Walk-off interference call...

[Infield Fly]

ASA, JO girls, fastpitch local tournament pool play game. Bottom of the 7th, no-new-inning time limit has expired, 4-4 score, two outswith the bases loaded. I'm U1.

Batter hits a liner off pitcher's glove. Ball skips out towards shortstop who is plowed into by runner going from 2nd en route 3rd.

My partner calls the runner from 2nd out on interference.

The runner coming home from third has not crossed the plate at time of the contact, so the game is over with tie score (ties stand in pool play in these tourneys).

Home team, however, protests that because ball was deflected by pitcher it could not be interference -- that that was what they'd been told when the same situation came up at Nationals last year. Their protest was denied by tournament UIC/Director.

My question: On base-runner interference the other runners go back to the last base legally touched at the time of the interference. So had that runner from 3rd crossed home prior to the contact would the run have counted and the home team won? ASA book would seem to support that, but it doesn't seem right. Because the interference prevented what might well have been a game-ending force-out the runner interference could actually aid the OFFENDING team.

--I.F.