will administer the selection process for All-Conference Teams,Defensive and Offensive Players of the Year, Newcomer of the Year, and Coach of the Year.

3.) Coaches will nominate players via the league’s online awards system. Coaches may nominateup to eight players for the All-Conference Team, while the top two finishers may each nominate10 players.

In addition, coaches will follow current All-American restrictions regarding listing previousyear’s accolades. Player position should also follow the IWLCA Positional Definitions asdefined for All-Region /All-American.

4.) Players will be separated on each ballot by position. A conference call will take place duringthe week to discuss voting. Coaches will vote for three attackers, five midfielders, threedefenders, one goalie, and two at-large players for the first-team and the same for the

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second-team in order to form two 14-player teams. Each coach will have the opportunity to name2 players to Honorable Mention forming, at most, a 14-player honorable mention team.

5.) Coaches will vote via a conference call for All-SAA Teams. The SAA chair will lead the call.Voting will begin with all major awards followed by placement of teams. The call will end withthe naming of Honorable Mention. The SAA chair will turn in the selected teams by email to theconference office.

6.) Major awards: Defensive and Offensive Players of the Year, and Newcomer of the Year willbe selected via coaches. Each coach may nominate one player from their squad for each of theseawards. The Newcomer of the Year will be a player in her first season of collegiate lacrosse. TheCoach of the Year selection will be handled by email to the conference office. Coaches may notvote for themselves or their own players. Major awards will be discussed and voted on in thecoaches conference call.

7. The conference will announce All-SAA Teams the week following the conferencechampionship.

8. Every week, along with conference statistics, there will be an Offensive and Defensive Playerof the Week selected. Nominations for Players of the Week should be submitted to theconference office by 1:00 p.m. (EST) each Monday during the season. The conference office willname Players of the Week later in the day each Monday. A minimum of half the conferenceprograms must complete for the award to be awarded that week. If less than half of theconference programs complete, all games played prior to the next weekly award may count in thenomations.

9. An All-SAA Sportsmanship team will be selected the week following the SAA championshiptournament. Each team will elect one member from their team who displays good sportsmanshipthroughout the season to be a member of the All-SAA Sportsmanship team. These individualswill be selected by the team and head coach, with the head coach sending theselection to the conference office at the end of the season. Only one student-athlete from eachteam may be selected. All institutions will have one representative, with final team choiceselected by the head coach. The award will be publicized with other conference awards at theend of the season.

10. All teams eliminated from the tournament must notify the conference office and the SID ofthe championship host university of their All-Tournament team selections within 24 hours ofelimination. Teams playing in the championship would notify the host SID at the conclusion ofthe game so the host SID can announce the All-Tournament team at the championship site duringthe post-game awards presentation and include it in post-game championship releases.

All-Tournament Team Selections determined by team coach:1st – 4 (one is MVP)

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2nd – 33rd – 24th – 25th – 16th – 1

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Softball

I. Conference Championship

1. A conference tournament will determine the Automatic Qualifier. Tournament will be hostedat Warner Park in Chattanooga. The cost of the tournament is the responsibility of the hostinstitution. Umpires, game balls, the championship website, live video streaming, live stats andathletic training services will be the responsibility of the host school.

2. Seven-inning games will be played in the conference championship tournament. In all SAAChampionship games, games will be played to completion and eight-after-five run limit will beused.

3. Higher seeds will be the home team in the first-round games of the tournament games. Insubsequent games, teams will alternate as home team. If this is not possible, the followingguidelines will be used:

A. The home team will be the team that has been the home team the fewest number of timesin that tournament, or if that is a tie, then the team that has been visitor the fewest timeswill be the visitor.

B. If both teams are tied after A., the team that was home team in the last game will be thevisitor unless it is still a tie. In that case, the team that was the visitor in the last meetingbetween the two teams will be the home team.

C. If the aforementioned criteria cannot determine home team, then it will be decided by acoin flip in the presence of the commissioner or umpire in-chief.

4. The host institution must schedule and provide practice time (if requested) for each of thecompeting teams in the tournament playing field at least one day prior to the tournament.Practice shall be a maximum of 60 minutes for each of the seven teams. Following the start ofthe tournament, no batting practice will be allowed on the field; however, an alternate site orbatting cages can be utilized. Regular pregame infield practice on the playing field will beallowed as part of the normal warm up format by both teams before each game. Each teamshould be scheduled for 10 minutes of infield practice before each game. The visiting teamshould be scheduled first for infield practice. Forty-five (45) minutes of batting-cage time shallbe allotted for each team if only one cage is available.

Additionally, host schools need to inform visiting teams when the training rooms will be openand available.

5. The host institution will secure an extra playing field in case inclement weather causes thesoftball championship to become backed up and games need to be played simultaneously. Atleast one of the fields must have lights.

