Section Votes to Modify Girls’ Basketball Rule : High schools: Change, which must be approved by state and national boards, would include over-and-back violation.

In a move proponents consider long overdue, girls’ basketball took a giant step Thursday when the Southern Section Council voted to use the mid-court stripe.

The proposal must be approved by the State Federated Council, which meets next month, before the National Federated Council can ratify it for the 1994-95 season.

“This is seven years in coming,” said Dean Crowley, the section’s acting commissioner, at the Sequoia Athletic Club. “Most of the girls’ programs have had it for years and years. By bringing in the mid-court line, it’s almost the same game as the women play at the national level.”

Under modified rules, a violation would be called if the ball is advanced to the front court by the offensive team and then returned to the back court, as it is in the boys’ game, but without the 10-second rule. The girls’ 30-second shot clock would remain intact, contrary to many programs nationwide.

Area coaches applauded what they felt was the girls’ game coming out of the Dark Ages.

“We’re thrilled; we’ve been waiting for it for years,” Woodbridge Coach Eric Bangs said. “It’s a real healthy rule change. We go to Nevada and play in tournaments where teams use it, and we play with it in the summer, then we have to take it out for the regular season.”

Bangs said defense-oriented teams will benefit most from the change. “Trapping defenses will flourish more,” he said. “Teams will be able to use their defensive arsenal more.”

Said Cypress Coach John Selbe: “Anything that makes the game more like the boys’ is good. It’s a compliment to the girls. In the past, maybe their skills weren’t as developed. But now, they’re talented enough that they can be penalized if they don’t control the ball.”

Bangs believes the 30-second clock is a good idea for boys’ and girls’ teams, but Crowley doesn’t expect to see a shot clock for boys in the near future.

“The National Federation Rules Committee hasn’t been in favor of a shot clock for boys,” Crowley said. “We’re not moving in that direction.”

In other action Thursday, the council turned down a proposal by Art Singer of the Southern California Baseball Officials Assn. to implement a 10-run mercy rule in baseball.

“The coaches overwhelmingly opposed it,” Crowley said. “They’ve never been for the rule. Without (the 10-run rule), you give kids who may otherwise sit on the bench the chance to play.”

The council also passed a new scoring system for boys’ tennis, presented by the Ocean League. Doubles teams traditionally have earned one point for a victory. Under the new system, which will begin this spring, they will score 1 1/3 points for a victory and up to 12 points per match, compared to the previous nine points.

Corona del Mar boys’ tennis Coach Tim Mang proposed the rule change three years ago but deferred to Beverly Hills Coach Jason Newman this year.

“I got tired of introducing it,” Mang said. “We had it passed last year, but CIF (in its proposal) included the girls, and we knew the girls wouldn’t go for it. Luckily, we’ve got enough good coaches that care about kids. If you’ve got three good (singles) kids, they shouldn’t be able to win a match by themselves.

“I think it’s great.”

At one time, boys’ tennis had a rule that made every doubles set worth 1 1/2 points, but that was changed eight years ago.

“This is a compromise,” Mang said. “I love it. All the coaches that like coaching really like it. It asks you, how are you going to play your lineup? If you’re playing a close match, you can really have some fun. This makes the (traditionally dominant teams) like Santa Barbara and (Palos Verdes) Peninsula do something different.”

In other action, the council:

--Approved rally scoring in girls’ volleyball for tournament games. This will not be employed during regular-season matches, playoffs or State tournament play.

--Approved an amendment to an article of the CIF constitution that deals with discrimination that would change “gender orientation” to “sexual orientation.” The San Francisco Section requested the term change.

Both proposals will go the State council in February.

--Friends of Golf presented a stipend of $30,000 to the section, to be distributed to 75 member schools with golf programs.

Times staff writer Dave McKibben contributed to this story.