A Parent's Guide to Volleyball

THE VOLLEYBALL COURT

Indoor volleyball court = 30′ x 60′ (slight variation in size between high school and college, club, international, etc.)

Two teams of six players, separated by a net down the middle of a court
The side lines and back line are part of the court (the ball is “in” if it hits any part of a line)

Net Heights

- Boys/Men’s = 7′, 11 ⅝”
- Girls/Women’s = 7′, 4 ⅛”
- U12 = 7’
- Girl’s U10 = 6′, 6″

RULES OF PLAY

Each play/rally starts with a serve from behind a back line

Each team has up to three touches to return the ball across the net
- The ball must cross the net between the two antennae
- If the ball hits any part of an antenna, it is “out”

The play ends when the ball is grounded or when a player commits an error

Players score points by:
- grounding the ball inside the other team’s court
- causing the other team to be unable to return the ball, or
- forcing the other team to commit an error

After each play, one team gets a point and become the server for the next rally (called Rally Scoring)

The amount of points in a game, and games in a match varies by tournament:
- Matches are usually best of 3 or 5 games
- Games usually go to 25 point
- Games sometimes go to 25 points, but start at 4
- Final sets usually go to 15 points
- Teams must win by 2 points
  - Scoring may be capped at a specific number

REFEREE SIGNALS

COMMON ERRORS

Double Contact
- A player contacts the ball twice in a row.

Lift/Carry
- A player has prolonged contact with the ball, lifting or carrying it in the air

Four Contacts
- A team contacts the ball four times

Foot Fault
- A player steps onto the court when they contact the ball to serve

Net Violation
- Net violations rules vary by high school, club, and college – broadly, it is a fault if a player (minus their hair) makes contact with the net at any time

Center Line Violation
- Center line violations vary by high school, club, and college – broadly, a player can touch the opponent’s court with hands or feet only if some part is on or above the center line.

Out of Rotation
- A team is not in their correct order/rotation when the server contacts the ball

POSITIONS

Defender
Positions: Libero, Defensive specialist

Responsibilities:

1st ball contact
- Serve receive
- Keep the ball off the ground

Setter

Positions: Setter

Responsibilities:

2nd ball contact
- Responsible for second touch on ball
- Consistent and accurate sets

Hitter

Positions: Outside hitter, Middle hitter, Right side hitter

Responsibilities:

3rd ball contact
- Get kills
- Do not commit errors
- Block

THE LIBERO

aka: “The Player in the Different Colored Jersey”
Either pronunciation is fine: “li-ber-o” vs. “lee-ber-o”)

Teams are allowed a limited number of substitutions per game
- Liberos are allowed to “go in” for any back row player
- It does not count as a substitution
- Only player who can switch back in for the libero is the player who they went in for
- Teams are allowed up to two liberos but both can’t be in at the same time

Special libero rules
- Liberos cannot ever contact the ball over the net when it is completely above the plane of the net
- While in front of the 10’ line, they cannot overhand set a ball that is then contacted by another player above the height of the net and hit over the net
- Must enter and leave the court between the backline and the 10’ line
- Cannot play in the front row
- Can serve for only one person per set

ROTATIONS

The six players are put in a specific rotation at the start of the game
- The rotation order is submitted to the work team each game
- Players must be in this specific order every time before the ball is served
- Three players are in the “front row”, three are “back row”

After the ball is served, players can go anywhere on the court

Before the next play starts, players must return to their correct order/rotation

Players rotate their starting position clockwise after “siding-out” – winning the point when your opponent has served to start the play

Back row vs. Front row
- Back row players are not allowed to contact the ball over the net when:
  - the ball is completely above the height of the net, and
  - they have jumped from in front of the 10’ line

Common misconception: the 10’ line is not what “separates” front row and back row players
- A front row player can attack the ball over the net from anywhere
- The 10′ line is where a back row player must jump from behind if:
  1. they contact the ball over the net
  2. when the ball is completely above the plane of the net

TERMINOLOGY

Ace
- A serve that results directly in a point, either when the ball hits the floor on the receiving team’s side of the court untouched, or when it is touched but unable to be kept in play by the receiving team

Kill
- A successful hit that results in an immediate point, either by grounding the ball or causing the other team to make an error

Dig
- Passing an attacked volleyball (hit or tip)

Float Serve
- A serve with no spin on the ball, causing it to move erratically (like a knuckleball)

Side Out
- When the serving team loses the point, causing the other team to rotate clockwise and serve to start the next point

In-System
- The first contact is good enough that a team is able to run a faster tempo play