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The host school is required to have a full infield tarp. The field for the championship is expectedto meet NCAA tournament requirements and guidelines.

6. At least two hours shall be allowed in the schedule between starting times for tournamentgames.

7. A rules interpretations committee will be formed and comprised of the host school’s primaryathletics administrator (or designee), the umpire-in-chief and one softball coach. At least two ofthese individuals must be in attendance at all times. Three-person umpire crews will work allconference tournament games, with a minimum of six umpires assigned for the entirety of thetournament.

8. All games will be conducted according to NCAA rules. Optional speed-up and substitutionrules will not be utilized for tournament games. The halted game rule will be utilized in theconference tournament.

9. Should weather become an issue, the following inclement weather tournament format will beused:

Tie-Breaker Format (for use with inclement weather tournament format):1) Head to Head (All SAA games including tournament play)2) Record against each conference opponent in descending order starting with the highest seededteam.3) Run differential between tied teams (six run maximum per contest).4) Run differential against each team within the conference in descending order.5) Overall record based on winning % (NCAA opponents only).6) Coin toss by the commissioner

10. The tournament schedule will take place over four days.

ThursdayGames 1 and 2 will be at 12:00 p.m.Games 3 and 4 at 2:00 p.m.Recognition banquet at 6:00 p.m.

FridayGames 5 though 9 will be played TBD

SaturdayGames 10 and 11 will be played TBD

SundayGame 12 will be played at 12:00 p.m.and if necessary game 13 at 2:00 p.m.

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A. If the softball conference tournament is scheduled the weekend before the NCAAtournament selection takes place (typically the first weekend in May) and weather causesa cancellation, the automatic qualifier will be the highest remaining seed regardless ofwhat bracket that team is in.

B. If the tournament takes place two weeks before the NCAA tournament selection and raincauses cancellation, plans should be made to continue the tournament the followingweekend at a location conducive to the remaining teams.

11. An SAA All-Tournament team will be selected and announced on site following theconference championship. The All-Tournament team will be comprised of 12 position players,including a designated hitter, and the top 12 in the voting results will be selected and announced.Ties will not be broken.

11. The official softball of the conference is Rawlings NCAA NC12L and will beused for all regular season and conference tournament games.

12. The SAA Championship tournament may be held at a neutral site located in the centralportion of our geographic footprint. The site must be approved by the Chair and theCommissioner. The host institutions will rotate on an annual basis for this neutral site location.

13. A required coaches meeting on Thursday night prior to the start of the SAA ChampionshipTournament.

II. Regular-Season Scheduling and Contest Regulations

1. Seven weekends will be used for conference competition, with schools playing a conferenceschedule of 18 games. A doubleheader will be played on Saturday and a single game on Sunday,unless travel-partners agree to play on other consecutive days and no overnight travel areinvolved, or spring break is used with no missed class times. All games are seven innings.Fifteen minutes shall be allowed between games of doubleheaders. Weekend conference gameswill start at Noon and 2:30 p.m. If a team requests a change in game time due to travelarrangements, games may start no earlier than 10 a.m., unless mutually agreed upon by bothcoaches. If complications occur on game times, the SAA commissioner shall rule on the matter.The regular season format will change from a 4-game series to a 3-game series. This will go inaffect for the 2016 season. In order to replace the 6 conference games eliminated by the formatchange, a schedule was developed so every institution would have one weekend off during theirrespective spring breaks. This will give each team the ability to play additional games duringthat time frame.

2. To determine conference standings in case of a tie, the following guidelines will be used inthis order:

1. Record based on winning percentage.

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2. Head-to-head record during conference play.

3. Record vs. other teams in the conference by working down through the standings untilthe tie is broken.

4. Run differential (eight-run maximum) in conference games between tied teams.

5. Home record.

6. Coin flip by the commissioner.

3. Teams will finalize their next year’s conference schedule within their division two years inadvance by January 15th of the current year for the next two seasons.

4. The host institution must schedule and provide practice time (if requested) for the visitingteam. Regular infield practice will follow the normal warm-up format for both teams. Each teamshall be allowed 30 minutes of batting-cage time if only one cage is available. Additionally, hostschools need to inform visiting teams when the training room will be open and available. Theweek of a contest against a conference opponent, both coaches should touch base either by phoneor email to go over game day procedures of what time the visiting team can have the cages,trainer needs, and other information that would be helpful.

5. Schools are required to have a full one-piece infield tarp to cover the home plate area andpitching mound. Playing fields should meet NCAA regulations and measure between 190 and225 to the foul poles and 200 to 225 to center field.

6. The following uniform standard will be recognized and followed for all conference regularseason competition. On Day 1 of competition, the home team will wear white (or light-colored)jerseys and the visiting team will wear dark jerseys. On Day 2, the uniform colors are reversed.

