History of Volleyball

WILLIAM G. MORGAN - FATHER OF VOLLEYBALL

Born in 1870 at Lockport, New York, William G. Morgan spent his childhood years attending
public school and working at his father's boat yard on the banks of the Old Erie Canal. In 1891
Morgan entered Mt. Hermon Preparatory School in Northfield, Massachusetts, and it was
there he developed a friendship with James A. Naismith, who was destined to be the originator
of basketball. Naismith was impressed with young Morgan's athletic skills and encouraged
Morgan to continue his education at the International Young Men's Christian Association
Training School in Springfield, Massachusetts (now called Springfield College). While at
Springfield, Morgan participated on the college's famous football team which played
championship ball under the leadership of Alonzo A. Stagg, one of the "Grand Old Men of
Football". In 1894, after graduation, Morgan accepted the position of physical director of the
Auburn, Maine YMCA. The following year he accepted a similar post in Holyoke,
Massachusetts, and it was here the story of Volleyball began.
INVENTION OF THE GAME

The year was 1895 and physical director William G. Morgan had a problem. The newly created
game of basketball, while popular with the kids, was proving to be too strenuous for the local
businessmen. He needed an alternative - something these older gentlemen could play -
something without too much "bumping" or "jolting".

It had to be physical - playing a game, after work and at lunch time, should provide exercise,
but it also had to relax the participants - it couldn't be too aggressive.

It had to be a sport, Morgan said, "with a strong athletic impulse, but no physical contact."

So, he borrowed. From basketball, he took the ball. From tennis the net. The use of hands and
the ability to play off the walls and over hangs, he borrowed from handball. And, from baseball,
he took the concept of innings.

He termed this new game "Mintonette". And though admittedly incomplete, it proved
successful enough to win an audience at the YMCA Physical Director's Conference held in
Springfield, Massachusetts the next year.

It was at this conference that Dr. Alfred Halstead, a professor at Springfield College, suggested
a two-word version of its present name. "Volley Ball".

And it stuck.

The game of volleyball was quite a bit different from what we're used to. It was played on a
smaller 25'x50' court, with an unlimited number of players hitting the ball an unlimited number
of times, on either side of a 6'6" high net. Things tended to get a little crowded.
Each game was broken up into nine innings, each inning made up of three outs, or "serves".
These serves could be helped over the net by a second player, if the server didn't quite reach the
net.

The basketball originally used proved to be a little too heavy, and the subsequent use of a
basketball bladder, too soft. Morgan remedied this by contacting A.G. Spalding, a local
sporting goods manufacturer who designed a special ball - a rubber bladder, encased in leather,
25" or so in circumference. The "volleyball".

Though still in its infancy, the sport was slowly developing and with the YCMA taking the
reigns, Morgan was confident volleyball would continue to entertain and relax the boys down
at the "Y".

What he probably didn't realize was that he had just created what would become the second
most popular team sport in the world.
WORLDWIDE GROWTH

The physical education directors of the YMCA, encouraged particularly by two professional
schools of physical education, Springfield College in Massachusetts and George Williams
College in Chicago (now at Downers Grove, Illinois), adopted volleyball in all its societies
throughout the United States, Canada (in 1900 Canada became the first foreign country to
adopt the game), and also in many other countries: Elwood S. Brown in the Philippines (1910),
J. Howard Crocker in China, Franklin H. Brown in Japan (1908), Dr. J.H. Gray in Burma, in
China and in India, and others in Mexico and South American, European and African countries.

By 1913 the development of volleyball on the Asian continent was assured as, in that year, the
game was included in the program of the first Far-Eastern Games, organized in Manila. It
should be noted that, for a long time, volleyball was played in Asia according to the "Brown"
rules which, among other things, used 16 players (to enable a greater participation in matches).

An indication of the growth of volleyball in the United States is given in an article published in
1916 in the Spalding Volleyball Guide and written by Robert C. Cubbon. In that article Cubbon
estimated that the number of players had reached a total of 200,000 people subdivided in the
following way: in the YMCA (boys, young men, and older men) 70,000, in the YWCA (girls
and women) 50,000, in schools (boys and girls) 25,000 and in colleges (young men) 10,000.

In 1916, the YMCA managed to induce the powerful National Collegiate Athletic Association
(NCAA) to publish its rules and a series of articles, contributing to the rapid growth of
volleyball among young college students. In 1918 the number of players per team was limited
to six, and in 1922 the maximum number of authorized contacts with the ball was fixed at
three.

