Apart from a player's own individual skillset,college softballis a sport built much on strategy. This is especially true for pitchers inside the circle. That strategy building betweena pitcherand a catcher begins traditionally before a start by building the scouting report in film work sessions with a pitching coach. It is then executed in the game withthings like rise balls, off-speed pitches and ball placement among other strategies. REQUIRED READING:NCAA softball tournament super regional schedule breakdown in race for Women's College World Series But there is perhaps an unknown common denominator in all this with the softball itself, as a pitcher tries to retire a batter at the plate by changing up speed and location: the weight and size of the softball. The NCAA softball tournament continues on Friday with a full slate of super regional matchups, where the winners of these best-of-three series will advance to the Women's College World Series. Here's what to know: The circumference of a softball is measured anywhere between 11⅞ inches and 12 1/4 inches, which is an estimated 3 inches bigger in circumference than an NCAA regulation baseball.As noted by The Oklahoman,part of the USA TODAY Network, a softball is also slightly heavier than a baseball, as a softball weighs between 1.7 and 2.3 ounces. Here are the official requirements of a regulation softball, as noted inRule 3.2.1 of the NCAA's softball rulebook: "The ball shall be an optic yellow sphere with raised red thread seams. It shall have a polycore center. The cover shall be smooth and made of chrometanned, top-grain horsehide or cowhide. It shall be affixed to the core by cement and sewn with waxed cotton or linen thread by the two-needle method with not fewer than 88 stitches per cover. The ball shall meet the following specifications." Minimum circumference:11⅞ inches Maximum circumference:12 1/4 inches Minimum weight:6 1/2 ounces Maximum weight:7 ounces Maximum COR (coefficient of restitution):47 Compression:Minimum 275 pounds; maximum 375 pounds Maximum dynamic stiffness:7,500 pounds per square inch. This article originally appeared on USA TODAY:How big is softball? What to know ahead of super regionals, WCWS