7. Prior to the beginning of each day’s games, the following protocol is recommended:

● The National Anthem will be played or sung before the first game of a double-header,and the American flag displayed (if feasible, but not required).

● It will be announced each contest is a Southern Athletic Association game and the crowdcontrol statement read or distributed.

8. All regular season conference games will be conducted according to NCAA rules.

9. If an institution travels to a game site and weather (or other factors out of human controls)occurs and prevents the completion of a series, the visiting team may not travel back to theoriginal site to make up games. Once a team arrives on site and then departs, the games may notbe played. Modifications and or changes made to game dates and/or times that both parties agree

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to, and with the approval of the conference office may occur prior to departure, or once on thegame site. Both teams and both ADs must agree.

If a game is played and halted, that game may be continued the next day only if the continuationoccurs during the time that the visiting team had already planned to be there. Otherwise, thegame will either be a shortened game and count in the standings if it meets the sport rules, or willbe a no contest. All reasonable efforts will be made to play all games, but the SAA supports apolicy to lessen the added cost and potential of classes missed that make ups create in aconference as geographically challenged as ours.

III. Officials

Umpires will be assigned by the home team for regular-season games and the host institution forthe conference championship. Umpires should be approved for intercollegiate contests by arecognized assigning agency. The home team should correspond with their assignor and makeevery effort to secure a different pair of umpires each day for conference weekends. Two-personumpiring crews will be used for all regular-season games and three-person crews for theconference tournament.

IV. Ejections

A report on any ejections from athletics events involving conference teams must be reported tothe conference office within 48 hours after the contest by the host institution. If the contest is anon-conference event, the member institution is responsible for notifying the conference office ofany ejections within 48 hours. An ejection could result in disciplinary action by theindividual’s institution and/or the commissioner. The Athletics Directors Advisory Council willserve to assist the commissioner on any such rulings involving potential suspensions ofstudent-athletes and/or coaches as it relates to potential violations of the SAA Code of Ethics.

V. Travel Squad Size

Travel squad size is limited to the NCAA Championship travel maximum plus 10 percent,rounded up for all regular season and postseason conference games that require an overnightstay. Games that do not require an overnight stay or that are played during institutional breaksare waived from this limitation.

VI. Scouting

No travel for on-site scouting of conference teams by representatives of conference memberschools is allowed. When participating in a tournament in which another conference member isalso playing, it is permissible to be in attendance during a game in which that conference team isplaying. However, no formal scouting can occur. Formal scouting is allowable at the conferencechampionship. Conference members may not provide information on conference teams toconference or non-conference members.

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VII. Coaches Meeting

All coaches will meet annually via conference call to make recommendations to the AthleticsDirectors Council for changes in these policies.

VIII. Awards

1. The conference office will provide a championship trophy to the winner of the conferencetournament. The conference office will administer the selection process of All-Conference teamsand awards.

2. Only stats from conference games will be under consideration for the All-Conference ballot.The guidelines for nominating and voting for the All-Conference award winners should mirrorthat of the NFCA All-Region Teams. Each team will consist of: 2 pitchers, 1 catcher, 1 first base,1 second base, 1 shortstop, 1 third base, 3 outfielders, 1 utility player, 1 designated player and 3At-large selections.

The At-large spots will only be used if the conference office determines that there was aparticularly close vote at one position on the First Team only. If there was a clear separation invotes, no At-Larges will be used.

The following guidelines will apply for each position:

Pitchers• Pitching stats are first consideration.• Defensive stats are second consideration.• Offensive stats are third consideration.

Defensive Positions — MUST HAVE PLAYED THE MAJORITY OF THE TOTAL GAMESTHAT THE TEAM PLAYED AT THE NOMINATED POSITION.

• Defensive and offensive statistics will have equal weight.• For catchers, stats include the number of stolen base attempts (SBA) and the number oftimes caught stealing (CS). A catcher will be credited with an SBA every time a runner attemptsto steal a base. If the runner is caught stealing as a result of a throw, it is a CS. Pickoffs are aseparate category.• Concerning baserunner statistics, the stats include stolen bases to stolen base attempts(SB/SBA) and on base percentage (OB%), which is anytime a player reaches base safelyfollowing an appearance at the plate.

Designated Player — MUST HAVE PLAYED THE MAJORITY OF THE TOTAL GAMESTHAT THE TEAM PLAYED AT THE NOMINATED POSITION• Only offensive stats will be considered.

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Utility Player — MUST HAVE PLAYED AT LEAST TWO OR MORE POSITIONS WITHNOT MORE THAN 60 PERCENT OF PLAYING TIME AT ONE POSITION• All statistics must be included.• Breakdown should be indicated on the nominating form (Example: 10/SS, 12/OF, 14/DP;

Summary: 36 games, three positions played).• Defensive stats for each position played must be provided.

