VOLLEYBALL RULES

I. The Game
1. Home team has the choice of side or serve to start the match and before the beginning of the third game
if necessary.
2. The team that has scored 25 points in rally/speed scoring style and is at least two points ahead shall win
the game.
3. There will be a 30-point cap on all games.
4. A match shall consist of best two-out-of-three games.
5. If a third game is required, it shall also be played with speed/rally scoring (no side-outs, every serve
results in a point.) The first team to reach 15 points and is at least two points ahead shall win the game,
30 point cap on third games.
6. Boundary lines are in-bounds.
7. Adjacent courts are considered “out-of-play” while other games are in progress.
8. Any ball, which hits the ceiling is out-of-play.
9. Balls may not be played off the wall. When playing a ball near a wall, players may not use the wall to gain
a height advantage. (At least one foot must remain on the floor).

II. Players, and Equipment

1. Only players on the official team roster and score sheet can participate in the game.
2. FOR CO-REC LEAGUES: Minimum of 3 players, maximum of 6 players at all times. The difference
between genders may not be greater than 2.
3. Spectators and team members waiting to play must remain at least a foot from the sidelines and 5 feet
from the backlines. No one will be allowed between the courts. Only participants will be allowed on the
court.
4. Non-marking court shoes must be worn by all players.
5. No jewelry or hats will be allowed when playing.
6. Each team is allowed one 60-second time-out per game.

II. Service

1.The home team has choice of serve or side to start the first game. The team not serving the first game of
the match shall serve first in the second game.
2. Server must remain behind service line until ball is contacted.
3. The server may serve from any position behind the end line.
4. If the ball is served before the referee’s whistle, the ball is dead and the point re-served.
5. A “point” for the opposing team occurs for the following service faults:
a) Ball does not pass over net.
b) Ball touches teammate or any other object before crossing net.
c) Ball lands out-of-bounds
d) Ball touches wall or ceiling.
6. If a team’s players serve out of order, the team loses serve and any points scored while serving out of
order. The players of the team at fault must take their correct positions.
7. Any attempt to screen the receiving team from seeing the trajectory of the serve is a side-out. This
includes two or more players standing together, or one player with his hands above his head, as the
serve passes over him/them.
8. At the time the ball is contacted for the serve, the players on the court must be in their proper order.
9. The ball is in play if it touches the net on a serve and lands in-bounds on the opponent’s area.
10. For teams with fewer than six players, (5 only) each time a vacant position rotates to serve in the right
back position; a loss of rally and point is awarded to the opponent. This naturally forces another rotation
for the team awarded the point.

III. Playing the Ball

1. Each team is allowed three successive contacts of the ball in order to return it.
 2. The ball may be hit with any part of the body, expect the foot and lower leg when attempting to kick or
motion to kick the ball intentionally.
3. The ball can contact any number of body parts provided that such contacts are simultaneous and that
the ball rebounds immediately and cleanly.
4. Touching a ball in an attempt to block does not count as a touch and the same player may make the first
contact.
5. Contact with the ball must be brief and instantaneous. When the ball visibly comes to rest momentarily in
the hands and arms of a player, it is considered as having been held. Scooping, lifting, pushing, or
carrying the ball are forms of holding. A ball clearly hit from a position below the ball is considered a
good hit.
6. A double contact is when a player hits the ball twice in succession or the ball contacts various parts of
his/her body in succession. It is NOT a double contact if the ball contacts various parts of a player’s body
simultaneously.
7. When two players of the same team simultaneously contact a ball, it is considered one contact and
either player may make the next contact.
8. A player is not allowed to attack the ball on the opponent’s side of the net.
9. No player shall assist a teammate by holding him/her while they are playing the ball. It is legal to hold a
player not playing the ball in order to prevent a fault.
10. A back row player may not cause a ball, which is completely above the height of the net to cross over to
the opponent’s side unless he/she is either on the ground completely behind the 3-meter line or is in the
air, having jumped from behind the line. If any part of the 3 meter line is touched by the attacking player,
it is a violation resulting in a point for the non-offending team.

