Hello Waxhaw Volleyball Families,

I hope you all had a terrific Spring Break and are ready to come back for the remainder of the season. I am starting this message with a few items for the entire league and will end with a rule change that applies to the 10U division 

• Practices resume as scheduled this week with the next Sunday of games being next Sunday the 14th.
• Please use the RSVP function in SportsEngine so coaches can know who will or will not be attending practices and games

Open gym periods are available

• Monday 6:00 - 7:00 for 8U/10U. South Court (One-half court only) 
• Monday 8:00 - 9:00 for 13+. Both North and South Court
• Tuesday 6:00 - 7:00 for 12U. South Court.
• Wednesday 8:00 - 9:00 for 13+. South Court
• Friday 8:30 - 9:30 for 13+. South court

Open gym periods are available to all players for the designated division. Coaches are able to register for open gym periods through SignUp Genius, but that is strictly as a volunteer to ensure there is a WAA / Coach presence. Open gyms are not to be extra team practices. Any activities, drills, or scrimmages run by a coach must be made available to any player present, regardless of team assignment. Players can choose to not participate, but the coach does have ‘ownership’ of the court. Any exclusion of a player by a coach or group of players will not be tolerated.

Uniforms

• Players must wear this season’s jersey for the games. A players wearing a uniform from a past seasons, or anything other than this season’s uniform, will not be allowed to play.
• Coaches are required to wear their ‘COACH’ jersey at games

Sideline Bench Areas

• Coaches must stay on the side of the court along the benches. They are not allowed to position themselves on the side by the referee stand and family seating area
• Only registered coaches are permitted in the bench area. The only exception is a parent volunteer helping at the scoring table.

Coffey Court Rules:

We are all guests at Coffey Courts and ask that everyone adhere to the rules the of the gym owners:

• NO HEELS!!! Heeled shoes of any kind, by any individual (young or old) can damage the floor 
• Only players are permitted to bring drinks into the gymnasium. The containers must be screw top or spill proof
• Entrance and Exit: When coming to the gym you are to approach from Hwy 75 (using 6611 Waxhaw Hwy in your GPS). When leaving your are to drive down Lee Massey Rd along the cemetery and the Western Union soccer fields.

10U Rule Change for Serving

Over the break, we implemented a rule change for only the 10U division that focuses on serving. We determined the approach of having the players start at the 10’ attack line and stepping back a minimum of one square was not conducive to player development and was limiting the quality of play with longer serving runs and less volleying. 

The new rule requires each player to begin their serve rotation at no closer than 15’ from the net (denoted on the court by a white line). After each successful serve the player will be asked to step back in approximately 5’ increments so that after the fourth successful serve they will be behind the end line.

• As before, players will be allowed a second serve if the first serve fails to go over the net. This applies only to the server’s first point attempt in the serve rotation. If the server gets the ball over and their team wins a point, they will not be allowed another second attempt in that current serve rotation.  
• If the first serve is unsuccessful the referee will evaluate the capability of the server based on physical ability and/or technique to get the ball over the net. At discretion of the referee, the player may be permitted to step forward but still behind the 10’ attack line. 
• If permitted to step forward the player’s serve rotation will be re-set so they will again have two attempts to get the ball over the net from the closer spot.  
• After a successful serve, the player will still be required to step back to the 15’ line and in consecutive increments, as with their peers.
• Players may elect to start their rotation from beyond the 15”. If the first attempt does not clear the net, the second attempt must be from the same spot as the first as the player will have ‘declared’ their starting position and cannot move forward. Each consecutive successful serve must be stepped back until behind the gray line (service line 30 ft’.)
• Players capable of serving overhand are encouraged to attempt the first serve overhanded. If they fail on the first, they may switch to underhand serves to be in-line with our 12U and 13+ rules. This is encouraged to keep competitive game play, but also foster development of the players.

Please note that in making this rule change we are cautiously making a distinction between capable and consistency. 

• A player who is not capable may lack the technique and/or have a physical inability or physical limitation. We are allowing a step forward accommodation for players not yet capable of serving from the 15’ line.  
• Consistency is the ability to serve over the net in multiple successions. The player is capable of serving over the net but may not be able to do it consistently. We want to push the players to and beyond their current abilities and believe consistency is something the player will have to develop and overcome.

Please send any questions or comments to volleyball@wxwathletics.org