If there is a tie, the coaches re-discusses the individuals involved in the tie and re-vote until thetie is broken. Exception: If there is a tie at the Honorable Mention level, all players are awarded.

A Coach of the Year, Player of the Year, Pitcher of the Year, and Newcomer of the Year will alsobe named. The Pitcher of the Year will be the highest point-getter in the positional ballot forpitchers. A separate ballot will be created and voted on for the Player of the Year and Newcomerof the Year. The coaches may nominate one player from their squad for each of those awards.The Newcomer will be a freshman or first-year transfer student. The Coach of the Year selectionwill be handled via email to the conference office.

3. Any player voted as Player or Pitcher of the Year will automatically be named First TeamAll-SAA at her position. No player voted First Team All-SAA will be bumped from that team -the player in question (the POTY honoree) will be added as a member of the First Team for thatposition. Any players nominated who receive at least one vote in the selection process, butdon’t make First or Second Team will be named Honorable Mention. Ballots will be submittedvia the league’s online award’s system.

4. Coaches may not vote for themselves or their own players on the final ballot.

5. The online nomination process for All-SAA opens at 6:00 p.m. (EST) the Sunday of the finalregular season contests and will remain open until 8:00 a.m. (EST) on Tuesday. Coaches votingwill be conducted online from Tuesday at 9:00 a.m. (EST) until Wednesday at 6:30 p.m. (EST)the week prior to the conference tournament. Each coach will nominate players from their ownteam for the All-Conference awards.

6. An All-SAA Sportsmanship team will be selected the week following the end of the SAAregular season. Each team will elect one member from their team who displays goodsportsmanship throughout the season to be a member of the All-SAA Sportsmanship team. Theseindividuals will be selected by the team and head coach, with the head coach sending theselection to the conference office at the end of the season, Only one student-athlete from eachteam may be selected. All institutions will have one representative, with final team choiceselected by the head coach. The award will be publicized with other conference awards at theend of the season.

7. Each week during the season coaches may nominate a player and pitcher of the week to beselected by the conference office. Nominations are due by 1:00 p.m. (EST) each Monday and thewinners will be announced later in the day on Monday. A minimum of half the conference

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programs must complete for the award to be awarded that week. If less than half of theconference programs complete, all games played prior to the next weekly award may count in thenomations.

Men and Women’s Tennis

I. SAA Conference Play

1. The SAA will play men’s and women’s tennis as a spring sport with annually alternatinghome and away matches for a regular season and culminating with a conferencetournament. The regular season results will be used primarily to help determine seeds forthe conference tournament. The champion and order of finish will be decided at theconference tournament.

2. Regular season matches will be played with travel partners and scheduled by theconference with the exception of the travel partner’s match. Coaches should agree to adate with their travel partners or consult with the AD’s of the participating schools to helpschedule it.

3. Regular season conference matches will be played on Saturday and Sunday as determinedby the conference with an exception made for Easter weekend where a Friday andSaturday schedule may be used. The conference tournament will be played as scheduledby the conference.

4. The format for regular season conference matches Will be 3-6-3 eight game pro-setdoubles matches followed by 6 singles matches using the 2 out of 3 set scoring.

5. Matches will be scheduled for 9:00 a.m. and 11:00 a.m. with the second matches subjectto court availability.

6. The second matches of the day shall be able to use courts to warm-up as they comeavailable. The visiting team shall have access to the first court that comes available andshall have a minimum of one hour from that point to warm-up. Additional open courtswill be assigned alternately. Coaches and players need to be respectful of the ongoingmatch when assigning and conducting warm-ups.

7. The choice to play the match to decision or completion shall be made by the visitingcoach after consulting the host coach.

8. The men’s matches will be played first in odd (2013) years and the women’s matches willbe played first in even years (2014).

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9. Due to the differences in available facilities, the possibility or occurrence of bad weather,the variety of possible travel situation, and any other special situation that may arise, theparticipating coaches have the flexibility to alter the format as they deem reasonable andappropriate upon agreement between the coaches involved. Changes in the format shouldbe in the spirit of fairness to all teams and predicated on the safety of all participants, thedesire to complete team matches, and the specific travel situation involved.

10. In cases of inclement weather the coaches may agree to cancel matches as they deemreasonable under the circumstances. If no matches have begun by 3:00 pm, it will be atthe discretion of the visiting coach to cancel that match. Likewise, interrupted or delayedmatches that do not appear to have an imminent decision by 6:00 pm may be cancelled atthe discretion of the visiting coach. Results of partially completed team matches may beused by the Tournament Committee to assist in seeding teams for the tournament.

11. An ITA Official will be present at all conference matches.

12. If an institution travels to a game site and weather (or other factors out of humancontrols) occurs and prevents the completion of a series, the visiting team may not travelback to the original site to make up games. Once a team arrives on site and then departs,the games may not be played. Modifications and or changes made to game dates and/ortimes that both parties agree to, and with the approval of the conference office may occurprior to departure, or once on the game site. Both teams and both ADs must agree.