IV. Blocking

1. Blocking may be legally accomplished by only the players who are in the front line at the time of service.
Back line players may not participate in a block.
2. A blocked ball is considered to have crossed the net.
3. The team which has affected a block shall have the right to three additional contacts after the block.
4. Any player participating in a block shall have the right to make the next contact, such contact counting as
the first team hit.
5. Multiple contacts of the ball during a block shall be considered a single contact, even though the ball may
make multiple contacts with one or more players of the block.

V. Play at the Net

1. A ball hitting the net may be played again.

2. If a player’s action causes him/her to contact the net during play, accidental or not, with any part of body
or clothes, that player shall be charged with a fault.
3. If the ball is driven into the net with such force that it causes the net to contact a player, such contact
shall not be considered a fault.
4. If opponents contact the net simultaneously, it shall constitute a double fault and the point shall be
replayed.
5. If a player accidentally contacts any part of the net supports, such contact should not be counted as a
fault provided that it has no effect on sequence of play. Intentional contact or grabbing of such objects
shall be penalized as a fault.
6. Completely crossing over the centerline and contacting the opponent’s playing area with any part of the
body is a fault
7. If the ball, in any way, makes contact with the antenna, it is out. If the ball sails outside of the antenna, it
is out. If there are no antennae, the referee will use their own judgment as to whether the ball is out.

VI. Faults

1. Faults will result in point.

2. A fault shall be declared when:
a. the ball touches the floor
b. the ball is held, thrown, or pushed
c. a team has played the ball more than three times consecutively
d. a player touches the ball twice consecutively
e. a team is out of position at serve
f. a player touches the net
g. a player crosses the centerline
 h. a player attacks the ball above the opponent’s playing area
i. a back line player while in the attack area hits the ball into the opponent’s court from above the
height of the net
j. a ball lands outside the court or touches an object outside the court
k. the ball is played by a player being assisted by a teammate as a means of support
l. a player reaches under the net and touches the ball or opponent while the ball is being played by
the other team
m. the game is delayed persistently
n. blocking is performed illegally
o. Illegally served ball or service fault
p. the ball touches or sails outside the antennae

VII. Misconduct

1. Inappropriate conduct by a team member toward officials, opponents, teammates or spectators is

classified in four categories according to degree of the offense.
a. Minor misconduct offenses are not subject to sanctions. It is the official’s duty to give a hand
signal or verbal warning throughout the game. This warning is not a penalty and has no
immediate consequences.
b. Rude conduct: acting contrary to good manners or moral principles, expressing contempt.
c. Offensive conduct: defamatory or insulting words or gestures.
d. Aggression: physical attack or intended aggression.
2. Depending on the degree of the team member’s conduct and the judgment of the referee, the sanctions
to be applied and recorded on the score sheet are:
a. Penalty: For rude conduct, the team is penalized with a loss of rally.
b. Ejection: Extremely offensive conduct or repeated rude conduct is sanctioned by ejection. The
team member must leave the gym for the rest of the game and will not be allowed to play in the
team’s next game. If an ejection team member continues to engage in misconduct, he/she is
subject to further individual sanctions.

VIII. Forfeit

Game time = forfeit. If there is 1 person or more from your team present the following penalties will be
enforced. If one or more team members are present but don’t have the minimum to start play, the team ready
for play can decide to take the forfeit win or they can choose to wait up to 15 minutes past scheduled start
time for the other opposing team members. The opposing team will be penalized by the following.
1. 1 point per minute.
a. MAX is 15 points and resulting in a forfeit for that team.
• Note if after 15 minutes the team is still not ready for play, the team has forfeited.
2. Two forfeits equals termination from the league.

IX. Substitution

1. A re-entering player shall not return to the set during the same dead ball in which the player was
replaced. The re-entering player shall assume the original position in the serving order in relation to the
other teammates.