VOLLEYBALL

Rajan Dozas, Sherman Oaks, Calif., gives some last-minute instructions to the line judges before the match begins. This prematch lesson can go a long way in developing trust with your line judges and determining their skill level.

USE THEM OR LOSE THEM

Engage Line Judges and Keep Them Focused on the Match

By Robert Doan

“My line judge is not very good; she never pays attention.” “My line judge would rather be on her phone or with a friend rather than working my match.”

“I wish someone would hold these line judges accountable.”

Harsh words from the referee room. As referees, how do we properly use our line judges? This article will discuss strategies for properly using line judges in order to get the most out of them and keep them focused on the match.

Pregame

Have a meaningful pregame meeting. Make sure all line judges for the match are present and discuss the expectations for the match. Know your audience. A pre-match meeting with 12-year-olds might be a little different meeting than 18-year-olds. With the younger age group teach; with the older or more experienced, remind or emphasize. As always, discuss specific needs that you have as a R1. Be approachable and have a good attitude in the meeting. When the R1 has a good attitude and is excited to work with the line judges, the line judges are more likely to have a good attitude as well.

Engagement

The first step is to engage the line judges early. When officials comment how good their line judges are, many state the secret is to build a relationship with them and engage the line judges throughout the match. Some officials let the line judges know they try to make eye contact with them before the first serve of the match as a way to show “you are on my team and let’s do this together.” Others make it a point to make eye

contact or reinforce the behaviors they mentioned in the pregame with a thumbs up early in the match or set. Whatever method you prefer, make sure you keep the engagement levels high throughout the match.

Correct the Problem

Too many officials notice the line judge not performing their duties and quickly discount them the rest of the match. This is not appropriate because it reinforces the idea that R1s don’t use their line judges. Most of the time, a quick message can be delivered and no one from the match or crowd will notice the extra time spent communicating with the line judge between points. This quick message could be getting their attention when the ball is being recovered or getting their attention during a substitute exchange. If needed, call both line judges over during a timeout to discuss what you need from them that they might not be doing. Reinforce they are a part of your team and they are needed and appreciated.

Acknowledging Versus Using

At the very least, it is important for officials to acknowledge their line judges. At the minimum, acknowledging line judges will aid in keeping the line judges engaged in the match. When the ball is close to their line, give a courtesy look before or after awarding a point. Try to make eye contact, which should let them know you see them working and appreciate their engagement in the match. If the ball is out, you should have time to scan and acknowledge.

The next level is using the line judges. Line judges have felt at times they could go to the concession stand and get a pretzel, come back and the R1 would not have known they were gone. Officials want to be used. We want to contribute to the match. Line judges have a unique angle and role in the match and absolutely want to feel their “voice” is being heard. It is important for referees to look for information when appropriate. If there is a close antenna violation, it is important for the R2 to peek at the LJ2 to make sure he or she has what you have. If you do not know 100 percent if the ball was completely inside the antenna, make sure you use that line judge to get the correct information.

R1s cannot move to see pancakes or antennas. When it is safe to peek at the line judges, look at them to gather information. Most officials tell line judges to try to make eye contact with the R1 on a pancake decision (ball up or down), and then if the ball is up everyone will move on. Use the line judges when you need to because there are plenty of plays where they have a great angle to help.

The Art of Using Line Judges

There are officials who use line judges every play. The ball falls between two players in the middle of the court or the ball is served 15 feet out of bounds. In both situations, officials more than likely did not need to explicitly turn and gather the information from the line judges. In those situations, feel free to acknowledge line judges to let them know you appreciate them but more than likely you did not need to use their information. If an official uses the line judge on every play, coaches might perceive the official as relying on the line judge for a call instead of using the line judge for help with a call. Remember at the end of the day each call is made by the official with the help of the line judges.

Conclusion

Acknowledge and use line judges throughout the match. They are an important part of the game. Build a professional relationship with the line judges so they will want to come back and do it again. Post-match with the line judges at all levels. Using line judges appropriately will help in recruiting line judges to become an official one day. In the future, there will be more success stories with regard to line judges then complaining. Robert Doan, PhD, has been a high school, college and USAV official for more than a decade. He is a resident of Charleston County, S.C. 

DID YOU KNOW?

New PAVO members receive free NCAA registration. A new member is someone who has never been a PAVO member. The normal NCAA fee for a standard returning member is $70 and a returning associate member is $35. These fees would be waived for new members. This also requires the new PAVO member to be a first-time registrant with NCAA Volleyball. To learn more, go to PAVO.org.