Out-of-System
- A team’s first contact is off the net and the team is unable to set certain hitters or run a faster tempo play

Free Ball
- A team is sending over the ball with a forearm pass, usually not aggressively

Down Ball
- A team is sending over the ball with a swing but the player staying on the ground

Attack Line
- Also called the “10-foot line,” this marks where a backrow player must jump behind in order to contact a ball that is above the height of the net

MISCELLANEOUS

It is legal to contact the ball with any part of your body
It is illegal to block or attack a serve
A block is not considered a touch
Yellow card = an official warning that gets marked on the scoresheet
Red card = the other team gets the serve and a point
The Up Ref is in charge of the game – the down ref, work team, and line judges are there to help them
Down ref is not allowed to stop play to call violations except for net and center line violations

TIPS FOR VOLLEYBALL PARENTS

Accept your children

- Find them a good coach
- Let the coach coach
- Love and accept your child as they are

Use the phrase “I love to watch you play”

- Enjoy experiencing your child engaging with life
- Don’t talk about winning or losing, or criticize their performance
- Don’t feel sad – how your child performs should not determine your level of happiness

Praise effort over outcome

- Studies have shown that children who were praised for their effort went on to be more successful in life than those who were praised for their grades
- Praising effort enables your child to have a growth mindset – using mistakes and errors as stepping stones instead of walls

Be a good role model

- Encourage and cheer for the team, not just your child
- Don’t insult or talk badly about their teammates, coaches, opposing teams, referees, or work teams
- Give your child emotional space to experience a win or lose
- Don’t try to coach them during or after games
- Be happy

VOLLEYBALL FACTS

- In 2015, volleyball surpassed basketball as the most popular sport for high school girls
  - 1,802 women’s volleyball college programs in the U.S.
- Only 23 states report any participation in boys’ high school volleyball
  - 239 men’s volleyball college programs in the U.S.
- Beach volleyball is increasing in popularity and became an official NCAA-sanctioned sport in 2016
  - Over 90 beach volleyball college programs in the U.S.

VOLLEYBALL HISTORY

TEAM USA

Men’s

- Gold Medals in 1984, 1988, and 2008
- Bronze Medals in 1992 and 2016

Women’s

- Gold Medal in 2020
- Silver Medals in 1984, 2008, and 2012
- Bronze Medals in 1992 and 2016

NOTABLE INTERNATIONAL TEAMS

Soviet Union Men’s

- Gold Medals in 1964, 1968, and 1980

Soviet Union Women’s

- Gold Medals in 1968, 1972, 1980, and 1988

Cuba Women’s

- Gold Medals in 1992, 1996, and 2000

Italy Men’s

- Silver Medals in 1996, 2004, and 2016

Brazil Men’s

- Gold Medals in 1992, 2004, and 2016

Brazil Women’s

- Gold Medals in 2008 and 2012

NOTABLE AMERICAN PLAYERS

Karch Karily

- Won three national championships in college for UCLA Bruins
- Won two Olympic Gold Medals playing indoor volleyball in 1984 and 1988
- Won a third Olympic Gold Medal in 1996 playing beach volleyball
- Head Coach for the Team USA Women, who won the Gold Medal in 2000

Kerri Walsh Jennings & Misty May-Treanor

- Called “the greatest beach volleyball team of all time”
- 3-time Olympic Gold Medalists in beach volleyball – 2004, 2008, and 2012
- 3-time FIVB World Championships – 2003, 2005, and 2007

Logan Tom

- The youngest-ever American player at the 2000 Sydney Olympics
- Four-time Olympian and two-time silver medalist

Phil Dalhausser

- Gold Medalist in beach volleyball in 2008 Beijing Olympics

VARIATIONS OF THE SPORT

Indoor 6v6

- Olympic sport since 1964

Beach Volleyball

- Olympic sport since 1992

Sitting Volleyball

- Paralympic sport since 1980, played on a smaller court and a 3′ net

Grass Doubles

- Very similar to beach volleyball except played outside on grass

Reverse Co-ed

- A version with an equal number of male and female players – net height is women’s, with male players unable to attack or block in front of the 10′ line

Footvolley

- Created in 1965 in Brazil; very similar to beach volleyball except you cannot use arms or hands

9Man

- A unique variation of the game – with 9 players on each side, a slightly larger court, lower net, block counts as a touch, and other unique rules.

“I think that parents will find this super useful. It’s so organized and clear!”

A Parent's Guide to Volleyball

Everything a parent needs to know about volleyball to help their child succeed – parenting tips, rules, referee signals, positions, a timeline of volleyball history, and more.