Women's volleytennis rules

Time of game

The match will start at 7 p.m., with occasional exceptions. Please read your schedule carefully to confirm start times for all matches. Each league match will consist of three games.

Forfeit

Forfeit time is 10 minutes past the scheduled game time for all three games. Park staff will be responsible for ruling a forfeit should a team not have at least four roster players on the court by forfeit time.

Within 10 minutes of the scheduled game start time, if both teams do not have four roster players present on the court, the game will be started as soon as both teams have at least four players present on the court.

Note: When playing with the four-player minimum, or five players, a team may choose any alignment, as long as no more than three players are positioned in the front or back row, with the only exception being on a serve. See Player position. A player arriving late for a team that has only four or five players may enter the game after the first dead ball upon her arrival at the court. Late-arriving players will take the center-back position and all other players will rotate accordingly.

Player eligibility

All players' names must be on the roster sheet filed in the Sports Office. A player may be dropped from the roster at any time. Roster changes must be made by completing the Add/Drop form and submitting it to the park office at the game site prior to the game. Each team is limited to three roster changes.

Players must be at least 16 years of age. Players under 18 must have a parental waiver completed and submitted to recreation staff prior to participating in a game. Team rosters are limited to a maximum of three players under the age of 18.

Penalty for violation of eligibility rules

Any team discovered using an ineligible player, such as a non-roster player or player playing under an assumed name, will be penalized with the declaration of each game involved forfeited and will receive two minus points in the standings for each game. In addition, the offending team will be placed on probation.

Note: With probable cause, staff may ask for verification of identity from a possible illegal player. A team discovered to be playing an illegal player shall suffer the consequences stated above.

Game procedure

An official game shall consist of 15 points, and a team must win by two points. If both teams are tied at 18 points, the next point wins the game. Three games shall be played with one point awarded for each game won. The break between each game is a maximum of five minutes.

For the first game of the match, the captain of the home team shall call the toss of a coin. The winner takes the choice of side or serve. The side and serve will alternate for the second and third games. During the third game, an automatic change of side shall take place when one team reaches eight points scored.

Keeping score

The team winning the coin toss will keep score the first game. The opposing team will keep score the second game, and the scoresheet will rotate at the point break in the third game. Managers are responsible for confirming the scores and signing the scoresheet at the end of each match.

Player position

Players shall position themselves to form a hollow square, with three players in both the front and back lines. A team may play two in the front and four in the back when receiving a serve.

Rotation

Players rotate clockwise each time their team wins the service. Players entering the game take the left-back position. The player who was in the center-back position rotates out of the game.

Teams may change their lineup rotation order at the start of each new game, but once established, must follow that rotation order for the entire game.

At the start of a game, the receiving team does not rotate when they win service for the first time. They must stay in their starting positions until they win service for the second time.

Service

• The ball is put into play by the center-back player. This player stands with both feet behind the end line and may not step into the court until after the ball has crossed the net. The ball must be definitively batted with the hand.
• The ball must bounce once inside the serving team's court and be batted over the net by the center-front player, also known as the serve-hitter, using one hand with a clear follow through. No dinks are allowed. Both serve-hitter’s feet must be inside the court when she hits the ball on the serve. The serve-hitter may not touch or overlap the white, three-foot service line until the served ball has been touched by an opponent or is out of play.
• The ball must not touch the net on the service or bounce over the net without a clear one-handed hit by the center-front player.
• The served ball, when hit, must travel past the white, three-foot line on the opponent’s side.
• The service may be played when any part of the ball has crossed the net. The serve may be blocked.
• The ball must be clearly hit. It cannot be caught, thrown, rolled, hooked or pushed.

Note: Players are more likely to foul in playing the first hit after a serve with fingertips, and it is recommended they use the bump pass in most situations.

Playing the ball

• On the service, the receiving team must form a three-in-front, three-in-back alignment or two-in-front, four-in-back alignment. See the forfeit section regarding four- or five-player alignments. This alignment shall be demarcated by the 12-foot, middle basketball free throw line.

