Volleyball House League Rules Fall of 2008

The rules used at the Volleyball House are standard USAVB rules with the following exceptions and/or modifications.

1. Number and arrangement of players: Teams must have a minimum of 5 players to play a game. There will be no exceptions to this rule. When using only five players, there will be a loss of serve when the hole/phantom player rotates to the services position. Whenever there is only one man on the front row in coed games, a man may come up from the back row to block, but he is considered a BACK ROW player for attacking purposes.

 2. Rosters: Rosters will be kept at the desk, and must be turned in prior to the second match of the season.  A maximum of 10 players may be on a roster.  After the second week of play, all players on a team must be listed on the team roster prior to engaging in play, and Management will make roster checks upon a verbal request by a team captain to the referee. Players can be added or deleted from the roster up through the fifth match of the season, but changes must be made prior to use of a new player in a match.  If a team uses players who are not registered on their teams’ roster and not registered as a legitimate substitute for that game, the opposing team can request a forfeit of that game.  Claims regarding illegal players must be made prior to the end of the game and will be arbitrated by VBH management.  Eligibility:  As of Fall 2008, players may be on the roster of only one league team on each league night.   There are three classifications of leagues:  Men’s (includes Rec C), Women’s and Coed, and up to six levels (AA,A,BBB,BB,B,C) within each classification.  If a player is on more than one roster within a classification, the teams must play on different nights, and levels must be the same or contiguous levels (e.g. a Men’s BBB player may on a different night also be on the roster of Either a Men’s A team Or a Men’s BB team BUT NOT BOTH during that season).  Outside classifications, women playing in a men’s league may play two levels down (ie a Women’s AA would be allowed to play down to Men’s BBB). Players on a Women’s or Men’s Roster may play only one level up or down in a Coed league. Seniors (age 55+) are exempt from these eligibility requirements. Substitutes:  With the consent of the opposing captain, a team may bring on a one time substitute who is not listed on their roster in order to field a team. With the arrival of a legitimate rostered player, the substitute must leave the court.   Substitutes may be volunteered from the opponent’s team, from the same level league on another night, or may be from a lower level league; they may not be from a higher level league or from any team other than the opponent’s in the same league.  Prior to the start of the game, the name of that substitute must be inscribed on the official score sheet with the names and levels of any teams they are currently on the roster of.  The opposing team captain must initial the entry to indicate agreement with the use of the substitute, and has the right after each game to withdraw consent to use that player.   Playoffs:  Only players listed on the roster can play in playoff games.

3. Forfeits: FIRST GAME: If a team does not have at least five players at the time the official calls the teams to the line to begin the match - the first game will be forfeited (if at this time, neither team has at least five players present, both teams will forfeit). SECOND GAME: If at ten minutes after the time the first game was to begin, a team does not have at least five players - the second game must being or will be forfeited. THIRD GAME: If at ten minutes after the time the second game was to begin, a team does not have at least five players, the third game will be forfeited. When a team forfeits a match at game time, the court becomes the property of the team which won by forfeit/default, to be used as they choose, unless for some pressing reason, the court is needed by VBH. They may have the use of the court until 5 minutes before the scheduled start time of the next match. LOSS OF A PLAYER: Once a match has commenced, if a team loses a player and fails to field at least 5 players during a game , that game will be forfeited. The teams will have five minutes before the start of the next game to field at least five players, or they will forfeit all remaining games.

4. Match Start Time: For the sake of all parties concerned, we ask that the team captains ensure that they are available to courtside, a minimum of 5 minutes before the hour. Teams will be ready to enter the court at the top of the hour (7,8,9) or at the conclusion of the preceding match: whichever is later. This time will be defined as the COURT AVAILABILITY TIME. Practice/Warmups will be allowed for 5 minutes after the COURT AVAILABILITY TIME. At the conclusion of this warm-up period, the official will mount the stand and blow the whistle. The whistle signifies the start of a 55 minute match time period. This whistle signals that both complete teams are to report to the back line in preparation for the match to begin. Once the whistle is blown, teams have 30 seconds to get a complete team (5-6 players) to the back line, in preparation for play. Team delay penalties will be imposed if excessive delays exist. If either team has less than 5 players, at this time, the forfeiture rules will be enforced. Each match will consist of three rally scored games to 25; the last game will be to 15 if the first two games run late. Teams may take 2 minutes between games, but are not required to do. If both teams and the official agree, the next game may start sooner. If players decide to leave the court between games, it is their responsibility to ensure that they will be back and ready to begin once the whistle is blown for the resumption of the next match. (Note: the 30 second delay rule will be in effect for breaks between games. As well). Timeouts will be 15 seconds.

