League Rules

These are friendship leagues. Teams working the games are strictly there to keep score. Players should be calling their own nets, double contacts and lifts.

Rules Common to both Monday and Thursday nights:

1. The divider curtain above the net, as well as the hardware that holds it up, and the beam from which it is suspended, will be treated like the net antenna. Any contact with the curtain, hardware, or beam will result in a dead ball and point for the other team. Other beams and objects suspended from the ceiling are treated as ceiling and play may continue so long as the team contacts it again before it crosses the net.
2. Teams must be prepared to play their matches at the time scheduled in order to avoid forfeiting set 1. All other sets will be forfeits if not ready to play within 15 minutes of scheduled start.
   1. Per USAV rules, a team may call its two timeouts at the beginning of a set to allow more time for players to arrive. However, once those timeouts expire, the set will be forfeit.
3. Foul language, vulgarity, or unsportsmanlike conduct will not be tolerated. Violation of these rules may result in suspension from the league, as determined by the league director.
4. Team standings will be kept according to the number of sets won each night.
   1. In the result of a tie at the end of the regular season, the number of sets won in head-to-head play will serve as the tie-breaker to determine seeding.
   2. If head-to-head is also a tie, total points for (in all matches) will be used to determine seeding.
   3. If total points for is also a tie, a play-in game will be used.
   4. No team will be eliminated from the playoffs because of a point tie-breaker. If there is a tie for the last playoff seed and a tie for head-to-head, a play-in game will be used to determine the final seed for playoffs.
   5. A play-in game is played to 15, starting at 0-0. The game must be won by 2 points, and there is no cap.
5. Each team will be allowed two 30-second timeouts per set unless otherwise agreed to by the two teams.
6. Each team must have a minimum of six players on its core roster.
7. The point cap for a roster will be determined as follows:
   1. A C player counts as 3 points, a C+ as 4, a B- as 5, etc.
   2. When available, official MSVBA ratings are used.
   3. When not available, a provisional rating will be determined by consensus of team captains.
   4. If a roster contains more than 6 players, only the top 6 rated players count toward the cap.
   5. The rating for a player on a regular roster is frozen at the beginning of the fall season and carries over to the subsequent spring season, so long as that player remains on a regular roster.
   6. The rating for a substitute player is frozen the first time he or she is used (by any team) in a season. It does not carry over from the fall to the spring.
8. In the event a team only has five players on a given night, the team can play with five players. The sixth spot will be a ghost, and its turn in the service rotation will result in an automatic side out.
9. Jewelry other than flat wedding bands may not be worn.
10. Street shoes are not allowed on the gym floor.
11. We will honor open substitutions. Subs/alternate players may play for multiple teams throughout the season, but anyone on a team's core roster may only play for that team.
12. Substitutes must participate in at least one of a team's regular season matches to be eligible to play in the playoffs for that team. Exceptions will be made for injuries sustained in the last week of the season.

Monday-only Rules:

1. The point cap for the co-ed league rosters is 24 points as of Fall 2018.
2. Five sets are to be played during each match. The sets will be played to 25 and start at 4-4. Each set is win by 2, with no cap in any set.
3. As this is a co-ed league, no rating reduction is given for female players.
4. If a roster has more than 6 players, the top 3 males and top 3 females count toward to point cap.
1. All USAV rules for reverse co-ed indoor play are in effect:
   1. Play is on a women's height net (2.24m or 7'4 1/8").
   2. Service rotation must alternate between male and female players.
   3. If a team touches the ball two or more times before it goes over the net, at least one contact must be made by a male player. Blocks do not count as a team contact.
   4. In rotations where one female player is in the front row, a second female player from the back row may come up to block. The remaining female player must remain behind the attack (3m or 10') line until the ball has been contacted by the blocker(s) or until no block is possible. For the purposes of attack hits, the back-row player at the net is still subject to the restrictions of the attack zone (3m or 10' line) for hits above the plane of the net.
   5. No male player may participate in a block or block attempt.
   6. No male player may make an attack hit from above the plane of the net in front of the attack (3m or 10') line at any time, regardless of his position in the current rotation.

Thursday-only Rules:

1. The point cap for the men's league rosters is 25 points.
2. Five sets are to be played during each match. The first four sets will be played to 25, with a cap of 29, and start at 4-4. The fifth set will be played to 15, with a cap of 15, and start at 0-0.
3. As this is a men's league, a one-point reduction is given for female players (i.e., a C+ woman counts as 3 points against the cap, not 4).
4. All USAV rules for men's indoor play are in effect.
5. A team with 5 players on a night may play with 5 and no ghost. However, any set started with 5 players and no ghost must be finished with 5 players, even if another player becomes available. Subsequent sets may be played with 6 players.