13. If a game is played and halted, that game may be continued the next day only if thecontinuation occurs during the time that the visiting team had already planned to be there.Otherwise, the game will either be a shortened game and count in the standings if it meetsthe sport rules, or will be a no contest. All reasonable efforts will be made to play allgames, but the SAA supports a policy to lessen the added cost and potential of classesmissed that make ups create in a conference as geographically challenged as ours.

II. Championship Tournament

1. The conference tournament will be alternately hosted by travel partners as determinedby the conference. Host schools shall provide necessary personnel to run the tournamentincluding qualified USTA officials, trainers, SID, and desk workers.

2. All schools will share evenly in the cost of conducting the tournament including the costof officials, facility rental, and tennis balls with an expense report produced followingthe tournament by the hosts.

3. Tiebreak ProcedureA. Head to Head resultsB. Won/ Loss Record against highest team in descending orderC. NCAA Rankings if applicableD. ITA Rankings if applicable

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E. Coin flip by Commissioner

4. The tournament will be played as team matches following the format used during theregular season- (3-6). Team matches will be played to determine all position of finish ifpossible. Teams will have access to the courts one hour before their match to warm-up.Teams must have a minimum of 4 players in uniform to participate. All matches will beplayed to conclusion unless the tournament committee alters the format. 10-pointtie-breakers will be used for 3rd sets for all matches that have a team decision.

5. The order of play for the tournament will follow the format of the regular season withmen playing at 9:00 am and women at 1:00 pm in odd years and the opposite duringeven years. Coaches must check in at the tournament desk with line-ups at least 15minutes prior to the scheduled match time.

6. The coaches must submit the order of their singles line-up to the current years hostcoach on the Tournament Committee by Monday at noon (CST) prior to the tournament.That coach will distribute all lineup’s to all coaches by email for review. Coaches maychallenge another coach’s line-up to the tournament committee by Wednesday at noon(CST).

III. Officials

1.For the conference championship, the host institution will be responsible for securing acertified ITA tournament referee to oversee the rules of play. It is recommended that a sitereferee be assigned to all venues used if more than one site is needed to conduct the competition.Roaming officials will be provided as needed, with a minimum of one official for every sixcourts.

2. The host teams are strongly advised to retain a head official to coordinate the matches andensure the flow of matches. This is encouraged since the host head coach is also involved withcoaching duties during the championships. A site director should be assigned to each venue.

3. The referee will rule on defaults relating to tardiness or conduct and assign umpires as neededto matches.

4. Players are responsible for calling lines during matches.

5. The referee will ensure that the tournament is conducted according to USTA and ITA rules andregulations and modifications adopted by the NCAA Tennis Committees.

IV. Travel Squad Size

Travel squad size shall be the NCAA Championship travel squad maximum plus 10 percentrounded up for all SAA matches (Regular season and championship tournament play). Teams

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must have at least four players to participate. Games that do not require an overnight stay or thatare played during institutional breaks are waived from this limitation.

V. Scouting

1. Onsite scouting of conference teams by representatives of conference member schools inallowable. When participating in a tournament in which another conference member is alsoplaying, it is permissible to be in attendance during the contest in which the conference memberis playing and scouting can occur. Teams may scout at the conference championship.

2. Conference members may not provide information on conference teams to conference ornon-conference members.

VI. Coaches Meeting

All coaches will meet annually via conference call to make recommendations to the AthleticsDirector’s Council for changes in these policies. A pre-championship meeting can be held onsite and conducted by the host head coach to review the conference championships. However,this is not a mandatory meeting.

VII. Awards

1. The conference office will provide a championship trophy to each conference champion.

2. The conference office will administer the selection process for the All-Conference Teams,Player of the Year, Newcomer of the Year, and Coach of the Year.

3. An All-Conference Teams will be selected and administered by the conference office. Theonline nomination process for All-SAA opens at 6:00 p.m. (EST) the Sunday of the SAATournament finals and will remain open until 8:00 a.m. (EST) on Tuesday.

Coaches voting will be conducted online from Tuesday at 9:00 a.m. (EST) until Wednesday at6:30 p.m. (EST) the week after the conference tournament. Each coach will nominate playersfrom their own team for the all-conference awards. A total of 12 players will be selected by avote of the coaches on the final ballot. Each first-place vote is worth 12 points, second-place voteworth eleven points, etc., down to a 12th place vote worth one point. The 12 players with thehigh point totals will be named to the All-Conference team.

The player with the highest point total will be named Player of the Year.

The top six athletes will be named to the First Team All-Conference, the next six top finisherswill be named to the Second Team All-Conference. Players not finishing in the top-12 in thevoting process who received at least one point will be named Honorable Mention.

