THE BOYS’ WESTERN BASKETBALL CONFERENCE - RULES AND BY-LAWS

Last Updated 11/3/23 for the 2023-2024 season – the following changes below are highlighted in red within these by-laws. Changes for ejections & suspensions protocol are still under discussion and will likely result in an additional by-law change before the season starts.

1. Page 5 – No longer 1-and-1 foul shots, starting with the 5^th foul each quarter, all fouls will be 2 shots

2. Page 7 – Referee fees for 3^rd and 4^th grade increasing by $2

LEAGUE DESIGNATION

The league shall be known as the “Western Basketball Conference”. The league shall consist of different levels of competition at grades 3 through high school.

LEADERSHIP

1. The Board of Directors shall consist of these 4 league officers:

· President

· Vice-President

· Treasurer

· Secretary

2. The Board of Directions shall be permitted to add officers on an ad hoc basis.

3. Candidates shall be nominated and elected at the final meeting of the season to serve the following basketball season. Each member school shall be allotted one (1) vote each. A school shall not have more than one (1) representative serving on the board at any given time. Officers shall commence their duties at the elected meeting.

4. Officers shall serve no more than one year, but an officer may serve unlimited consecutive terms if elected and is willing to serve.

MEMBERSHIP

Membership shall consist of the following 19 schools:

1. St. Al’s Bridgetown

2. St. Antonius

3. St. Bernard

4. St. Catharine

5. St. Clement

6. St. Dominic

7. St. Ignatius

8. St. James White Oak

9. St. John Dry Ridge

10. St. John Harrison

11. St. Jude

12. St. Lawrence

13. Our Lady of Grace

14. Our Lady of Lourdes

15. St. Martin

16. St. Teresa

17. Our Lady of Victory

18. Our Lady of Visitation

19. St. William

MISSION STATEMENT

The WBC furthers the mission of the Catholic Church by providing a basketball experience for boys that is firmly rooted in the Catholic faith tradition, based on the goals of Catholic youth ministry, and aligned with the evangelizing mission of the Catholic Church.

GOALS

1. Discipleship: to empower young people to live as disciples of Jesus Christ in our world today.

2. Participation: to draw young people to responsible participation in the life, mission, and work of the Catholic faith community.

3. Growth: to foster the total personal and spiritual growth of each young man.

GUIDING PRINCIPLES

1. Discipleship, Faith and Family First: Catholic Youth Athletics proceeds from and should always include Christian discipleship in the Catholic faith, in support of the parents and families whose children participate.

2. Evangelizing Mission: The whole Church and each of its members are called to the mission of evangelization; so too, is Catholic Youth Athletics a part of that mission

3. Responsible Participation in the Church: Catholic Youth Athletics will reflect the priority of regular, consistent, and responsible participation in the Church, in her worship, education, community, ministries and service to the world.

4. Faith, Character and Virtue Development: In Catholic Youth Athletics, winning, performing, and succeeding are always subordinate to the development of faith, character and virtues in participants and their families.

5. Trained and Competent Coaches and Athletic Leaders: Coaches and athletics leaders serving in Catholic Youth Athletics understand their roles as forms of youth ministry leadership and will get training that leads to competence not only in coaching a given sport, but also in modeling and sharing faith, developing young Catholic disciples, and helping young people and their families stay meaningfully connected to the Catholic Church.

6. Safety and Well-Being of Children: The safety and well-being of young people in Catholic Youth Athletics are paramount.

7. Good Stewardship and Accountability: Athletics organizations and leagues that serve the parishes and schools of the Archdiocese should demonstrate good stewardship of money and other resources, with trustworthy and transparent systems of financial accountability.

PROVISIONS FOR LEAGUE EXPANSION

1. Any interested prospective schools will be considered for membership only after they have agreed in writing to abide by the rules and by-laws of the league.

2. Schools shall be accepted to be members only after 75% of member coordinators have voted to accept such member.

3. New schools will not be permitted to join the league after October 1^st of the current basketball season.

QUALIFICATIONS FOR MEMBERSHIP

1. Each member shall be from a league membership approved school.

2. Each member will be assessed an entry fee to cover league costs. The amount of the fee will be determined by a vote of the membership coordinators upon recommendation of the board of directors. All such fees shall be paid prior to the first scheduled league game.

