Volleyball Scorekeeping Rules

Volleyball Terminology

• A rotation is the clockwise movement of players around the court and through the serving position following a side out.
• A serve is used to put the ball into play.
• A service error occurs when the ball fails to clear the net, lands out of bounds, or the server commits a foot fault.
• Side out scoring is a method used in games one through four of matches where points can be won only by the serving team.

Volleyball Terminology (continued)

• A set is a pass that puts the ball in place for a hitter to attack.
• Stuff refers to a ball that is deflected back to the attacking team's floor by the opponents' blockers.
• A setter is the player who sets the ball with an overhand pass for a teammate to hit.
• Six pack occurs when a blocker gets hit in the head or face by a spiked ball.
• Slide attack is a low back set to the antenna that the middle hitter swings behind the setter to attack.
• Ten foot/3-meter line is the line extended across the court to signify the point which a back row player must leave the ground behind to attack the ball.

Volleyball History

• The game of volleyball was originally called "mintonette" and was invented by William G. Morgan.
• Morgan designed the game to be a combination of basketball, baseball, tennis, and handball.
• The first volleyball net was only 6'6" high.
• Volleyball was introduced in Asia, specifically in India, and was later introduced to the Philippines.
• The Filipinos developed the "bomba" or kill, and called the hitter a "bomberino".

Volleyball Rules

• Three hits per side and back row attack rules were instituted.
• Reaching over the net, except under certain conditions, is not allowed.
• Reaching under the net, if it interferes with the ball or opposing player, is not allowed.
• Failure to serve in the correct order is not allowed.
• Blocks or spikes from a position which is clearly not behind the 10-foot line while in a back row position are not allowed.

Volleyball Skills and Techniques

• Skills are actions used in an activity, such as service, pass, set, etc.
• Techniques are the way in which a skill is performed, such as line and cross-court shot, dump, etc.
• Competitive teams master six basic skills: serve, pass, set, attack, block, and dig.

Serve

• A serve is an attempt to drive the ball into the opponent's court.
• Types of serves include underhand, sky ball, topspin, float, jump serve, and jump float.
• An "ace" occurs when the ball lands directly into the court or travels outside the court after being touched by an opponent.

Set

• The set is usually the second contact.
• The main goal of setting is to put the ball in the air in such a way that it can be driven by an attack into the opponent's court.
• The setter coordinates the offensive movements of a team.
• Overhand and bump set are types of sets.
• "Dump" occurs when the setter tries to play it directly onto the opponent's court.

Volleyball Officials

• The scorekeeper is responsible for filling in the pre-match information and recording points during the match.
• The assistant scorer (or libero tracker) records libero replacements and notifies any faults with libero replacements.
• The line judges watch the endline and sideline of their respective corners.
• The referees are responsible for checking the accuracy of the scoresheet at the end of each set.

Volleyball Terminology (continued)

• Joust occurs when 2 opposing players are simultaneously attempting to play a ball above the net.
• Kill is an attack that results in an immediate point or side out.
• Linesman refers to officials located at the corners of the court.
• Middle blocker usually plays in the middle of the net when in the front row and moves laterally to her blocking assignments.
• Net height is seven feet, 4-1/8 inches high.
• Off-speed hit is any ball spiked with less than maximum force but with spin.
• Overlap refers to the position of the players in the rotation prior to the contact of the ball when serving.
• Quick set is a set usually 2' above the net in which the hitter is approaching the setter and may even be in the air, before the setter delivers the ball.
• Rally scoring is a scoring method used in the fifth game of matches where points can be won by the serving or receiving team.
• Red card is given by the official to a player or coach for flagrant misconduct resulting in a point/side out to the opponent.
• Reception error is a serve that a player should have been able to return, but results in an ace.
• Roof is a ball that when spiked is blocked by a defensive player such that the ball deflects straight to the floor on the attacker's side.