runner hit with throw, college softball

Question
This happened in a junior college softball game:
A runner was on first with one out. The batter hit a hard ground ball to the shortstop. The shortstop stepped on second base to force the lead runner, and then threw the ball towards first base. The thrown ball hit the forced runner, and the umpire called both runners out due to interference. The runner did nothing intentional to cause interference, and the manager argued that the call was wrong, and the ball should have still been live, and the batter/runner should be safe at first. The umpire said that it was automatically interference, since the lead runner was already ruled out at second. I thought that the interference in this situation had to be intentional, but the umpire said that when a runner is called out, they have the responsibility to get out of the way of the throw.
Was that the correct call?

Answer
Hi Mark:

Thanks for your question; in this case, you and the manager mentioned are correct.

Going by the rule book for Major League Baseball (on the assumption that college softball rules for this situation are similar), a runner may be declared out for interference if they intentionally interfere with a thrown ball.

If, as your description suggests, the runner was hit by the thrown ball within a couple of seconds of being put out, and did not have time to get out of the way, I would agree that the ball is live, and play continues.

However, if the runner had enough time to move, or intentionally made a motion towards the ball in an attempt to disrupt the throw, then that runner would be declared out (if he wasn't already), if, and only if, the umpire thought that the batter-runner could be put out on the play as well, would the batter-runner be declared out on the interference.

I hope this answers your question; enjoy the upcoming season!

Regards,
Gareth