Portland Volleyball Association - Outdoor Playing Regulations
Outdoor Rules for Sand and Grass Leagues
- Home team chooses serve or recieve
- Visitor team chooses the game ball
- Rally scoring with 2 sets to 21 points (no cap, win by 2) and third set to 15 (no cap, win by 2)
- Sets 1 & 2 switch sides every 7 points and set 3 switch sides every 5 points
- First and third sets begin with a coin toss (or ball spin or ...) to determine which team gets first choice of serve or side
- For the second set, the team that lost the "coin toss" gets first choice of serve or side
- A block does not count as a touch
- No open hand tips or dinks (cobra or knuckles are allowed)
- Serve receive cannot be with open hands (i.e. set)
- Coed serving order must alternate male and female
- No rotational faults, but must keep service order
- Let serves are allowed but not re-tosses
- Hard driven hit can be set (official's judgement) but off-speed hit cannot be set (no finger action until 2nd or 3rd contact)
- No directional blocks (no breaking wrist, either down or to a side)
- Posts are considered antennas
- No center line violation unless you interfere with player on other side of court
- 2 players contacting the ball at the same time is considered 2 hits and either player can then take it over the net unless referee clearly sees only one person contacting the ball
- If setting the ball over the net, the set must be perpendicular with your shoulders (either front or back set)
- One 60 second timeout per set
- Replay if a tree branch interferes with a playable ball
- Reminder, no alcohol permitted before or during play
- Minimum number of players required to play - 3
Additional Rules for Reverse Coed
- Men must take off behind 10 foot line to hit a ball with a downward flight
- Men may contact the ball in front of the 10 foot line as long as it has an upward flight
- Men may not block women unless the ball stays on blocker's side of net (i.e. soft block) - counts as the first touch
- Men may block other men
- No woman touch rule for multiple touches
Additional Rules for Sand
- Same as outdoor rules except teams playing with 5 or 6 players must use the following indoor rules:
- Players must line up alternating male and female and rotate accordingly
- A woman must touch the ball if there is more than one contact