Until the early 1930s volleyball was for the most part a game of leisure and recreation, and
there were only a few international activities and competitions. There were different rules of
the game in the various parts of the world; however, national championships were played in
many countries (for instance, in Eastern Europe where the level of play had reached a
remarkable standard).
Volleyball thus became more of a competitive sport with high physical and technical
performance.
THE FIVB

It has seen the start of two centuries and the dawn of a new millennium. Volleyball is now one
of the big five international sports, and the FIVB, with its 220 affiliated national federations, is
the largest international sporting federation in the world.

Volleyball has witnessed unprecedented growth over the last decade. With the great success of
world competitions such as the FIVB World Championships, the FIVB World League, the
FIVB World Grand Prix, the FIVB World Cup, and the FIVB Grand Champions Cup as well
as the Olympic Games, the level of participation at all levels internationally continues to grow
exponentially.

The beach volleyball phenomenon also continues to amaze. The overwhelming spectator and
television success of Beach Volleyball since its introduction to the Olympic Games at Atlanta
1996 and the stunning success of the FIVB Swatch World Tour and World Championships has
opened up volleyball to a completely new market.
7 Basic Volleyball Skills for Beginners
Every sport has a set of basic skills associated with it. For soccer, it’s kicking a ball; for
baseball, it’s swinging a bat and catching a ball; and for hockey, it’s skating and shooting a
puck. While each of these sports also has specialized positions, every player should know at
least the basic set of skills for their sport. Volleyball is no exception.

The classic set of skills in volleyball can be summed up by the phrase, “Bump, Set, Spike!”
While it’s true that each team can touch the ball up to three times before it has to go back over
the net (actually, four times when you count the block), players have a few more options than
just bumping, setting, and spiking.

The seven basic skills of volleyball are:

 Forearm passing (also known as bumping)

 Volleying
 Setting
 Digging
 Attacking
 Blocking
 Serving

Here is a brief explanation of each of the seven skills, and why they’re so important.

1. Forearm Passing or Bumping

By far one of the most basic skills in volleyball is passing, also known as bumping. This is when
a player contacts the volleyball with their forearms and redirects the ball to one of their
teammates.

But don’t think of elementary school gym class, when everyone just stands there with their
hands clasped in front of them, waiting for the ball to come to them. A good passer doesn’t wait
for the ball – he or she moves to meet the ball.

Good defensive stance

A good defensive stance when waiting to pass the ball is to have bent knees, body leaning
forward at the waist with the weight of the body slightly forward, and arms bent out in front
but hands not clasped together. This position makes it easier to move towards the ball. Try
running with your hands clasped in front of you – not very natural, is it?

Don’t just swing your arms at the ball – aim your pass by point your hands and shoulders in
the direction you’d like the ball to go.

Passing the ball is one of the most important skills, because it’s usually the first of the three ball
contacts the team makes. A good pass will make it easier for the setter to get a good setup to
the hitter. A bad pass makes it a lot harder to execute a good bump-set-spike play. As my coach
used to say, “It starts with a pass”!
2. Volleying
Many beginners think a volley and a set are the same thing, but they are actually two different
terms. A volley is a more generic term that means contacting the ball as an overhead pass with
your hands (mostly your fingers). A set is actually a type of volley.

A volley can be used on your own side of the court, or it can be used as an offensive way of
getting the ball back over the net. A set, on the other hand, is generally a pass between players
on the same team. Setting the other team happens occasionally as an error, but really, you want
to try to avoid setting up the other team to hit the ball back at you!

Put your hands up over your head, with your index fingers almost touching your forehead and
your thumbs and index fingers shaping into almost a diamond – that’s the starting point for an
overhead pass.

Don’t contact the ball with your arms fully extended, otherwise the only strength you’ll have
behind your volley will be from your wrists. You’ll want to bend your arms, as well as your
knees, and extend them both as you’re contacting the ball. Now you can actually get some
distance to your volley!

Many beginners shy away from trying to volley, because it’s easy to get a ball violation call if
you’re using the wrong technique. But being able to volley well is important, because there will
definitely be times when you’ll need to pass the ball overhead. You can’t always rely on just
bumping the ball! The good news is that there are drills that you can do by yourself to improve
your volleying skills.

3. Setting
A set is a specialized type of volley. It’s usually the second hit, and it’s intended to set up one of
your teammates to attack the ball. So, it’s basically volleying the ball in a way that means the
attacker can hit the ball over the net.