3. Depending on their enrollment numbers per grade level, each member may field teams in the 3^rd through 8^th grades and also at the high school levels.

4. Member schools shall have a representative, preferably the school’s boys’ basketball coordinator, at each meeting. If any given school’s representative misses more than two meetings in a year, league sanctions by the WBC board are possible.

5. Member representatives are responsible for validating the won and loss records of all teams representing their schools, including all records on the league internet website.

6. It is the responsibility of each member’s representative to report all league business to all their coaches.

7. Members are responsible for crowd control at their respective gyms. All problems with players, player parents, fans or referees shall be reported immediately to the league board of directors.

PROVISIONS FOR MEMBERSHIP SANCTIONS

1. All schools considered for league sanctions will not be permitted a vote when the league is voting on such sanctions against said member.

2. Any disciplinary action taken by the league shall be approved by at least 66% of the league membership.

3. To be expelled from the league, a team or member shall be expelled by at least a 75% majority of league members.

MEMBER VOTING RIGHTS

1. Each league member shall be allotted one (1) vote when voting on league matters. Any authorized representative of the member school shall cast this vote. Each member has a right to abstain from voting.

2. There must be a quorum of the members present to vote on any issue, motion, or rule addition, deletion or change.

3. Issues or motions shall be approved only by a majority of members voting.

4. Rule changes, additions or deletions shall be approved by 75% of the members present.

5. If a vote is tied, the tie breaking vote will be made by the Board of Directors’ President.

PLAYING ELIGIBILITY

1. Boys shall be eligible to play in the league provided he qualifies under either one of the following two situations.

a. He attends the member school for which he will play. Or

b. He does not attend the member school, but qualifies under either one of the following scenarios:

i. His parents or legal guardian must be a registered member of the parish and they must reside in the parish boundaries and the player must attend the school’s religious education classes in the current school year

ii. His parents or legal guardian reside outside the parish boundaries, but they previously resided within the parish boundaries, or the player attended the parish school and was a member of the parish and his parents or legal guardian have maintained active membership in the parish.

Exceptions of the above qualifications may be made to league officers for any player who does not qualify under qualifications set forth in a. or b. above if the family can establish that they maintain active participation in parish activities, attend regular parish services, and contribute regularly to the parish church. Note: Registration alone does not establish the family as active members of the parish. The officers must submit the names of any player seeking an exception to the pastor of the church for acceptance on the roster. Parish boundaries are those boundaries around the parish church surrounding the area from which the parish normally draws its parishioners. The league officers shall determine the exact parish boundaries after consultation with the office of the Archdiocese of Cincinnati. Any decision by league officers regarding eligibility of a player may be appealed to the league for majority vote at the next general meeting.

2. Qualifications to play at grade levels shall be as follows:

a. 3^rd Grade: A player is eligible to play at the 3^rd grade level provided he is in the 3^rd grade or lower and he will not become 10 years of age before August 1^st.

b. 4^th Grade: A player is eligible to play at the 4^th grade level provided he is in the 4^th grade or lower and he will not become 11 years of age before August 1^st.    

c. 5^th Grade: A player is eligible to play at the 5^th grade level provided he is in the 5^th grade or lower and he will not become 12 years of age before August 1^{st t}.

d. 6^th Grade: A player is eligible to play at the 6^th grade level provided he is in the 6^th grade or lower and he will not become 13 years of age before August 1^st.

e. 7^th Grade: A player is eligible to play at the 7^th grade level provided he is in the 7^th grade or lower and he will not become 14 years of age before August 1^st.

f. 8^th Grade: A player is eligible to play at the 8^th grade level provided he is in the 8^th grade or lower and he will not become 15 years of age before August 1^st.

g. High School: A player must play for the high school team associated with the school he graduated 8^th grade from. If that school does not have high school teams, a petition must be submitted and agreed upon for that player to play with any other school’s high school team. A player may not play for both his high school team or junior high school team and a WBC high school team. Any high school player who is on the final roster of his high school team, whether he plays any game for his high school team or not, cannot play for a WBC high school team. The names of all players found to be in violation of this rule shall be submitted to the appropriate state high school athletic association. This rule extends to all high school, junior high school, and middle school players from all states. The eligibility requirements for all high school players must follow the requirements outlined in Rule #1 of this section.

h. High School Lower: A player is eligible to play at the high school lower level provided he has not completed his sophomore year in high school, and he will not become 17 years of age before August 15^th.

i. High School Upper: A player is eligible to play at the high school upper level provided he has not completed his senior year in high school and he will not become 19 years of age before August 15^th.