QUICK TIP

Sometimes during play, a player may have a hard collision with the referee stand. Be prepared for this. You may have to hold on to the stand or net post itself to absorb the energy of the impact.

If a collision dislodges the stand from its centered position, wait for a dead ball to move it back into position.

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TEST YOURSELF

In each of the following, you are given a situation and possible answer(s). You are to decide which answer(s) are correct for NFHS, NCAA or USAV rules, which might vary. Solutions: p. 81.

1. The first server of the receiving team is in which position when the set begins? a. Right back position. b. Left front position. c. Right front position.

2. Who has the authority to establish non-playing areas and define any additional ground rules? a. Second referee. b. Host administration. c. First referee. d. Home head coach.

3. During the follow-through, after attacking the ball between the antennas and before the ball hits the ground, a player contacts the mesh in the middle portion of the net. a. The net contact is not considered part of playing action since the ball had already been hit. Therefore, no fault has occurred. b. Contact with the net, between the antennas, during an action of playing the ball is considered a fault.

4. A front-row player blocks a ball that is completely in the opponent’s playing space. In which situation is this action a blocking fault? a. After the third team hit by the opponents. b. When a blocker reaches beyond the net and contacts the ball simultaneously with the opponent’s attack-hit. c. When a ball is falling near the net and, in the R1’s opinion, no member of the attacking team is near enough to make a legal play on the ball.

5. B5 is disqualified for extremely offensive conduct. At the time of disqualification, B5 is on the court in position 3, center front. There are two substitutes on the bench, B9 and B10, as well as the libero. Both substitutes have previously played in this set in other positions. Which of the following actions is correct? a. Allow team B to play with five players since they have no legal substitutes. b. Allow an exceptional substitution using either B9 or B10 as a substitute for B5. c. Team B is declared incomplete and defaults the set to team A. d. Allow the libero to be an exceptional substitute for B5.

Catch Timeouts as a Team

By Brad Tittrington

During a match, there are usually times when the second referee can assume a coach or captain may call a timeout: the opposing team goes on a run of multiple points and the team has trouble receiving the serve or passing the ball, the opposing team reaches 24 points, or the crowd comes alive and a team wants to quell the energy.

However, these instances are not the only times a second referee must be alert and ready for a timeout request. Coaches and captains use timeouts for a variety of reasons and second referees must be cognizant of these situations.

Too often, second referees, as well as first referees, get into a zone or rhythm with the match and fail to realize a coach may be trying to call a timeout. We’ve all been guilty at one time or another in our careers of focusing on the receiving team to make sure it is in proper rotation and the players are aligned properly, and we don’t even look at the bench behind us where a coach is trying to get our attention, whether it is to call a timeout or request a substitution.

We’ve also been guilty as first referees of focusing so intently on the server and authorizing service that we forget to scan the benches one last time to make sure our second referee is ready and no coaches are trying to call a timeout. This is a good way to draw the ire of both the second referee and the coach.

It is important to be aware that some coaches like to wait until the last possible second to call a timeout. Quickly glancing at the bench right after a point is scored does not cut it. We must work as a team and make sure we do not miss these situations.

Coaches want to know referees are approachable and paying attention and if we don’t give them

See “Timeouts” p.30

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CASEPLAYS

Service Zone

Play: At the moment the ball is contacted for service, the server’s foot is touching the short line (hash mark) at the side edge of the service zone. The foot is on the line but does not contact the floor outside the line. Ruling: No fault has occurred. The service zone (serving area, NFHS) hash marks are placed within the width of the service zone. It is legal for a player to have a foot touching a hash mark provided the foot is not touching the floor beyond the line at the moment of the service contact (NFHS 2-1-6, 8-1-2; NCAA 1.3.1, 13.1.3.6; USAV 1.4.2, 12.4.3).

Improper Libero Replacement

Play: Team A’s libero is on the court for A1 when team A calls a timeout. At the end of the timeout, A1 returns to the court instead of the libero. The assistant scorekeeper immediately notifies the second referee. Ruling: In NFHS, a replacement that doesn’t follow proper procedures is subject to the assessment of an unnecessary delay (NFHS 10-4-2-d, 10-4-Pen. 1). Under NCAA and USAV rules, the second referee should instruct the libero to return to the court and then allow A1 to replace the libero following proper replacement procedures. A delay sanction is assessed to the team (NCAA 6.3.2.11, 11.2.4.2; USAV 19.3.2.9).