The difference between a set and a regular volley is that you are aiming your set in a very
specific way. Getting it on target is the most important factor when setting the ball. You’ll also
need to volley it high enough that the hitter has time to do their full approach. But not so high
that they’re just waiting and waiting… which also give the blockers on the other team lots of
time to get in place!

The speed of your set is also important. There are some trickier sets that are a lot faster (and
require good communication between the setter and the hitter), but when executed well, they
often get through the block.

A good set is actually about a foot away from the net. This gives the hitter enough room to
follow through with their whole arm swing, and gives them enough room to land without
touching the net.
The setter is a specialized position, which means there’s one player whose job it is to try to set
every ball. However, even with a dedicated setter, there will be plays where the setter just can’t
get to the second ball, and another player will have to set the ball. Being able to volley is
necessary, but knowing the other factors like where to aim the set, and set speed and height
will help to get a better set.

4. Attacking
While spiking is the most glamourous and well-known type of attack, there are actually other
ways to deliver an offensive play as well.

Hitting or spiking is when a player jumps up and hits the ball with a one-armed overhead
swinging motion, contacting the ball squarely with their slightly open hand. The intent of a hit
is pure power – jumping helps generate more power and momentum. A skilled player also aims
the ball around the block and targets the area of the opposing team’s playing area that they
think has the weakest defense coverage.

The basic technique for delivering a hit actually begins with your feet, known as the hitting
approach. Start by taking a big step with your non-dominate foot (for right-handed hitters, this
is usually your left foot), then a big second step with your right foot. Then, plant your left foot
beside your right foot, and jump. Taking those first two big steps helps give your jump more
power and height.

When I was learning to hit, I would actually say to myself, “Leeeft, Right-Left”, drawing out
the first left, then saying quickly the “Right-Left”. Sounds cheesy, but it helped with the timing
of my approach, and it helped me to remember which foot to start my approach with.

A tip is similar to a hit in technique, but instead of powering the ball as hard as possible, the
attacker simply pokes at the ball to “tip” it over the net. You can either use your fingertips, or
your knuckles. Either way is allowed, as long as the ball isn’t held too long or carried.
A tip is often used intentionally to place the ball in the holes of the opposing team’s defensive
setup… or, it can also be used as a last-ditch effort to get the ball over the net when the
attacker has mistimed their hitting approach, or the set it too close to the net for the hitter to
get a full arm swing.

A roll shot is also a great attacking option. This again is similar in technique to a hit, but
instead of powering through the swing and contacting the ball as hard as possible, the hitter
focuses more on placing the ball strategically, and swinging a bit more slowly. A player can hit
a roll shot either using a jumping approach, or while keeping their feet on the ground.

The name “roll shot” comes from how the player contacts the ball, which is by rolling their
open hand over or underneath it (instead of smashing it with a slightly open palm like a spike).
This gives more control in placement, and also in timing. It also puts a spin on the ball, making
it harder to pick up by the defensive player.

You might ask, why does a roll shot work so well? It seems like kind of a lame hitting option.
However, a well-timed roll shot is actually one of the most strategic offensive plays. Most
blockers anticipate a hard-driven hit, and time their jump to block it. With a good roll shot, the
ball either goes over or around the blockers, who have already committed to blocking a hard-
driven hit.

As a blocker there’s nothing worse than being in the air and seeing that ball soar over your
head – ahh, so frustrating! Since you’ve already committed to the jump, you can’t exactly jump
again while you’re still in the air!

However, as the hitter, you’ve just executed a smart and strategic play, which has a good
chance of scoring the point. It may not have the glory of a powerful hit, but done at the right
time, it’s a great play. And definitely worth a round of high 5s!

When you’re attacking the ball, remember that no part of your body is allowed to touch the net,
or land on the other side of the net. This is especially important as the hitter, because the
momentum from your jump can actually give you less control for where you’re landing. That’s
why you want to be extra mindful of where you start your jump, so that you give yourself
enough space to land on your side of the court, and also to swing your arm with enough follow
through so that you’re not swiping the net after you’ve contacted the ball.

Being able to attack the ball well is a critical volleyball skill, as most points in volleyball are
scored by a successful attack. You don’t have to be the best power hitter and get all the killer
spikes. A well-timed and well-placed tip or roll shot has just as much chance of scoring the
point.
5. Diving
Diving is basically crashing to the floor in an all-out attempt to keep the ball from touching the
floor. Okay, it’s not really about crashing to the floor… using a good technique will not only
help you save your body some aches and pains, but using some skill and coordination means
you have a better chance of actually keeping the ball in play.

