rule about having to slide at home if a play is being made

Question
this past weekend i was playing in a softball tournament and there was this play at home and the girl ducked her head and crossed her arms across her chest and basically laid me flat out. now whle i still had the ball and got her out, i have always thought that a baserunner had to slide if there was any play at home am i wrong?

Answer
Mallory,

There is no rule that requires a girl to slide at any base.

There are rules about avoiding collision.  If a person performs a legal slide it is impossible for the umpire to say that the runner caused a collision.  A legal slide is an attempt to avoid a collision.

If a girl does not avoid a collision they run the risk of being called out if they are not already out.  If the collision involves excessive force, the runner should be ejected from the game.  Your situation was a had to be there to tell what happened.  Was the runner just trying to protect herself crossing her hands across her chest and ducking her head?  Was there any attempt to avoid running you over?  Was the contact excessive?  If the contact was excessive, the others really don't matter.

Tom