King Philip, Hanover softball must forfeit games for unauthorized use of electronic devices.

The Massachusetts Interscholastic Athletic Association found that the Hanover and King Philip varsity softball teams were in violation of rules regarding the unauthorized use of electronic devices outside the field/bench area, leading to the withdrawal of games for both tournament-related programs.

As The Globe reported, Hanover and King Philip used a one-way communication device from the dugout to transmit play calls and defensive assignments to a receiver in the catcher’s helmet.

Hanover and King Philip confirmed to the MIAA that certain games this season were in violation of National Federation of State High School Associations’ Rule 1-8-1, which states that “non-traditional playing equipment must be reviewed in accordance with the NFHS Softball Rules Committee , before it is approved for use.”

Additionally, NFHS Rule 1-8-6 also states: “During a game, the use of electronic devices by team personnel to transmit or record information regarding players or team performance is permitted for coaching purposes on the team bench. exclusively within the playing area, provided that the point of origin of the electronic communication is outside the playing area.”

However, NFHS Softball did it NO approved electronic communication between coach and player for 2024. Hanover and King Philip misinterpreted this rule.

Unfortunately, Hanover athletic director Scott Hutchinson said the problem began with a miscommunication between his coach, Joe Messina, and an official over a possible rule change and available equipment. This information was then shared with King Philip.

King Philip (18-3), eighth in the Division I power rankings as of Tuesday, must forfeit six games played May 3-13 — wins over Archbishop Williams, Mansfield, Franklin, Attleboro, Central Catholic and Milford, leaving Overall, the Warriors are 12-9, which will dramatically change the D1 tournament seedings that will be released on Wednesday. The rankings will be updated on Friday morning for the last time before the brackets are released.

Hanover (11-8), No. 24 in Division 3, will have losses to Plymouth North (7-2), North Quincy/Quincy (7-6) and Hingham (12-0) on April 21-29, recorded as forfeits.

In baseball, the NFHS changed the 1-6-2 rule this spring, allowing one-way audio communication from the dugout to the catcher to call pitches.

Cam Kerry can be reached at [email protected]. Craig Larson can be reached at [email protected].