Back-Row Setter Block?

Play: Team A overpasses the first ball and the back-row setter, who is standing near the net, raises her hands over her head in a blocking stance. B1 attacks the ball and it hits the setter’s hands while they are lower than the top of the net. The first referee allows play to continue. Ruling: Correct. The setter does not meet the definition of a blocker since she is not reaching higher than the top of the net. That would be considered the team’s first contact (NFHS 9-5-1c; USAV 14.1.1; NCAA 14.6.1).

Assistant Coach During Timeout

Play: During a timeout, a coach enters the court to demonstrate a technique. The referees allow the coach to enter the court. Ruling: Legal in NFHS and NCAA (NFHS 11-2-4; NCAA 11.2.4.1). In USAV, coaches and non-playing members may not enter the court during a timeout (15.4.2). Timeouts

continued from p.28

the courtesy of knowing when they are trying to call a timeout, we lose some credibility.

There are some things we can do as referees to make sure these timeout situations don’t sneak up on us and that we are able to quickly recognize the situations so we don’t make ourselves look bad.

First, here are some tips for second referees. After each point, take a step or two back toward the scorer’s table. This will open up the court and bench areas more and allow you to see what is going on in the bench area. This will allow you to see a coach getting up off the bench or a coach approaching you to request a timeout.

If you stay up near the court, you may not see this out of your periphery. If you tend to work close to the court as a second referee, it will be difficult to see what is going on behind you at the bench areas and you may have to constantly turn around and look behind you.

Second, when you prepare for the authorization of service by the first referee, stay square to the court and just turn your head to see the alignment of the receiving team. If you turn your body to face the receiving team, you will not be able to see a coach who may be behind you trying to get your attention to request a timeout (as shown in the PlayPic on p. 28). If you stay square and back enough from the court, you will have a much better chance to see a coach coming toward you. This will allow you to whistle and signal for a timeout prior to the first referee authorizing service.

Third, make sure you and the first referee are working together and in the same rhythm to avoid going too quickly and missing requests by coaches. If you feel like the first referee is going too fast and not giving you an opportunity to do all of your duties, speak to them between sets or during a timeout. If you are using headsets, you can obviously communicate that much quicker and easier, but if you aren’t using headsets, wait until an appropriate time to broach the subject.

First referees also bear some responsibility in making sure timeout requests are acknowledged. As a first referee, you should always make a final scan of the court and benches before authorizing service to make sure a coach or captain is not making a last-second plea to call a timeout. Especially later in matches, first referees tend to get into a zone and are too quick to authorize the serve and forget this important step.

It is also important as a first referee to give the second referee time to acknowledge timeout requests. First referees need to remember to slow down and allow the second referee time to scan the benches as well. If the second referee is not acknowledging a timeout request, the first referee needs to get the second referee’s attention to alert them a coach is trying to call a timeout. Sometimes a simple head nod works, other times you may need to show the substitution signal to your second referee to clue them in that a coach is trying to call a timeout.

First referees should also wait until the second referee gives the court back before authorizing serve. Too often, first referees get into a big rush to authorize the next service, they don’t allow second referees ample time to take care of all their responsibilities. Wait until your second referee is ready and gives you the court back before you take the final scan and then authorize service.

Working together will show coaches and players you are a team and lends to your credibility. Remember to not be in a rush and take a moment before authorizing each serve to fully check the court and benches and you will catch all those timeout requests. Brad Tittrington is an associate editor for Referee. He referees college and high school volleyball, umpires D-I softball and officiates women’s college and high school basketball and high school football. 

Are You Up to the Challenge?

By Rick Brown

A“review” under NFHS rules requires a different approach than a protest under NCAA or USAV rules. NFHS Rule 11-3 (Reviewing Decisions) accommodates coaches believing there was a misinterpretation of a playing rule or misapplication of a penalty and wanting a review strongly enough to risk loss of a timeout, timeouts or a penalty point if the decision is not altered. There tends to be little current training for referees in the nuances of the review rule, and coaches don’t appear to understand how the rule works to use the review option comfortably.

Rule 11-3-1 states “to review a decision by a referee that may have resulted in an incorrect decision, the head coach may request and be granted a timeout, provided the request is made during the dead ball immediately following the situation in which the possible decision occurred.” Adding details, 11-3-2 notes “electronic devices shall not be used for any review of a referee’s decision” while 11-3-3 specifies “decisions based on the judgment of the referee(s) are final and not subject to review.”

