BALL HANDLING

1. BALL HANDLING “UGLY” is not a ball handling violation.

2. BALL HANDLING-JUDGMENT • Ball handling judgment is perhaps the most important officiating skill for a volleyball referee. Ball handling is the core of the match. Each time a player contacts the ball, that’s ball handling in one form or another. • Through-out the match, a referee must decide on what to call and what not to call. Having a grasp of the ball handling rules and an “eye” to make judgment calls are critical. A referee is expected to call violations on all blatant or obvious ball handling errors.

3. BALL HANDLING-JUDGMENT • If the player or the ball does something unexpected, it is not necessarily a ball handling error. Nor is inferior talent, poor technique, bad body position, contact sound, or ball spin. YOU MUST JUDGE THE CONTACT NOT THE FORM. • Once you understand these concepts and incorporate them into your decision making, you have a sound base upon which to judge ball handling.

4. BALL HANDLING-JUDGMENT • Ball handling decisions are made at the discretion of the Referee. Every official calls ball handling a little differently. CVOA is focused on providing quality training for all officials across the state of Colorado in order to achieve more consistency across the state.

5. BALL HANDLING • Go over Guidelines for Determining Ball-Handling Violations from the NFHS Casebook. (Page 76-81) Emphasis on: • Legal Hit (Page 76) • Vision (Page 76) • Sound, body position? (Page 76) • Illegal hit (Page 76) • Consistency, Consistency Consistency! (Page 76) • Principles in judging each hit, lifting, pushing, holding, throwing, carrying or rolling, GIVE EXAMPLES with a ball. • Double hit – example and when is a double legal? (Page 76)

6. BALLHANDLING • Ball handling Points: (Page 76-77) GO OVER IN YOUR CASE BOOK 1-10 • Game techniques & tactics EXAMPLES: • Rolling up the arms is considered an ILLEGAL hit because there is continued and steady contact of the ball with the player’s body. • Two-handed set – Watch for double hits except on the 1st team contact. • Arm, forearm, hand or fist should not remain in contact with the ball. • Tip, Dump, prolong contact and changing direction (give examples of legal and illegal) • A ball may be played off any part of the body. A ball hitting the chest may be legal if it does not result in prolonged contact. • Multiple Contact- Legal on 1st ball over the net. NEVER legal if there is prolonged contact • Underhand, palms – open technique is it always illegal??? Judge the contact the not the form. • Look at the plane of the players body when judging ball handling. i.e. front to back, right to left. (Give examples) • Spin of the ball??? Watch the contact of the ball, not what happens after.

7. BALL HANDLING • Basic Sets: (Page 78) • Quick set #1 • Low set #2 • Normal set #3 • Shoot Set#4

8. BALL HANDLING • Player Actions: (Page 78 & 79) • Dump – be consistent with what you call! Think about the plane of the player’s body. {Left to right, back to front} • Deep court overhead pass. How much contact is there? Judge each one independently. • Jump Set • One handed set – usually close to the net. There is a possibility for illegal back row attack/block. Be aware!

9. BALL HANDLING • One handed open tip – {Watch for prolong contact.} (Page 79-80) • Closed fist tip – {does it stay on the hand too long?} • Spike – {Watch for the contact. Is it a hit or a throw?} • Backhand hit – {watch for the ball being pushed or thrown.} • Block – a little motion is ok! {Watch back to front plane.} • Jousting- players can have prolonged contact when the ball is in a joust. This is considered a block. • A blocked ball that is pinned against the net by a player is a potential situation for prolonged contact. • Forearm pass – explain different techniques.

10. BALL HANDLING • EXAMPLES of illegal forearm passes: (Page 80) • Ball contacts the area of the bent elbows and is held. • Ball stays in contact with the arms, resulting in a lift (as a possible save out of the net.) • Ball rolls up or down the arms • Receiving the overhead pass, hard spike or served ball could result in a illegal hit.

11. BALL HANDLINGKnowledge Scenario's • Back row setter goes up 1 handed and gets the ball. The set is above the height of the net and the ball goes over - What’s the call? • Back row setter goes up 1 handed and gets the ball. The set is above the height of the net, and has not entered the plane of the net, but before the setter can finish the set the blocker reaches over the net and contacts the ball. What’s the call?

12. BALL HANDLING • Consistency: • Set your standard to the skill level of the better team. • Whatever standard or style you start the match with, stick to it for the entire match. • In a tournament situation, maintain consistency from one match to the next. Official’s in tournament situations should to be consistent throughout the day with judgment calls.

13. FINAL POINTS • Enjoy your job, have a passion for the game and learn from every match. • Parts of the above information was taken from the CHESAPEAKE REGION VOLLEYBALL ASSOCIATION and other parts from the case book from the National Federation of State High School Associations for CVOA Officials Training. • Q & A • Court observation on ball handling with a mentor.