HOW DO PLAYERS CHOOSE WHICH LEAGUE TO JOIN?

  • Players that have never played organized sand volleyball, or are new to it. These players should join “Rec” league. Knowledge of the game, drills, training, and conditioning will be provided to help players develop skills and get a better understanding of the game. Reading the rules and basic strategy is recommended but not required.

  • Recreational players tend to have the basic idea of a “diamond formation” (positioning in 2s), the setter having the second hit (unless calling for help), bump-set-spike or at least a 3-hit mentality, tend to have players that are starting to develop a consistent serve that are in-bounds as well as controlling the pass off a serve, and recreational teams are starting to identify “bad sets”, lifts, throws, and double hits. Recreational players should start calling their own net violations and expect less modifications to the rules by the officials. With that said, recreational players are recommended to advance to the intermediate league once they completely understand the rules. Advanced players are welcome to join recreational to intermediate leagues, so recreational players should be prepared for the competition.

  • Volleyball ranking is very subjective but here are 3 specific position rankings for AZ1 intermediate players:

    Passing: Demonstrates moderate serve receiving (handling float serves, sky balls, etc) and good communication of who will receive the serve as well as an understanding of how to position themselves before the opponent attacks the ball. They also anticipate short/cut shots and 1/2-overs.

    Setting: Communicates to their team when they have 2nd hit and demonstrates moderate bump and/or hand setting techniques. Communicates well with attacker on high/low, inside/outside, off/tight set preferences. They also demonstrate moderate skills of receiving passes out of the net, pokes on high tight passes, and moderate footwork getting to the 2nd hit. Intermediate setters know when to pursue the block or cover short/cut shots.

    Attacking: Knows when to spike, roll, and cut when attacking the ball. They demonstrate hard enough hits to draw a blocker but are not executing a consistent line shot versus angle shot. Intermediate attackers know when to pursue the block or cover short/cut shots.

    Advanced players are welcome to join intermediate leagues, so intermediate players should be prepared for the competition.

  • Advanced players consistently display advanced ability in either offensive skills (spiking, serving, setting) or defensive skills (passing, digging, blocking) to compete as a specialist and have sufficient ability to execute the dynamics of power volleyball. These players have begun to master the use of power shots and are beginning to handle pace, have sound footwork, can control depth of shots, and are beginning to vary game plan according to opponents. All rules apply.

LEAGUE FAQs

  • Womens 4s- Yes. You register with one other person and that is your “team” for the entire season. Womens 4s league is 4v4, so you get partnered with different teams every week (QoB format).

    Womens 2s & Mens- No. You register alone. Womens 2s & Mens leagues are 2v2, so you get partnered with someone different every week (KoB/QoB format).

    League fees cover all players for a 9 week season. 16 total matches + tournament. Prizes and medals for top ranked players, and all AZ1 players get a shirt.

  • No, although subs are frequently needed. Players are encouraged to find their own subs, therefore a “subs list” will be available for players to see, but it is to the discretion of the players as to which sub they choose. If players are unable to find subs, they are encouraged to contact Anthony no later than 12PM before their match.

  • The players ref their own games but there will be a league host that will assist with rules and recording scores.

  • In order to provide players with variety and maximum play time each week, AZ1 leagues are in KoB/QoB format. Each player plays 2 matches with 2 different partners every week, and this is why two time slots are used. Time slot reservations are only taken into consideration for people with families or consistently busy work schedules that absolutely cannot make a specific time. Time slot changes for one week or two is doable but not always guaranteed. That being said, we encourage players to keep requests to a minimum. *For players with busy schedules- please contact Anthony before the season starts to go over your schedule and work on accommodations.

LEAGUE RULES

AZ1 has 11 basic rules to prepare you for league play. Please handle all violations in a respective manner, polite tone and redo the play if there is a continued disagreement. Please feel free to talk to the director about any comments or suggestions.

  1. Game balls will be provided by AZ1 but players are welcome to play with personal volleyballs.

  2. Leagues consist of 16 matches plus a season ending playoff. League nights consist of 2 matches (best of 3), games to 21-21-15 (cap at 25 / cap at 15 in the 3rd game). In order to maximize your time on the court, please make the league host aware of a team running behind and warm-up off the court. Limit warm-ups on the court to 5 minutes.

  3. Each match should take around 30-45 minutes but players are recommended to also keep rest period between games limited to 1-2 minutes when games are tight, like 21-20 or even just long rallies.
    Teams switch every 7 points due to any environmental conditions (wind, light, etc.), although if conditions are good, teams may agree to only switch once at 11. Teams should “rock, paper, scissor” for side or serve on the 1st and 3rd game. Loser of game 1 chooses side or serve for game 2.

  4. All games within each match are counted and recorded. (Ie. if you win the first game, lose the second, and win the third your record will show as follows: Wins: 2 Loses: 1). Point differential will be included as well in the case of a tie in the ranks. If the 3rd game is cut short due to time, then points will be prorated. For example, if the actual score was 15-13 the final score will be 21-19. Forfeits result in 2 losses for each match but 5 points less than the lowest total of the week in their league. If a team is a no-show-no-call, then the team will not only receive 2 losses and -5 points of the lowest, but also be penalized -10 points next week out of courtesy for the other players. All players (or subs) need to be present in order for KoB/QoB format to work.

  5. AZ1 allows players to miss a maximum of 2 weeks. If a player misses a 3rd week, they will not be able to play as a player in the next season- only as a sub, and potentially be replaced by another player for the current season. Forfeited matches are not rescheduled by AZ1. Some players have a long commute and everyone needs an opponent to play against, so please be considerate. We have a sub list on the schedule and the Band app chat to help find players, and please understand that we encourage subs over forfeits. Players are asked to find subs even if it’s for the entire team, out of respect for both teams.

  6. For 4-on-4 leagues, blocks do not count as a hit (block plus 3).  For 2-on-2 leagues, block DO count as a hit (block, plus 2). The blocker may block and then immediately pass the ball.  For 2-on-2 leagues, when two players joust the team now has plus 3 (meaning 3 contacts).  Players are not allowed to attack/block the serve above the top of the net immediately following the serve.  Players are allowed to “tomahawk” or overhead pass the serve over on one as long as the contact is not above the net.

  7. Serves are not considered hard-driven so “beach digs” do not apply to serves, which means the ball can not be momentarily held on a serve or open-hand received. Players are allowed to use fingertips on a non-hard driven attack as long as they do not make double contact nor momentarily hold the ball. Open-hand sets over the net is a fault by any means.

  8. Players are expected to call their own team’s faults (lifts, carries, throws,etc.). How “tight” captains will call hand-setting or over head passes should be determined before the match begins and at least one replay to establish the standard if there is a dispute.

  9. Rain-outs & holidays will be rescheduled as needed. To stay up-to-the-minute on weather cancellations check the Band app where updates will be given.

  10. If a player is a no-show-no-call or do not give the director at least 6 hours notice:

    • 1 no-show-no-call: team or player forfeiting will lose an additional -10 points during the season in order to accommodate the player and opponent who potentially lost that match.

    • 2 no-show-no-calls: Players may be subject to be replaced for the remainder of the season and may be restricted from participating in the following season.

  11. Any insubordination, unethical/disruptive behavior (ie. cussing, physical harm, excessive aggression, violence) will be reprimanded at the directors discretion. Please show good sportsman-like behavior.