Coach of the Year will be selected via email to the conference office.

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There will be a separate ballot for the Newcomer of the Year (freshman or transfer playing theirfirst year of eligibility) selection. Each coach may nominate one player from their squad forNewcomer of the Year. Coaches may not vote for themselves or their own players on the finalballot.

4. Immediately following the conference tournament, the coaches on site and host institution’sSID will designate the All-Tournament team at each singles and doubles position based on thebest records in the conference championship. These players will comprise the All-TournamentTeam. Ties will not be broken for all tournament consideration when there has not been anyhead-to-head competition during the championship. Any player who goes through the conferencechampionship undefeated and played in at least two matches will be automatically named to theAll-Tournament team. It is the responsibility of the host head coach to work with the host SID tomake sure the All-Tournament Team is distributed to the conference office for promotion.

5. An All-SAA Sportsmanship team will be selected the week following the end of the SAAregular season. Each team will elect one member from their team who displays goodsportsmanship throughout the season to be a member of the All-SAA Sportsmanship team. Theseindividuals will be selected by the team and head coach, with the head coach sending theselection to the conference office at the end of the season. Only one student-athlete from eachteam may be selected. All institutions will have one representative, with final team choiceselected by the head coach. The award will be publicized with other conference awards at theend of the season.

6. Each Monday during the season coaches may nominate a player of the week to be voted on bythe coaches and announced by the conference office. A designee of the coaches receives thenominations and passes them on to the conference office. The conference office returns thenominees to the coaches for voting. Winners are announced on Wednesdays. Awards include amen’s singles player of the week, a men’s doubles team of the week, a women’s singles player ofthe week, and a women’s doubles team of the week. A minimum of half the conference programsmust complete for the award to be awarded that week. If less than half of the conferenceprograms complete, all games played prior to the next weekly award may count in thenomations.

VIII. Conference Championship - Site Preparation Procedures

1. Preparation for hosting championships at a single site consists of the following:

1. Secure the site very early.

2. Forward to coaches a list of convenient recommended hotels early preceding fall term. Itis not necessary to block rooms because many schools make their own selection outsideof recommendations.

3. Secure team of officials early preceding fall term.

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4. Order tournaments balls to assure on site a week or so before tournament. (20 cases)

5. Using a blank bracket from SAA office (showing only seeds by #’s and “match a, b, c”etc) assign match times for all three days.

6. Assign each match to specific grouping of courts, with times, so teams know where to goin advance, can warm up on those courts as available and for ease of coaching thematches. Where possible assign six courts for each match. If you must assign a match ortwo to fewer courts, assign obvious mismatches to minimize time required.

7. Provide coaches in advance a layout of courts by number (bird’s eye view).

8. In advance provide coaches and officials with list of participating coaches, their cellnumbers, their hotels, and hotel numbers.

9. The host institutions will provide volunteers to work the tournament.

10. Have at least one administrator dedicated to the oversight of the championship on site atall times.

11. Have at least one sports information director on site or one sports information directordesignated to handle the dissemination of results (via the championships website).

12. Have at least one trainer and a full-time SID is onsite at all times.

13. Make sure the format of play is given to the tournament desk each day (example: raindelays, playing to decision, shortened sets etc.).

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Track and Field

I. Conference Championship

1.All conference schools shall meet on the last full weekend in April for the SAA Track andField Championships unless it conflicts with institutional exams.

2. The team champions will be the men’s and women’s teams with the highest point totalaccording to NCAA scoring procedures for an outdoor championship meet.

3. An all-weather eight-lane or nine-lane track must be used for the championships; however, thetrack does not need to be on the host’s campus, and schools need only have access to a suitablefacility in order to host. Hosting order is determined by the SAA office. Institutions may passon the right to host, given two-year advance notice.

4. The championships schedule will be set by the Track and Field Coach’s Committee at theannual meeting, modifications will not take effect until the following year. Scheduleaccommodations for facility reasons may be determined by the Games Committee for that year’schampionship and should be completed by the end of February.

II. Meet Personnel

1. The host institution shall arrange for officials and timers. They should be experienced,knowledgeable, and preferably certified in the event area to which they are assigned.Non-official event workers do not need to be formally trained but should be adequately briefedon the operation of the event.

2. The Games Committee shall consist of the Head Coach of the hosting institution, along withthe Head Coaches of the previous host and future host. Two alternates should be randomlyselected and ordered in case a protested infraction should occur between two student-athletes ofthe members of the Games Committee. The Games committee assists the meet director withmeet administration, including final decisions on competition due to inclement weather or otherproblems delaying or postponing competition.

III. Entry/Seeding

1. All athletes must be seeded at their best mark for the current outdoor season (no indoor marksare allowed), entrants without a qualifying mark are allowed to participate, but will be given noseed mark for the event. (NT, NM, ND) The TFRRS/DirectAthletics system will be used toverify performances.