3. If a player is attending a special accelerated school, such as Latin school, and is not attending his parish school, he may play on the grade level team for which he would normally qualify if he were not in any accelerated program, provided he meets the age requirement for that grade level.

4. A player can only play for one team in the league per season unless there is a change in the roster by January 1^st. In the case of a mid season transfer, the player may play for either school.

5. Any violation of the eligibility rules will result in the team forfeiting all the games in which the ineligible player participated.

6. Qualifications for multiple schools combining teams at any grade level:

Due to lower student enrollments, it is permissible for multiple schools to combine their players to form a single team, providing the schools are within the recently established Beacon of Light framework. ANY combination of schools must be petitioned and agreed upon by all school coordinators.

ROSTERS

1. A roster shall be submitted by the head coach of each team to their school’s coordinator, who must then file the roster with the board of directors before the beginning of the season. Each roster shall contain the following information: School Name, Grade Level, Player’s Name, Player’s Address, Player’s Birth Date, Player’s School, Head Coach’s Name, Head Coach’s Address, Head Coach’s Telephone Number and e-mail address (if available) as well as any assistant coach’s names, addresses, and telephone numbers. The officers of the WBC reserve the right to deny all improper rosters.

2. Any changes in a roster must be submitted in writing (via e-mail when feasible) to the President of the league before a player becomes eligible. No additions to rosters will be accepted after January 1^st.

3. Any violation of the roster rules will result in the team forfeiting all the games for which or no roster was on file with the league. Teams found to have incomplete, incorrect, or no roster on file with the league shall also be ineligible to play in any post-season tournament.

PLAYING RULES

All games shall be governed by Ohio High School Athletic Association rules (website link below) with the following exceptions below. (Please note – Effective with the 2023-2024 season, there will no longer be 1-and-1 foul shots starting with the 7^th foul each half. The new rule is starting with the 5^th foul each quarter, all fouls will result in 2 shots. Shooting fouls will remain as always 2 shots).

http://www.ohsaa.org/sports/bk/bkmanual.pdf

1. Grade School Regulation Game Duration: 3^rd and 4^th grade games will consist of 4 quarters of 5-minute duration stop and go. 5^th through 8^th grade games will consist of 4 quarters of 6-minute duration stop and go.

2. High School Regulation Game Duration: Two 18-minute halves, the first half will be 17 minutes of running time with the last-minute having clock stoppage on dead balls, and the second half will be 16 minutes of running time with the last two minutes of clock stoppage on dead balls.

3. Running Clock: At all grade levels in the 2^nd half only, if the winning team is up by 25 or more points, the clock will run without stopping, other than for time outs, until the lead is under 25 points.

4. Overtime Duration: Overtime periods will be 2 minutes for 3^rd, 4^th, and High School games, 3 minutes for grades 5^th through 8^th.

5. Halftime Duration: The halftime period will be 5 minutes long for all grade school levels and 3 minutes long for high school games.

6. Timeouts: Each grade school team shall be allowed 5 timeouts per game. High School teams are allowed 4 timeouts per game. One additional time out shall be granted per overtime period for all levels.

7. 3^rd Grade Exceptions:

· No backcourt defense is permitted until the player with the ball has crossed the volleyball 10-foot line on the offense's side of the court. Possession shall be at the judgment of the official. In the case where there is no volleyball 10-foot line, the officials will consult with both coaches prior to the game to agree on where the defense is allowed to play.

· A team may not score from any portion of the court where defense cannot be played. If a basket is made in this area, it will be considered a dead ball and possession will be given to the defensive team.

