Need a Ruling - This Actually Happened
 

NFHS Rules. Bases Loaded. One Out. Batter hits Infield Fly which is declared by the Plate Umpire. Runner from 3rd races home before ball is touched. Ball is caught for 2nd out. After crossing the plate, the runner enters her dugout, then returns directly to 3rd base after coach in dugout tells her to go to third. No immediate appeal is made. Now the next batter steps in. What do we do now?

If they are not going to appeal leaving early, then you count the run and play ball.

Oh, and get R3 off the field. She can't return.

The runner can not return after leaving live ball territory.
Was there a dead ball at any point?
Any out has to be an appeal for not tagging up.

If defense has half a brain, once you tell runner who returned to 3rd to go back to dugout it should start making some bells go off. Not only did she enter dugout, she failed to retouch home on the way back to 3rd. Coach that told her to go back wasnt thinking very well, should have just kept quiet to see if defense would do anything.

This exact thing forced me to eject my SCOREKEEPER once. I put the girl back kin the dugout. No one's light bulb went off, and no one appealed. After we took a pitch, I made sure the scorekeeper had scored the run and he went ballistic. Even better, scorekeeper was a board member. They love me.

The umpires in Texas get their own scorekeeper? :confused:

Damn, I gotta work some games there. ;)

I'm hoping he meant a team member in the dugout/bench keeping score.

Nope, this was the home team's scorekeeper - but once the game starts he/she is MY scorekeeper.

...for YOUR game on YOUR field?

Deja-vu all over again. :)