F: Play at the Net / BLOCKING
1. Does a block count as
a hit?
Yes - for doubles
and triples competition [USAV 18.4.1, new in 97-98]
2. Can a backrow player
block?
No. And they
don't have to contact the ball to get called for
an illegal
block. Say your setter in a 6-2 releases and moves to the
net for a set.
However, the pass crosses the net where their 6'9"
hitter unloads
on this ripe fruit. Your middle blocker's recovered and
gets a touch
on the returning orb while the poor setter, standing next
to the blocker,
raises their hands to prevent the need for reconstructive
surgery. Tweet!! Backrow player guilty of participating in a composite
block. Moral of story: Cover up (wuss!) or look that ball straight in
the eye and
hope the hitter's your friend.
3. Can a player below the
top of the net considered a blocker?
Yes, as part
of a composite block, but not as a lone blocker. "Some
part of the
body must be above the height of the net during the
effort". Blocking
occurs "close to the net" either before
crossing the
net, as it crosses, or "immediately after crossing."
A lone 5' player
with arms upraised with a finger tip above the net
and contacting
an attack hit is 'blocking.'
4. I didn't even touch the
ball and I got whistled for an illegal block? WHY?
The word is
'participation'. A back row player may be considered to be
participating
in a block even if they don't contact the ball. Remember,
though, someone else in the composite block Must touch the ball.
5. What if the ball bounces
off two blockers?
In a composite
block (>1 blocker) the ball can hit more than one and be
considered
a single block (with three hits still left for the side.
However, a
second blocker 2m away getting a touch would count as the
first hit.
Blocking -
Contact With the Net
It is
a fault to touch any part of the net, except for incidental
contact
by a player's hair and insignificant contact by a player
not involved
in the action of playing the ball.
When
the ball is driven into the net and causes it to touch an
opponent,
no fault is committed. (Under High School Rules, players
may not
intentionally block a ball driven into the net)
6. Can you block a block?
Yep - this
can go back and forth. Often it'll result in a held ball
and you'll
do the whole thing over. However, if an attacker has the ball
blocked back
into them, that's the first contact and not counted as a
block. Each
side's contact gives the other 3 more.
7. Can you carry/lift on
a block?
Yes, if 1)
the ball rolls along your body (like your arm) or 2) you
redirect the
ball with wrist motion into your opponents court. Rebounds
and caroms
are ok, but changing the direction of the ball after the ball
is in your
hand is not.
8. What's the difference
between a block and attack hit over the opponents court?
"Blocking
is the action that deflects the ball coming from the opponent
by
(a) player(s) close to the net reaching higher than the net.
To be
considered a blocker, the player(s) must reach above the net
sometime during the effort.