· If a defensive player enters the restricted area to play defense, the referee shall issue a warning to the violating team. Upon second and subsequent violations, a foul shall be issued to the player committing the infraction and will count has a personal and team foul.

· Defensive fouls and offensive turnovers can and will be issued even in areas where you are not allowed to play defense.

· No fast breaks at any time. The defense must be given time to set up after a change in possession. This includes the opening tip-off.

· During the last minute of the 4th quarter and any overtime period, when a dead ball occurs, the clock will not restart until the ball has crossed the point where defense is permitted. The referee will signal for the clock to start.

· Stalling is not permitted. Holding the ball in the non-defensive area and backcourt is not acceptable. The ball must be advanced toward the basket. Violation is loss of possession. Stalling shall be at the judgement of the official.

· Any player, coach, or spectator assessed a technical foul will immediately be ejected from the game/gym.

8. 4^th Grade Exceptions:

· No backcourt defense is permitted until the player with the ball has crossed mid-court. Possession shall be at the judgment of the official.

· A team may not score from any portion of the court where defense cannot be played. If a basket is made in this area, it will be considered a dead ball and possession will be given to the defensive team.

· If a defensive player enters the restricted area to play defense, the referee shall issue a warning to the violating team. Upon second and subsequent violations, a foul shall be issued to the player committing the infraction and will count has a personal and team foul.

· Defensive fouls and offensive turnovers can and will be issued in the backcourt.

· Fast breaks are allowed.

· During the last minute of the 4th quarter and any overtime period, when a dead ball occurs, the clock will not restart until the ball has crossed mid-court. The referee will signal for the clock to start.

9. 5^th Grade Divisions 3 & 4 Exceptions:

· No pressure defense is allowed on a dead ball or after a made basket. If a player enters the backcourt to play defense, the referee shall issue a warning to the violating team. Upon second and subsequent violations, a foul shall be issued to the player committing the infraction and will count has a personal and team foul.

· Within the last minute of the game, the clock shall not start after a dead ball stoppage until the team has crossed the mid court line.

10. No Running Up of Score: For any games in other than 7^th & 8^th grade Division 1 and 2, if any team gains a lead of 15 or more points at any time during the game, then that team shall not be allowed to full court press the opposing team. If the lead falls below the 15-point limit, the leading team will be allowed to resume full court pressure. For the 7^th & 8^th grade divisions 1 and 2, a similar rule applies, but the applicable lead margin in these games is 20 points and ONLY applies in the 2^nd half. In the 4^th grade, where the leading team gains a lead of 15 or more points, the leading team shall not play defense beyond the top of the circle. Any violation of this rule may cause penalties imposed by the referees such as technical fouls and expulsion of the violating coach.

11. Referees: There shall be 2 referees at each game. It is recommended that the referees, team captains and coaches meet prior to the game to review specific rules of the gym. 

12. Free Throws: The 3^rd grade will shoot free throws from the bottom of the lane circle (9 feet). Grades 4^th and 5^th will shoot free throws from a foul line midway between the regulation foul line and the bottom of the lane circle (12 feet). Grades 6^th, 7^th and 8^th will shoot foul shots from the regulation foul line (15 feet). All levels are allowed only three players below the foul line on each side of the lane. At all levels, a player occupying a marked lane space can enter the lane upon release of the ball by the shooter.

13. Game Starting Times: Games shall start as closely to their designated starting time as possible. No game shall start prior to their designated time. Teams shall be given at least 5 minutes to warm up prior to a game.

14. Game Ball: The game referees shall determine the ball that will be used during the game. Home teams do not automatically supply the game ball.

PLAYING TIME

1. Continuous Playing Quarter: For grades 3 thru 5 and in grade 6 divisions 3 & 4, each team is required to play each team member a continuous quarter, provided the other team has equal or more players on their team. (Example: Team A has 9 players; Team B has 10 players. Team A must play all 9 players a continuous quarter while Team B must only play 9 players a continuous quarter.) A continuous quarter shall be a quarter in which the player starts the quarter and does not leave the game until the quarter has ended. It is the responsibility of each team to have a scorekeeper to determine the playing times of each player participating. If a coach is accused of violating this rule, it is the responsibility of that team’s coordinator to determine if the coach is guilty. If the coach is found to be guilty, then the coach will be suspended for up to 2 consecutive games and loss of the game in violation.  The WBC board, in conjunction with that coach's coordinator, will determine whether a 1-game or 2-game suspension is warranted. For grade 6 divisions 1 & 2 and in grades 7 & 8, the continuous playing quarter rule as described above will NOT apply; rather, all players must make at least an appearance in each game.