When diving for the volleyball, remember that you want to contact the ball before you hit the
floor (unless you’re doing a pancake, see below). The diving technique is basically a way to land
that minimizes the amount of impact on your body.

To break it down in slow motion, you basically forearm pass the ball, then commit to hitting
the floor by bringing the side of your knee down to the floor (most likely your dominate side),
followed by the side of your hip, then your chest. You want to avoid all parts of your body
hitting the floor simultaneously, as this causes the most amount of impact (and pain!).

Also remember to keep your eyes looking up and forward as much as possible, as this will help
keep your head from contacting the floor.

After a bit of practice, digging becomes second nature. When you’re ready feeling more
proficient, you can try a pancake. No, this isn’t just a tasty breakfast treat! A pancake is when
the player dives and slides for the ball, keeping their hand as flat on the ground as possible, so
that the ball just bounces off their hand (without touching the floor) and stays in play.

When done correctly, a pancake dive play is spectacular, and will earn you lots of high 5s and
cheers from your teammates, and maybe even some oohs and ahhs from the spectators.
However, when done poorly, it can also result in a few good-natured laughs at just how
mistimed, uncoordinated, and off-target your attempt was. Definitely worth the effort either
way!

Some of my pancake attempts have resulted in pretty impressive digs, while other attempts
have resulted in me missing where the ball landed by a whole hand! I just laugh along with my
teammates while they help me off the floor. Hey, there was a slim chance of getting the ball
anyway, so it’s definitely worth the effort to try!

Diving is probably one of the hardest skills to learn in volleyball, because, let’s face it, it can
hurt. A lot. But give it a few tries, and you’ll get more comfortable with it.

6. Blocking
Probably one of the most straight-forward named skills, a block is a defensive play when a
player jumps at the net to block the hit from coming onto their team’s side of the net. The key
secret to blocking is timing. I’m 5’5, and I’ve blocked hitters who are over 6’ when I’ve
managed to time my jump correctly.

There are, of course, other factors related to a great block. You want to keep your fingers
splayed as wide as possible to cover as much space as you can. And since the hitter is trying
their hardest to hit around or above your block, you want to keep an eye on their shoulder to
try to determine where they’re aiming. This way you can adjust your hands to put them in
front of the ball more accurately.

A lot of newer blockers think you just jump straight up, but you actually want to push your
hands slightly forward at the peak of your jump. This action gives you more strength against
the hard-driven spike when you contact it. Without this extra boost, you may still contact the
ball, but the momentum from the swing will win out against your block, and the ball will still
make it onto your side of the court.
When blocking, remember that no part of a player’s body can touch the net, either when they’re
jumping up or when they’re landing. A player must also be careful that their feet stay on their
side of the centre line. This is often how ankle injuries occur, when either the blocker or the
hitter lands under the net and they land on the foot of the other player. This is how I sprained
my ankle, and I still get a bit squeamish thinking about it! However, with the right technique,
these kinds of injuries can be significantly minimized.

Blocking is an important skill, because it is literally the first line of defense against the attack
coming over the net. Even if the block doesn’t completely stop the attack, it has a good chance
of slowing down the ball so that another player can dig it up.

And sometimes having a block in place is a good intimidation factor for the player who is
hitting the ball. It’s much easier to hit a ball over the net when there aren’t any hands in the
way! Putting up a block means the attacker has to work just a little bit harder to earn the point.

7. Serving
Every play in volleyball starts with a serve. As one of my coaches used to say, serving is the
only time in the game that you start with full control of the ball. This is why you’ll often see a
lot of strategy used by servers.

A player can choose to serve over or underhand. An underhand serve is often seen as more of a
beginner or recreational type of serve; however, I’ve seen some pretty aggressive underhand
serves. There are many different techniques and strategies for each, so it’s really about which
the player prefers.

Factors related to a good serve include targeting, speed, and spin. A good server takes a second
or two to identify any areas of weakness in the opposing side’s serve receive setup, and then
targets their serve to that area of weakness.

Obviously the faster a ball travels from a serve, the harder it is for the other team to react to.
The trick to serving a ball fast is your arm swing when you contact the ball. Whether you’re
serving over or underhand, remember to follow through with your swing, even after you’ve
contacted the ball. This gives your swing a little more speed.

