Volleyball changes rules

High school volleyball rules were greatly modified this year in order to meet international standards. The change will include Blair's girls', boys' and co-ed teams.

The National Federation of State High School Associations, a body that governs all high school sports regulations in the nation, made revisions to the rally scoring system.

Beginning this year, every serve will count for a point regardless of which team first served the ball. In addition, the let-serve—a serve that touches the net but remains in play—and a double touch on the first contact after a serve or spike is now legal.

The game play has also been extended. Volleyball matches are now played until the first team wins three games out of five instead of two out of three. Each game has also been extended to 25 points, rather than last year's 15. The last game of the match, however, will remain 15 points.
The switch to rally scoring might put Blair at a disadvantage, according to girls' volleyball senior co-captain Carey Bartlett. "I don't think it was beneficial because we have poor servers. Now we have to work harder to get those points back," she said.

Anne Garrison, the girls' varsity volleyball coach, said that the changes may also decrease the number of risky, experimental plays. "If you can lose a game on anything, you're going to play a lot differently," said Garrison.

USA Volleyball referee and high school coach Wanda Hsiung said that high school volleyball rules have just caught up with the rest of the world after years of differing from other volleyball versions. Rally score, said Hsiung, has been used internationally for the last eight years and at the collegiate and club level for the last six years.