Volleyball League Basics

Here are some of the basics:

Games are played on Sunday nights at the University of Missouri - St. Louis (UMSL). Game times will vary, but in general games start no earlier than 3:00pm and run no later than 7:00pm Sunday evenings. Generally we try to have each league play at the same regular times each week (for example, 5:00 and 6:00 start times), but it depends on the number of teams we have.

Typically, the season will start in October and finish in March. We do not play during holidays (Thanksgiving and Christmas) or Super Bowl Sunday. The Christmas break is about 4 weeks due to UMSL being closed for winter break. We may also have weeks off due to UMSL events at the gym.

League play is 12 weeks of regular season, followed by two weeks of a single elimination tournament.

There's a Power league, an Intermediate league, and a Recreational league. The leagues are coed - we do not have separate men’s and women’s leagues. There are no restrictions on team make-up: all men, all women, or any combination of men/women. Leagues are organized by skill level:

• Power is our most competitive league and is about a B level if you are familiar with club ratings. Teams will likely organize an offense and defense, so expect to see setters, hitters, middle blockers, and maybe even defensive specialists. There may be individuals who played in high school or college, but I wouldn’t expect more than one or two on a team.

• Intermediate is the next level down where most teams will have three contacts and have some sort of organized offense. Some are former competitive league teams who have aged gracefully into the intermediate league. There may be a couple of hitters per team, but not necessarily consistent.

• Recreational (Rec) is more to have fun and get some exercise. Skill level will be all over the place. Some teams may try to set but not all. Some teams will try to one hit the ball back over the net right away.

Players must be Boeing employees, retirees, or an outside contractor stationed at Boeing-St. Louis. Employee spouses, domestic partners, and dependent children may participate provided the employee and spouse/domestic partner/child are on the same team. Dependent child must be 18 years or older. We also allow one non-Boeing non-family player per team.

Maximum team size is 12 players on the roster. Substitutions are unlimited in number, and the substitution method is up to the team as long as the referee understands. The serving order cannot be changed during the game/set. Typical substitution schemes are rotation, front row/back row (defensive specialist), and libero. There is no limit to the number of players who are substituting, as long as everyone is on the roster and has their liability wavier on file.

Fees last year were around $685 per team as a reference. This years fees will be determined once we finalize the contract with UMSL.