Not only is speed a factor, but so is putting spin on the ball. When there’s spin on a ball, it will
either drop quickly once it sails over the net, or it will ricochet off the forearms of the player
who is passing it – or both. Putting spin on a volleyball is a great skill, but does take time and
practice to develop.
The official rules give players 8 seconds to serve the ball after the referee has blown the
whistle, but some rec leagues give players 5 seconds, so be sure to check the rules for the league
you’re playing in.

The best advice I can give for serving is to just take your time, and focus on getting the ball to
where you want it to go. For beginners, that could just mean getting it over the net. Nothing
wrong with that! As you build up your skill and confidence, work on looking at where the other
team’s players are standing, and try to aim your serve to the holes in their defence.

Another important tip to remember when serving is to make sure that your feet don’t go over
the serving line before you contact the ball. When serving, the player has to start outside the
back line of the court, and can only step into the court after they’ve contacted the ball. Again,
since you start with full control of the ball when serving, make sure you give yourself enough
room to serve the ball without getting a foot violation. No one to blame but yourself for that
error!

At high-calibre levels of play, volleyball is a sport of specialization, skill, and strategy. But you
don’t have to be an expert in all the volleyball skills to play well! Knowing the basic skills is a
great starting point, and you can build up your skill the more you play. Many players are more
comfortable with some of the skills than others. Be open to learning from your experienced
teammates, and you’ll definitely pick up some new skills the more you play.

THE BASIC RULES OF VOLLEYBALL

9/1/2013
We have provided information about the basic rules of volleyball when watching your children
play.

THE SERVE

1. Server must serve from behind the restraining line ( end line ) until after contact.
2. Ball may be served underhand or overhand.
3. Ball must be clearly visible to opponents before serve.
4. Served ball may graze the net and drop to the other side.
5. First game serve is determined by a coin toss. Game 2 will be served by the receiving
team in game 1. If match goes to a 3rd game, new coin toss will determine serving team.
6. If best of 5 game match: Game 2, 3, an 4 will trade off between teams. If teams go to
game 5, serve will go to winner of a new coin toss.
7. Serve must be returned by a pass or set only. Serve can not be blocked or attacked.

SCORING

1. Rally scoring- which means there will be a point awarded on every won rally.
2. Offense will score on a defensive miss, out of bounds hit, or blocker touches the top of
the net.
3. Defense will score on an offensive miss, out of bounds hit, serve into the net or hitter
touches top of the net.
4. Game will be played to 25 pts. Game 3 is played to 15.
5. Must win by 2 points, unless a point cap has been placed.

ROTATION
 1. Team will rotate after each sideout. A sideout is when the team on serve receive wins
the point to earn the right to serve.
2. Players shall rotate in a clockwise manner.
3. There shall be 6 players on each side.

PLAYING THE GAME (VOLLEY)

1. Maximum of three hits per side.

2. Player may not hit the ball twice in succession ( A block is not considered a hit ).
3. Ball may be played off the net during a volley and on serve.
4. A ball touching any part of the boundary line is considered in.
5. A legal hit is contact with the ball by any part of the players body which does not allow
the ball to visibly come to a rest.
6. A player must not block or attack a serve.

BASIC VIOLATIONS

1. Stepping on or over the line on a serve.

2. Failure to serve the ball over the net successfully.
3. Hitting the ball illegally ( Carrying, Palming, Throwing, etc. ).
4. Touches of the top of the net only with any part of the body while the ball is in play.
Players may contact the net below the top of the net (the tape) at any time. If the ball is
driven into the net with such force that it causes the net to contact an opposing player,
no foul will be called, and the ball shall continue to be in play.
5. Reaching over the net, except under these conditions:

 1 - When executing a follow-through.

 2 - When blocking a ball which is in the opponents court but is being returned ( the
blocker must not contact the ball until after the opponent who is attempting to return
the ball makes contact). Except to block the third play.

1. Reaches under the net ( if it interferes with the ball or opposing player ).
2. Failure to serve in the correct order.
3. Blocks or spikes from a position which is clearly not behind the 10-foot line while in a
back row position.
 4. A players foot may not completely cross the midline at any time. However, if the rest of
the body crosses it is legal unless interferes with a player on the other side of the net.

SUBSTITUTIONS

1. Coaches only have 12 substitutions per game in club.

2. Once a player subs in for a rotational position, they can only sub in for that rotational
position.