5. Number of Game Points and Match Time Limit: The first two games will be to 25 points and must be won by 2 points or by the team that first reaches 31 points regardless of the point difference. No time limits will be imposed during the first 2 games. The third game will also be to 25 points if it is completed within the 55 minute match time allotment. If the third game is not completed before the 55 minute match time allocated, the end of the game will be called in favor of the team that is ahead at the end of this 55 minute period. If the 3rd game is tied at the end of the 55 minute period, the first team to score a point will win the game. The referee will periodically notify teams of the remaining game time and will always notify both teams when three minutes remain in the match. NO timeouts will be allowed during the final 3 minutes of the third game if the match time is within 3 minutes of the 55 minute limit. In the unlikely eventuality that the first 2 games exceed the 55 minute match limit, a third timed game of 7 minutes with no timeouts will be played and must be won by 1 point.

6. Let Serves: Serves that hit the net and continue to the opposite court will be played in all Volleyball House leagues.

7. Use of Feet in Playing the Ball: A-BBB league players WILL BE allowed to utilize their feet to play a ball. B-C league players WILL NOT BE allowed to use their feet to play a ball. Please note that inadvertent contact with the ball will not be penalized; and is determined by the judgment of the official.

8. Jewelry/Headgear: A flat wedding band will be the only jewelry allowed on the court. For individuals who are unable to remove other rings, they will have to be taped over with white athletic tape. Religious medallions may be worn under the shirt. No hats are allowed on the court and other headgear may be subject to official's ruling. Penalty for violation is a time out charged to the offending team to allow the player to remove the inappropriate article. A second offense will result in a sideout/point (red card) at the discretion of the official.

9. Substitutions: All substitutions will be announced to, and acknowledged by, the official. Each team is entitled to unlimited substitutions; however, each individual must continue to enter/exit with the same person. This rule applies to all leagues except Rec C. They will be afforded the opportunity to rotate players in.

10. Playing Court/Surface Guidelines: Both feet must be within the lines of the playing surface at the start (motion/serve/toss) of the serve. If a player runs down a ball, at least one foot must be on the playing surface at the time of contact with the ball. If the player jumps from the surface, when running down a ball, some part of the body must land back on the playing surface.

11. Penalties: Abuse, verbal or otherwise, of the officials will not be tolerated! Penalties shall be imposed, as warranted by the officials, in accordance with the rules used to guide VBH leagues. Serious offenses may require the VBH to impose additional sanctions: such as a suspension , or whatever the Commissioner deems appropriate for the infraction. Verbal protests or appeals must be received by VBH within 15 minutes of the game protested. If not resolved at that time, they must be followed within 2 days of the game in question by a written appeal. Written appeals must be accompanied by a $10 fee and contain the names of referees, as well as names and telephone numbers of witnesses from both teams and, if possible, independent witnesses (e.g. members of a third team observing the incident). The fee will be refunded if the Commissioner rules in your favor.

12. Score Sheets: ALL TEAM CAPTAINS ARE CHARGED WITH THE RESPONSIBILITY OF CHECKING THE ACCURACY OF SCORE SHEETS BEFORE SIGNING THEM. RESULTS OF SIGNED SCORE SHEETS ARE CONSIDERED FINAL. The signature of a member of the team on a score sheet will be taken to indicate agreement with the written outcome.

13. Prizes: B and C league teams winning their leagues will receive a team trophy and individual medals. For BB and above, VBH shirts will be awarded to the team with the most wins during the regular season, if all teams have played each other during the season. If there is a tie in standings at the end of such a season, 1st place teams will be seeded for playoffs by head to head comparison, and shirts will be awarded to the first place team winning the most playoff games. The playoff winner will receive a team trophy. If, however, all teams have not played each other in the course of a season, the top four teams will enter playoffs, and the playoff winner will receive both shirts and team trophy. Teams may opt to receive medals rather than shirts if they so desire.

14. Referee fees: Each team must pay their share of the referee fees ($10/match per team) prior to the commencement of games, or make arrangements to deposit referee fees in advance with the league coordinator.