The narrative below should be read by all coaches attending the WIVL League Championship Tournament (“LCT”) for 8^th, 7^th, 6^th and 5^th/4^th grade girls to be held on May 19, 2012.  In addition, the coach for each participating team should read the grade-specific information associated with the schedule for that grade.

Prior to the 2009 LCTs, pools would be configured religiously by seeding numbers, making accommodations only for hosts that needed to be in a pool they were hosting.  This approach produced a large number of scheduling problems, not the least of which was some teams traveling great distances with very early start times.

Starting with the 2009 LCT, we began taking a slightly less rigid approach to seeding the various tournament fields.  We closely track (with an exception for hosts who need to be moved) with the  final League standings when placing teams as the top seed in each pool, making sure each pool has one top-finishing team placed in such a way as to avoid early round play-off match-ups between top seeds.   We do the same for lower seeds where the pool in which a team is placed has an impact on whether they qualify for a championship bracket play-in match (e.g., 7^th and 8^th grade #15, #16, #17 and #18 seeds), or qualify for a higher consolation bracket (e.g., seeds #29 through #36 in the 7^th and 8^th grade fields, relative to the #37 to #42 seeds).  Otherwise, regarding most other lower seeds, after the top seeds have been placed in a pool, we take the next “layer” of teams and place one in each pool.  We do the same with the remaining “layer(s)”.  This approach allows us to take into account travel and diversity of competition issues, with the objective of keeping each pool balanced competitively.  Our primary objectives here are to make sure multiple teams from the same community are not only in different pools, but also have a reduced likelihood of meeting in the first round of the play-offs; and also to make sure teams with the longest trips are placed in such a way as to give the largest number the latest start time possible.

 The following points should be noted by all participant teams -- whether playing in the 8^th grade, the 7^th grade, 6^th grade or 5^th/4^th grade LCT:

• League Rules.  All regular season League Rules will apply to the LCT except as noted below.

• Admissions.  Per League Rule B-7, the host will be allowed to charge $5 per adult and $2 per student (versus $4 per adult/$2 per child during the regular season) to help cover the added cost of running this event.  All admission fees are retained by the host school(s).  Instead of marking hands, each admitted person will be issued a ticket that they must display when entering and re-entering each venue.  A ticket purchased in one host community will be valid in the other host community (e.g., for the 8^th grade LCT, a ticket purchased in Altoona will be valid in Elk Mound, Chippewa Falls and Cadott, and vice versa; the same is true relative to the 7^th grade LCT in Barron, Rice Lake and Bruce; and the 5^th/4^th grade LCT in Boyceville and Spring Valley).

Players in uniform or with a jersey/shirt in their possession will be admitted free of charge.  Each team will be provided with two (not three or four) coach passes at the admission table of the venue where that team plays its first match.  Coaches will need to display their pass when re-entering each venue.

• Concessions.  All hosts will be providing full concessions at their community’s main LCT venue: 

• For 8^th grade, all the surfaces used in Altoona, Elk Mound and Chippewa Falls are in the same building so hosts in each of those locations

             will have full concessions available at all tournament facilities.  In Cadott, there will be full concessions available at the High School and

             water and Gatorade only at the Elementary School. 

• For 7^th grade, full concessions will be available at Barron High School/Barron Area Community Center, Bruce K-12 School and Rice Lake

           High School; there will be no concessions available at Rice Lake’s Middle and Elementary Schools, nor at Barron's Riverview

            Middle School. 

• For 6^th grade, full concessions will be available at all three New Richmond venues.

• For 5^th/4^th grade, full concessions will be available at all three venues - Spring Valley High School, Spring Valley Elementary School and

            Boyceville High School/Middle School. 

Please support the hosts’ efforts.  Host communities retain all concession profits.  Altoona, Boyceville, Barron, Bruce, Cadott, Chippewa Falls, Elk Mound, New Richmond, Rice Lake and Spring Valley should be commended for stepping forward and agreeing to host these four events.  No coolers or outside food and drink provisions are allowed at any of the LCT venues except for beverages consumed by players during matches.  Coaches:  please make sure all parents and players are aware of this rule.

• Number of Matches.  As provided for in League Rule B-7, all teams attending the LCT are guaranteed a minimum of five matches.  In most cases, that total will be six matches.  Four teams in both the 8^th and 7^th grade LCTs (the second place finishers in the Pink, Tan, Silver and Lavender Pools) will play seven total matches.

• Rosters.  At regular season meets, multiple teams from the same community are allowed to move players back and forth between their rosters throughout the day to balance playing time for each player.  This is not allowed at the LCT.  If a given community has multiple teams at a specific LCT, each player can play on only one team throughout the day.  Violating this rule will result in the second team to play the same player forfeiting all matches where the player(s) in question was allowed to play.  The original team on which that player played that day will not be penalized, even if the second team is that player’s regular team.

• Six players to start all matches.  Please note Rule D-15.  In regular season League meets, a team can start a match with less than six players and not be penalized.  However, as noted in Rule D-15, at the LCT, WIAA rules apply.  A team must have at least six players available to take the floor at the start of the first game of a match, or a forfeit will be declared.  There will be a five minute grace period.  In other words, if a match is scheduled to start at 2:00 p.m., each team must have six players ready to take the court no later than 2:05 p.m. or a forfeit will be declared.  The only exception to this general rule is if the players were unavoidably delayed in traveling from one LCT venue to another, in which case the tournament director will determine whether the tardiness is excusable.  If both teams are willing, any forfeited match can still be played for fun if the LCT is not behind schedule.

