August 2023 – The Alliance Fastpitch is excited to announce the addition of the Central Fastpitch League as the ninth Member League of the Alliance Fastpitch. The Central Fastpitch League will begin play as an Alliance League for the 2024 season which lunched August 15, 2023.

“We are excited about the addition of the Central Fastpitch League to the Alliance Fastpitch,” said Alliance Fastpitch CEO Jami Lobpries. “We were approached by several Oklahoma organizations with a unified plan to create their own regional league format that benefited organizations and teams of all sizes and age divisions. Their core values, unified effort and inclusivity amongst the teams aligned perfectly with the Alliance Fastpitch.”

The past three seasons, teams from the state of Oklahoma have played inside the Heart of America Fastpitch League (HFL). The inclusion of the Central Fastpitch League as an Alliance Fastpitch Member League was voted on and approved by the Alliance Fastpitch and the existing Member Leagues.

The Central Fastpitch League (CFL) will offer a regular season league schedule consisting of existing tournaments hosted by a variety of event operators and associations. The CFL will be provided with an allotment of AFCS berths for each age division that they will distribute via CFL Qualifying Events. Additionally, CFL teams will utilize the Alliance Rating System for teams that live score and live stream with AthletesGoLive. The Alliance Rating System is our unified ranking system for all leagues and will assist in CFL League and Alliance National rankings for national event seedings and qualification.

Individual athletes and coaches of CFL teams can become Alliance Fastpitch members and have access to player profiles, season stats and rankings, league and player recognition honors, eligibility for Alliance national programs, and access to all Alliance partner benefits and discounts.

CFL leadership includes individuals from a variety of organizations.

• Co-Commissioner – Donnie Hughes, Oklahoma Exclusive
• Co-Commissioner – Brian Madden, Oklahoma Athletics
• Deputy Commissioner – Cornelius Davis, Oklahoma Athletics
• League Administrator – Will Lyles, Oklahoma Pure Fastpitch
• Junior Division Director – TJ Millus, FFS
• Marketing Director – Scotty Smith, Epic Fastpitch

According to Donnie Hughes, Co-Commissioner of the CFL – “The CFL is honored and privileged to become the 9^th member league of The Alliance Fastpitch.  The CFL is an exceptional union of numerous Oklahoma Softball Organizations that are poised to create one of the most competitive and prestigious Leagues in the nation.  The CFL would like to extend our sincere appreciation to the Alliance leadership for their diligence, hard work, perseverance, and vision in paving the way for the CFL to become a new member league.  We are excited to partner with Alliance, as the premier softball organization in the country.”

The Central Fastpitch League will begin operations as an Alliance Fastpitch member league effective August 15, 2023. You can visit the Alliance Fastpitch to learn more about membership and registering for the 2024 season. You can follow the Central Fastpitch League on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.