  Note:

  • All players do not have to be standing on the court to receive the serve.
  • In a three-in-front, three-in-back alignment, the front-center player may stand to the side during the serve.
• The ball may:
  • Be returned directly before bouncing.
  • Bounce once before being returned.
  • Bounce once before being hit or passed to another teammate.
  • Bounce only once between each hit in making each separate play, also known as legal contact.
  • Bounce once and go over the net into the opponent’s court without further assistance, except on a serve.
  • Be hit only three times by a team and must be volleyed directly across the net on the third hit. The same player may not strike or contact the ball on consecutive hits.
• The ball may be played with one or both hands.
• A ball that strikes a player on or above the waist and bounces off can continue in play as if the player had struck it with the hand, provided the contact is direct and not a rolling contact. It will count as one hit and include contact by players who are in or out of bounds.
• When the ball is played with two hands, if the contact with both hands is not simultaneous, it is a double hit.
• Failure of the receiving team to return the ball legally over the net into their opponent’s court shall score one point for the serving team.
• Failure of the serving team to return the ball legally over the net into their opponent’s court shall result in a side out.
• A ball that strikes the net but falls into the proper court is in play, except on the service.
• The ball may be played when any part of it has crossed the net.
• The ball must be clearly hit. It cannot be caught, thrown, rolled or pushed.
• Court boundary lines are in play. Balls must touch the ground completely outside a court boundary line to be ruled out of play.
• The first hit after a serve can be a bump or fingertip touch.
• The basketball rim, backboard and standard, and all fences or walls shall be considered out of play and cause the ball to become dead if it touches them.

Fouls

A foul occurs when:

• The ball is contacted with any part of the body below the waist, whether intentional or accidental.
• The ball rolls on the body above the waist.
• Any part of the player touches the net.
• The player catches, holds, juggles or throws the ball.
• Any part of a player’s body goes under, over or through the net.
• The same player contacts the ball on consecutive hits.
• More than three hits occur on a given side before the ball is volleyed over the net to the opponent’s side.
• The ball bounces more than once without being contacted.
• The ball goes into the opponent’s court on the serve without being hit across the net by the front-center player.
• The ball hits the net on service. Even if it falls into the proper court, it is a foul.
• An illegal serve occurs. See the service section for the requirements of a legal serve.
• The ball bounces over the net after the third hit on either side. The ball must go directly over the net on the third hit.
• A back-row player blocks or spikes in the attack area, which is 10 feet from the net.
• The ball bounces into the net, then bounces again on the same side of the court before it is hit by a player.

Penalty for fouls

Whenever a foul occurs, the ball is declared dead. If the serving team commits the foul, they lose service. If the receiving team commits the foul, the serving team receives one point.

Both teams are responsible for calling fouls when they occur. Only rostered players who are on the court may call a foul.

Note: If both teams disagree with the commission of a foul, the point shall be replayed.

General rules

• No alcoholic beverages allowed.

  Lakewood Municipal Code, Article IV, Chapter 5, Section 400, states: “Drinking in public places. No person shall drink any malt, spirituous or vinous liquor containing more than 1/2 of 1% of alcohol by volume...within any area maintained by City for park and recreation purposes, or in any automobile parking lot...owned, maintained or operated by the City...”

  If a team or team spectator is in violation of this rule, the team may have their games forfeited and may be subject to expulsion from the league with no refund.

• An ejected player will be suspended for that game and must leave the facility. In addition, the player will be suspended from the next scheduled game. Depending on the player’s actions, suspensions for additional games or the entire season may result.

  Trash talking, taunting and foul language: The City of Lakewood Recreation and Community Services Department emphatically rejects this negative activity. Such behavior only serves to make difficult situations worse. The overwhelming majority of players involved in the City of Lakewood’s Adult Sports programs are looking for positive recreational activities. Everyone involved shares the responsibility of eliminating negative behaviors like trash talking, taunting and foul language from both participants and spectators. If a team, or a team’s spectator, violates the standards of good sportsmanship, that team may have their games forfeited and may be subject to expulsion from the league without refund.

• Fighting will not be tolerated.

  The Recreation and Community Services Department will not tolerate any instigation of or participation in any hostile actions toward players, spectators or City staff. Appropriate punishment for anyone involved in a fight, whether as a participant or instigator, will be determined by the league director based on an investigation of the events.

  Punishment will be a suspension at a minimum, but potential actions could include expulsion from the league without refund for both the individual player and/or the entire team, depending on the severity of the transgression and the results of the investigation. Protests will not be accepted for a game in which a fight occurs.

Championship

League champion will be determined by the total number of games won during league play. The league champion will receive individual awards for each roster player. In case of a tie, the tie will be broken using head-to-head play.

League schedule and standings

League schedules and standings are available online through the City of Lakewood eCatalog. Participants can view schedules, scores and standings by visiting Lakewood eCatalog. Select “Sports” on the top banner, then navigate to the appropriate league to view the schedule and standings.