SCHEDULING GUIDELINES

1. No games or practices can be scheduled on Sundays or Holy Days before 1:00 PM.

2. On school days other than Friday, no league games or practices should start after 8:30 PM.

3. No games or practices can be scheduled when the players involved normally would be attending religious education, sacramental preparation programs, and the like.

PRAYER

1. All WBC board and coordinator meetings will begin with prayer

2. Minimally, prayer should happen before all league and tournament games, and we recommend prayer before practice as well.

PLAYING EQUIPMENT

1. Basketballs: 3^rd through 6^th grade levels shall play with the intermediate size basketball, 28.5 inches in circumference. All levels above 6^th grade shall play with the regulation size basketball, 29.25 inches in circumference.

POSTPONED GAMES

Games which have been postponed, moved or changed shall only be played after coordinating the game times and places with the designated league scheduler. Violation shall result in a loss for both teams involved.

AWARDS

For regular season league play, individual player awards will be awarded to division winners and co-winners at each grade school level other than 3^rd grade.

FEES

1. League team fees will remain as follows for the 2023-2024 season:

3^rd grade $70

4^th – 8^th grades $135

High School $130

2. Referee fees are paid before every game, with each team responsible for paying 1 of the 2 referees. The fees for each referee for each game are as follows for the 2023-2024 season, which is the second year of a 3-year contract with the referee scheduling coordinator. The only change from last year is a $2 increase for 3^rd and 4^th grades.

	2023 – 2024 Each referee	2023-2024 If only one referee
3^rd grade	$30	$44 ($22 each team)
4^th grade	$32	$48 ($24 each team)
5^th – 8^th grades	$38	$56 ($28 each team)
High School	$38	$56 ($28 each team)

3. If the head of referee scheduling is not notified of a team’s forfeit or no-show at least 24 hours in advance of the game time, the already scheduled referees will need to be paid and the forfeiting or no-show team will be liable for the fee(s). These owed fees will be blended into the EOY reconciliation process. If the head of referee scheduling is notified at least 24 hours in advance, the referees will not be paid.

FINANCIAL REPORTING

1. The WBC Treasurer will report on the financial status of the league, at a minimum, during the first and last coordinator meetings of the year.

2. The Treasurer maintains a detailed revenue and. expense ledger that is available to all board members and coordinators upon request

DIVISION ALIGNMENT GUIDELINES FOR THE 2023-2024 SEASON

COMPETITIVE DIVISIONS – GRADES 5 THRU 8

Grade levels 5 thru 8 will each have these 4 divisions:

1. Division 1 (primarily large school ‘A’ teams – the most competitive division)

2. Division 2 (primarily small school ‘A’ teams – 2^nd most competitive division)

3. Division 3 (primarily large school ‘B’ teams)

4. Division 4 (all other teams)

5. Division 5 (only used if too many teams in division 4)

The following guidelines will be used for league composition, scheduling, and the team selection process each school must adhere to:

1. Each division shall have at least 6 teams per division

2. Large School vs. Small School determination is based on total school enrollment; the current cutoff for enrollment is 325

3. Each A team must be comprised of a school’s best 8, 9, or 10 players if enrollment numbers allow

4. A large school A team must have at least 9 players, but can petition to have 8 players if low enrollment

5. A small school A team must have at least 8 players, but can petition to have 7 players if low enrollment

6. If a school has 3 teams or more at any given level, the B team must be the next best 8, 9, or 10 players if enrollment allows, and there should be tryouts for both A & B teams

7. If a player is chosen to play on the most competitive level team and refuses to play, that player will not be able to play for any other school team

8. All players that the school deems not qualified to play at the most competitive level may be placed on teams in the remaining levels of competition