The fact that one or more players are late for their first match of the day, or are late during the course of the meet because of running an errand, is not an acceptable excuse.  Coaches: please remind your players that they must be on time.  We cannot hold up a big tournament like this, with so many matches, because one or two players are late.

• Line Judges.  As is the case at regular League meets, each team must provide one line judge to work each LCT match (except as noted below).  Refusal or failure to do so will result in a forfeit, although the match can still be played for fun if both teams agree and the LCT in question is not behind schedule.  However, in all championship quarterfinal, semi-final and 1^st place matches (i.e., seven matches at each LCT), the host will provide both line judges.  If the host school is a participant in one or more of those seven matches, their opponent will have the option to provide one of the two line judges for that match.  That issue, however, must be raised by the opposing coach prior to the commencement of the match, not after the match has started.

• Failure to show.  If a team drops out of an LCT after the schedule is posted (May 14), the League will make every effort to fill the vacancy.  If that happens, teams will not be re-seeded; rather, the replacement team will assume the vacated spot, without regard to team strength.  If a team fails to show at the LCT, whether for all their matches, or a specific match, all affected matches will be won by the opposing team.  For tie breaker purposes, the scores of those matches will be reported as 2-0, 2-0.

• Coin Toss/Bench Selection.  Please note League Rule D-14.  This is the only instance where we’ve amended the published regular season rule significantly for the LCT in the interest of fairness.  For the LCTs, we will not use the alphabet system to determine who is the home team.  Nor will the host team automatically be the home team.  Rather, the home team in any given match will always be the highest original seed, based on the final standings posted on this website.  At any point during the tournament, the team with the highest regular season seed will be treated as the home team.

• Match Start Time.  Start times for first matches of the day vary at the different LCT venues, so check the schedule for your grade carefully.  Where possible, we tried to give teams with longer trips later start times, but that was not always an option.  Where teams in the same LCT pool have different start times, the later start time will always be provided to the team(s) with the longest drive time to their first venue.

Teams will get a minimum of ten minutes (combined, not ten minutes per team) of warm-up time before their first match of the day.  After that, particularly where we are running behind schedule, the official on each court and the tournament director have the authority to start a match early if both teams are there and ready to go, and to limit warm-up time.  Many early day matches will last only two games, with later matches (whether in the championship or consolation brackets) more closely-contested, often going to three games.  Any time that can be made up in early round play will be appreciated later on in the day.  With that objective in mind, we ask your cooperation doing the following:

· Early starts where possible.  While no team will be asked to start its first match of the day early, where both teams are at the court for their next match,

     we’d like to see some matches begin before their posted time.  If your team finishes its match early in a given time slot, encourage your players to use  

    he rest rooms or visit the concession stand expeditiously and then proceed directly to the court on which their next match will be played.

·  Don’t leave the venues unnecessarily.  When you have only 55 minutes between matches (50 minutes for 6^th and 5^th/4^th grade), please do not leave

     the LCT premises, except when traveling between venues to get to your next match.  As noted above, use the rest rooms, visit the concession

     stand and then go directly to your next match in case it can start early.

·   No or little warm-up.  After each team’s first match, there will be little warm-up time in subsequent matches.  If matches are running significantly

    behind on a given court, the referee may allow no warm-up time.

·    First to win two.  All matches will be won by the first team to win two games.  No third games (where one team wins the first two) will be played

      for “fun.”  This includes the 6^th grade and 5^th/4^th grade LCTs, where third games “for fun” were allowed, when time permitted, during the regular

      season.

·   Awards.  Trophies will be awarded for 1^st through 5^th place, 9^th place and the consolation championship (17^th place) in all four grade levels.

     Individual players on teams winning trophies will receive medallions.

We provide ten medallions per team at each LCT.  For teams that win a trophy and have more than ten players actually in attendance at the LCT (i.e. we’re not ordering extra awards for players who didn’t attend), you will be able to obtain additional medallions after the event by calling Terri Green at 715-386-4317.  No individual awards will be provided to teams that fail to win a team trophy.

·         Questions or Comments.  Questions or comments about the LCT before or after the day of the event, should be directed to Terri Green at 715-386-4317.   

          Questions or comments at the event should be directed to the following Tournament Director who will be on site:

·         8^th Grade

• Altoona:  Wendy Bresina

• Cadott:  DeWayne Hanson

• Chippewa Falls:  Erin VanHelden

• Elk Mound:  Donna Weix

·         7^th Grade

• Barron:  Jennifer Clemens

• Bruce:  Gary Hecimovich

• Rice Lake:  Gerri Cowley

·         6^th Grade

• New Richmond:  Shelley Johnson

·         5^th/4^th Grade

• Boyceville:  Keri Peterson

• Spring Valley:  Kelli Schlegel

In addition, representatives of the WIVL will be present as follows:

·         Tracie Tilton:  Will be at the 7^th grade event.

·         Terri Green:  Will be at the 8^th grade event and available by phone to help with the 5^th/4^th grade.

·         Another staff member will be at the 6^th grade event.