Ball that hit the palte is called a strike. (fastpitch)

Question
Yesterday at our girls 12U fastpitch, the umpire called strikes that hit the plate. My interpretation was that it was a ball under Rule 7, Section 4.  The umpire stated that as long as the ball was a strike when it crossed the batter and then drop and hit the plate, it was a strike. I thought the ball must cross the plate before it can be called a strike.  Could you help in which is right?

Answer
Hi Frank,

here's the def of a strike in FP

STRIKE ZONE: That space over any part of home plate, when a batter assumes a natural batting stance adjacent to home plate, between the batter抯,
A. (Fast Pitch) Arm pits and the top of the knees.

So the strike zone doesn't change if the batter is up or back in the box.  There is no way a pitched ball that hits the plate can be a strike as it never enters the sz as defined.  7-4-b applies to SP.

Mark