9. The board will present an initial proposed division alignment, based on these general guidelines below, but using the previous year’s records, will consider putting some teams in a lower division:

a) Large school with 1 team – Division 1

b) Large school with 2 teams – ‘A’ team in Division 1, other team in Division 3

c) Large school with 3 teams or more – ‘A’ team in Division 1, ‘B’ team in Division 3, other teams in Division 4

d) Small school with 1 team – Division 2

e) Small school with 2 teams – ‘A’ team in Division 2, other team in Division 4

10. Any team can petition to play up in a higher division.

11. The spirit of guideline #9 above is that the board will have already taken last year’s records into account when placing a team in a lower division than what guidelines 9a thru 9e would dictate. Teams will be allowed to petition down into a lower division; however, these petitions will be scrutinized closely by both the board and fellow coordinators to avoid sandbagging scenarios.

12. All petitions require a majority vote of school coordinators present at the annual Division Alignment Meeting. The Board does not participate in this petition voting.

13. There will be no crossover games between any divisions.

14. Each team will play other teams in their division at least once each; the number of teams in each division might warrant playing some teams twice. In divisions where some teams will play each other twice, these will be the scheduling guidelines:

a) Upper teams will play each other twice

b) Middle teams will play each other twice

c) Lower teams will play each other twice

POST SEASON TOURNAMENTS

1. The Western Basketball Conference shall conduct the Greater Cincinnati City Catholic Schools Tournament. The tournament will consist of all WBC teams at the 4^th through 8^th grade levels and selected greater Cincinnati CYO teams by invitation only if they choose to participate. We will also host the Division 2 City Tournament WBC 5^th through 8^th grade levels and selected greater Cincinnati CYO teams by invitation only.

2. The makeup of the WBC individual post season tournament divisions will match the regular season league divisions. Individual teams can petition up to play in a more competitive tournament division.

3. Teams may only play in one WBC post season tournament.

4. At the 4^th grade level, teams must have a .500 record or better to qualify for the post season tournament.

5. In divisions 3, 4 and 5 within each grade level, only the top 4 teams will qualify for the post season tournament. In case of ties, the tie breaking rules discussed below will apply.

6. There will be no post season tournament at either the lower or upper high school levels.

7. All tournaments will be played under WBC rules and by laws.

8. All regular season rosters shall apply to all post season tournaments.

9. Teams shall be seeded based upon their regular-season record. In case of a tie for any place finish in the regular-season standings, the following tie-breaking procedure shall be followed in this order to seed teams in the tournament bracket.

TWO-TEAM TIE

a. Results of head-to-head competition during the regular season.

b. Point differentials for all head-to-head games.

c. Coin toss conducted by the WBC Board of Directors or designate.

MULTIPLE-TEAM TIE

1. Results of head-to-head competition during the regular season.

a. When comparing records against a single team or a group of teams, the higher winning percentage shall prevail, even if the number of games played against the team or group is unequal (i.e., 2-0 is better than 3-1); in the case of tied percentages vs. the team or group of 1.000 or .000, the following shall apply: 2-0 is better than 1-0; 0-1 is better than 0-2.

b. After the top team among the tied teams is determined, the second team is ranked by its record among the original tied teams, not the head-to-head record vs. the remaining teams.

c. If the remaining teams are still tied, continue comparing records down through the standings until one team gains an advantage

d. If at any time just two teams are tied, then the two-team tie rules apply.

9. The WBC Board will review the individual tournament team seedings with the school coordinators BEFORE individual tournament brackets are compiled.

PROTESTS

Protests must be placed with the game referees and the opposing coach at the time of the alleged infraction. From that moment, the game will be deemed as being played under protest. The protest must then be submitted in writing to the league President and must be accompanied by a $75.00 protest fee. A protest board shall consist of 3 board members. No protest of a referee’s rules decision shall be considered. If the protest is granted, the $75.00 fee shall be returned to the protesting member and the game will be resumed from the point in time the protest was made.  