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2. For seeding purposes, all times will be converted to automatic using the conversion factorpublished in the NCAA rules book. However, events shorter than 800m (not including) MUSTbe electronically timed.

3. There shall be no travel squad restriction. Schools are limited to five entries per individualevents, and one entry per relay.

4. Event seeding shall follow the NCAA Track and Field Rule Book, with the followingclarifications:

A. In events with no preliminary round, seeding shall be based on seed marks.

B. Seeding for all preliminary track events shall be done using serpentine seeding withrandom lane assignments.

C. Seeding for all preliminary throwing and horizontal jump events shall be worst to bestbetween flights and random within flights. Seeding for all final field events shall befrom worst to best. Special exceptions may be made to adequately accommodate athletesin two concurrent field events and will be valid only for the preliminary round. Seedingfor High Jump and Pole Vault will be ranked order from worst to best.

D. Events with waterfall starts (1500m, 3000m Steeplechase, 5000m, and 10000m) shall beseeded best to worst, with the top seed having position #1 on the inside. It isrecommended that the 800m and 1500m be conducted in at least two heats, with 12athletes running in the fastest section. The fastest section should be the final section.

5. In relays with more entrants than the track has lanes, sections shall be broken up into two heatscontested by time. The three slowest seeds shall be placed in section one and the remainder ofthe teams shall run in section two.

6. Advancement for field events in which prelims are conducted will be nine as determined bybest mark in the prelims. Advancement for track events shall be equal to the number of lanes atthe facility. Heat winners are guaranteed to advance, followed by the next fastest times to fill thefield.

IV. Meet Administration

1. The host institution should maintain an SAA Meet Championship website on their athleticspage with all pertinent information for the championship, including the schedule, registrationinformation, travel information, and a link to the performance list.

2. A performance list should be maintained by Direct Athletics using TFRRS databases.Registration for the meet shall be available at Direct Athletics starting two weeks prior to thechampionship. Entries will be available until Wednesday at 6:00 p.m. (local time), prior to themeet. The host shall post heat sheets by 9:00 pm (Local Time) on Wednesday.

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3. The meet director shall designate a time and place for the measurement and certification ofimplements. Certification should occur on both days.

4. Protests must be made to the Meet Referee no later than 15 minutes following the posting ofevent results. Coaches may appeal the decisions of the Meet Referee to the Games Committee,majority decisions by the Games Committee will be final.

5. It is highly recommended that a second meet official be utilized to verify measurements for allthrowing events and all horizontal jumps.

6. Starting heights for the championships shall beHigh Jump - Women 1.32m/Men 1.68mPole Vault – Women 2.13m/Men 3.04m

7. The schedule of events to be followed at the SAA Championship is as follows:

Track EventsDay OneTBA Men’s 100m FinalTBA Women’s 100m Hurdle FinalTBA Men’s 400m FinalsTBA Women’s 200m Final

Field EventsDay OneTBA Men’s Long Jump FinalTBA Women’s High Jump FinalTBA Men’s Shot Put FinalTBA Women’s Shot Put FinalTBA Men’s High Jump FinalTrack EventsDay TwoTBA Men’s 110m Hurdle FinalTBA Women’s 800m FinalTBA Men’s 1500m Final

Field EventsDay OneTBA Men’s Discus Throw FinalTBA Women’s Long Jump FinalTBA Men’s Pole Vault FinalTBA Women’s Javelin Throw FinalTBA Men’s Javelin Throw Final

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*2020 Shall be a Combined Events Exhibition year with full addition to the SAA Championshipscoring in 2021.

8. The schedule of events to be followed at the SAA championship is as follows:

Track EventsDay One9:00 a.m. Women’s 10k Final10:00 a.m. Men’s 10K Final12:00 p.m. Women’s 100m Hurdle Trials12:20 p.m. Men’s 110m Hurdle Trials12:40 p.m. Women’s 400m Trials1:00 p.m. Men’s 400m Trials1:20 p.m. Women’s 100m Trials1:40 p.m. Men’s 100m Trials2:20 p.m. Women’s 400m Hurdle Trials2:40 p.m. Men’s 400m Hurdle Trials3:00 p.m. Women’s 200m Trials3:20 p.m. Men’s 200m Trials3:40 p.m. Women’s 3000m Steeplechase Final4:00 p.m. Men’s 3000m Steeplechase Final