Unlike a regular timeout, a review timeout has to be identified to the second referee to allow the above criteria to be applied. The second referee may or may not grant the request based on timing of the request, when the play in question occurred, whether the coach identifies a rule application issue and the coach’s ability to describe the rule at point. Logically, a coach must first make the second referee aware the request is for purposes of a review. The language “when a timeout is so granted, the head coach shall confer with the first referee at the first referee’s platform” doesn’t permit a coach yelling “timeout” and crossing the court to the first referee’s stand since the review criteria have yet to be applied by the second referee to grant the request. Without requiring a coach to present a timely rule issue to the second referee, some coaches would head across the court to the stand, which is poor optics and not conducive to proper match management. The second referee has to be in a position to screen the coach’s timeout request to ensure it occurred during the last play and does not solely involve the judgment of a referee. In a worst-case scenario, having a coach who is upset by a decision or a series of calls/noncalls storm across the court without allowing the second referee to absorb the emotion is inherently disruptive to a match.

The rule design does not permit this to occur without the coach first telling the second referee the request is for review and providing sufficient information to the second referee to allow consideration. Before approving a request, the second referee does due diligence; the coach describes when the play in question occurred and at least describes the rule the coach believes was misapplied or the rule that should have been applied. This allows the second referee to use rapport established with coaches to respond with what the second referee observed from seeing plays develop through the net, including the second referee’s perception of what the first referee observed in applying a rule. This information could satisfy the coach who might choose not to

Kirk West, Simi Valley, Calif., listens to a coach about a particular call. West must decide if the coach is simply voicing a concern or if the coach wants to formally review the play.

risk the penalties of a review not resulting in an altered decision.

To facilitate the process, nothing in 11-3 precludes a second referee who did not see the playing action in question and does not know what rule was applied by the first referee from suggesting a coach send the floor captain to the stand for an explanation of the rule. In addition, if referees are using headsets, this may help provide information for the coach to determine the need for further review and a timeout discussion at the stand. There are also situations where the second referee may choose to ask the coach to stay put while the second referee, with approval from the first referee, heads across the court to discuss the play with the first referee. This is often a good approach to use if the second referee believes discussion with the first referee without the coach being involved might help resolve a coach’s concern and is the preferred choice when the second referee believes the rule in question was misapplied or misinterpreted.

All of these may be valid approaches to properly respond to a coach’s concern, giving a coach a chance to calm down if upset and allowing the rulebook and casebook to be gathered for a productive discussion while mitigating against a coach crossing the court in an unsporting manner, resulting in issuance of a card or cards that serve to derail a productive discussion. Rick Brown, Westerville, Ohio, is a longtime girls’ and boys’ high school volleyball referee, working 22 state tournaments. He is a state and local rules interpreter, USAV Regional Referee and formerly a PAVO National Line Judge, working multiple D-I postseason matches. 

Make ’Em Wait

When it comes to substitutions, players are often in a hurry to get on the court and may forget there is a protocol to follow before entering the court. It is important for the second referee, as well as the first referee, to make sure the proper protocol is followed.

When there are multiple players waiting to sub, as shown in the PlayPic, the second referee should make sure only one substitute enters the substitution zone at a time. After that substitute is beckoned onto the court, then the next substitute may enter and wait to be beckoned. The second referee can tell the second substitute and any other subsequent substitutes to wait outside the substitution zone until they are beckoned into the substitution zone. This will prevent the scorers from accidentally confusing the substitutes and also prevent the second referee from being confused as well and giving incorrect information to the scorers. While the second referee wants to retain a certain flow to the match, it is important not to rush this step.

When both teams are waiting to sub, the second referee should put up the stop sign with their hand to notify the opposing team’s substitutes to wait until the first team’s substitution process is complete. If the second referee does not notice a substitute approaching from the opposite bench, the first referee should put up a hand to show the substitute should wait. This can prevent a substitute from entering the court without being beckoned and allow both the second referee and scorers the opportunity to make the correct substitutions and mark down the appropriate information on the scoresheet.

If there becomes an issue with the substitution process with players not waiting, a simple conversation with the head coach will prevent an issue. The last thing the referees want is to allow an incorrect substitution or to allow a player to enter a court without being beckoned or accounted for on the scoresheet. It is better to take the time and slow down than to rush through this process. A couple of extra seconds to get this process right will save a lot of headaches and time as opposed to having to correct a scoresheet later on in the match. 

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