EJECTION AND SUSPENSION

Participation on a team and attendance at practices and games are privileges, not rights for players, coaches, parents and fans. In the case of a violation of the Code of Conduct documented on the last page of these by-laws, a coach or other official or authorized leader may choose to deliver a warning, or if the violation warrants it the individual may be ejected and suspended, as follows:

(a) Ejection: A coach, parent, or fan who is ejected for any reason must leave the gym and shall be suspended for the next scheduled game. A player who is ejected from the game is not required to leave the premises. However, if a player (or child fan unaccompanied by an adult) is ejected and required to leave the gym, that child should be supervised by at least two adults until the child is directly under the supervision of a parent or guardian, in compliance with the Decree on Child Protection. For any ejection of a coach, parent, fan or player, the related team shall be assessed both a technical foul and a team foul. At the 3^rd grade level only, any coach who is assessed a technical foul will be ejected also.

(b) Suspension: An individual who is suspended shall be prohibited from attending the next game. Suspensions for egregious violations may include multiple games, practices, and other team activities at the discretion of the WBC board. Suspension shall follow ejection as a consequence of the violation. Any violation of the suspension or a subsequent violation shall trigger an escalating series of responses, as detailed below. In all cases, the WBC Board reserves the right to administer a stronger sanction for the violation.

Violation When/Where Occurred Sanction

First Before, during, or after a Ejection for the rest of the game or

game or practice practice; attendance at next game

prohibited

Second Before, during, or after a Ejection for the rest of the game or

game or practice practice; attendance at next 2 games prohibited

Third Before, during, or after a Attendance at practices, games, and

game or practice any other team activities is prohibited for the rest of the season

WBC CODE OF CONDUCT

8.2.1 Spirit of Catholic Youth Athletics

a) Treat everyone with respect and love according to the Great Commandments: “You shall love the Lord, your God, with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the greatest and the first commandment. The second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. The whole law and the prophets depend on these two commandments.” Matt. 22:37-40

b) Demonstrate good sportsmanship, patience, manners and an attitude indicative of the spirit and mission of the Catholic Church.

8.2.2 Adherence to Laws, Rules and Policies

a) Catholic canon law and Archdiocesan laws and policies including, but not limited to, the Archdiocese of Cincinnati Decree on Child Protection.

b) Federal, state, and local laws and ordinances.

c) The mission, goals, principles, and policies of the Archdiocese of Cincinnati Charter on Catholic Youth Athletics, and those of the Organizational Documents of participating athletics organizations and leagues.

8.2.3 Specific Violations

a) Eligibility: Violation of the eligibility policies of the Archdiocese of Cincinnati Catholic Youth Athletics Charter, including using an ineligible player

b) Recruiting: No recruiting for athletic purposes or to enhance a team’s competitive advantage is permitted.

c) Leaving the field of play: No team may leave the field, floor, game or tournament because of dissatisfaction with the officials, or their decisions.

d) Losing control: Coaches are expected to control their own conduct and the conduct of their players and report to the league and Commission instances where opponents, officials, parents, or fans have failed to control their own conduct.

e) Running up the score: It is not permitted to humiliate an opposing team by playing in such a way to intentionally run up the score after the outcome of the game is no longer in question.

f) Inappropriate communication and behavior: The use of inappropriate, insulting, disrespectful, bullying and demeaning language or behavior before, during or after meetings, practices or games by players, coaches, officials, parents, fans, site personnel, volunteers, or others involved in any parish athletics program is prohibited. Also prohibited are physical intimidation and the use of profane, vulgar, abusive or sexually-oriented language, in oral, written or electronic forms of communication (such as texting or mail), by players, coaches, officials, parents, site personnel, volunteers, or fans.

g) Escalating behaviors: Behaviors that incite others to act in ways that are in direct conflict with the spirit of Catholic Youth Athletics are prohibited.

h) Vandalism and theft: There will be no vandalism, theft, or destruction of property at any athletics venue.

i) Alcohol, tobacco, illegal controlled substances: No alcohol, tobacco, or any illegal controlled substance is permitted at practices, league competitions, or tournaments where children are present (such as “tailgating” where alcohol is present). Athletics organizations are expected to establish and communicate zero tolerance policies regarding alcohol, tobacco, and illegal controlled substances at competitions, tournaments and gatherings where children are present.

8.2.4 General Violations

Activities that are contrary to the mission, goals, principles, values, provisions or spirit of Catholic Youth Athletics as described in this Charter are prohibited.

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