Day Two12:00 p.m. Women’s 4x100 Relay Finals12:10 p.m. Men’s 4x100 Relay Finals12:15 p.m. Women’s 1500m Finals12:30 p.m. Men’s 1500m Finals12:50 p.m. Women’s 100m Hurdle Final1:00 p.m. Men’s 110m Hurdle Final1:10 p.m. Women’s 400m Final1:15 p.m. Men’s 400m Final1:25 p.m. Women’s 100m Final1:30 p.m. Men’s 100m Final1:40 p.m. Women’s 800m Finals 1:50 p.m. Men’s 800m Finals2:10 p.m. Women’s 400m Hurdle Final2:20 p.m. Men’s 400m Hurdle Final2:30 p.m. Women’s 200m Final2:35 p.m. Men’s 200m Final2:40 p.m. Women’s 5000m Final3:05 p.m. Men’s 5000m Final3:30 p.m. Women’s 4x400 Relay Finals3:35 p.m. Men’s 4x400 Relay Finals3:45 p.m. Awards

Field Events

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Day One9:00 a.m. Women’s Pole Vault Trials/FinalsMen’s Long Jump Trials/FinalsMen’s Shot Put Trials/FinalsWomen’s Hammer Trials/Finals11:30 a.m. Women’s Long Jump Trials/FinalsWomen’s Shot Put Trials/FinalsMen’s Pole Vault Trials/FinalsMen’s Hammer Trials/Finals

Day Two9:00 a.m. Women’s JavelinMen’s DiscussWomen’s High Jump Trials/FinalsMen’s Triple Jump11:00 a.m. Women’s Triple Jump Trials/FinalsWomen’s Discuss Trials/FinalsMen’s High Jump Trials/FinalsMen’s Javelin Trials/Finals

V. Coaches Meeting

1. A coaches meeting shall be held by the host institution the one hour before the first event onthe first day of the SAA Championship, to attend to any details about meet administration.However, team packets will be available on the day before the championships. All finalscratches will be due by 5:00 p.m. (local time) on the day before the championships.

2. The annual track and field council (coaches) meeting will take place each year per telephoneconference call. The purpose of the meeting is to propose changes to the cross country operatingmanual, as well as to select/approve the championship site for two years out. It is theresponsibility of the host coach from the previous academic year’s championship meet toschedule this conference call. The specific date/time of the conference call should occur atthe end of the Spring semester and before July 1st

VI. Awards

1. The conference office will supply a championship trophy to each conference team champion.

2. The first, second, and third-place finishers in each individual event will be named to theAll-SAA All-Conference Teams and recognized in the awards ceremony immediately followingthe final day of competition as established by the Track and Field Council. Athletes should wearappropriate attire to the awards stand.

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3. Athletes in the top three relay teams will be named to the All-Conference team and recognizedin the awards ceremony immediately following the final day of competition as established by theTrack and Field Council. Athletes should wear appropriate attire to the awards stand.

4. The athlete with the highest point total in the conference championship will be named Athleteof the Meet and recognized in the awards ceremony at the end of the second day as establishedby the Track and Field Council. One-quarter of a team’s relay points will be counted towards anindividual’s total if he or she is a member of a scoring relay team.

5. The coaches will also vote on the following awards - following the SAA Championships:

Men’s Track Athlete of the YearWomen’s Track Athlete of the YearMen’s Field Athlete of the YearWomen’s Field Athlete of the YearMen’s Newcomer of the- YearWomen’s Newcomer of the Year

Coaches will nominate athletes on-line and vote on each ballot the week following theChampionship. Individuals may not vote for their own student-athletes in the voting process.

6. A male and female Athlete of the Week will be selected each week during the regular season.One athlete will be selected for track events and one for field events. Coaches will submit theirnominations via e-mail to the SAA office by 1:00 p.m. (EST) each Tuesday. All weeklynominees will be emailed back to the coaches for a vote to select the winners. The SAA officewill release the winners by 5:00 p.m. on Tuesday on the SAA website and by email to theinstitution. No minimum number of institutions participating in competition that week is neededfor a nomination to be proposed. Coaches may vote for their own athletes in the voting.

7. An All-SAA Sportsmanship team will be selected the week following the end of the SAAregular season. Each team will elect one member from their team who displays goodsportsmanship throughout the season to be a member of the All-SAA Sportsmanship team. Theseindividuals will be selected by the team and head coach, with the head coach sending theselection to the conference office at the end of the season. Only one student-athlete from eachteam may be selected. All institutions will have one representative, with final team choiceselected by the head coach. The award will be publicized with other conference awards at theend of the season.

8. Recognition of senior student-athletes who have participated in four individual track and fieldconference championship competitions. The host institution shall list the athletes by schoolbefore the beginning of the individual and team awards.

VII. Sportsmanship and Crowd Control

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All coaches, student-athletes, and spectators shall observe the conference policy on crowdcontrol and sportsmanship, which should be distributed at the conference championship orpublished in the conference championship program and read over the public address system eachday.

VIII. Future Championship HostRhodes - 2021 - April 22-23BSC - 2022Berry - 2023Centre - 2024Hendrix - 2025Millsaps - 2026Oglethorpe - 2027

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