Volleyball

Volleyball

Veteran Approach

As we prepare for each season, we study rules and interpretations, casebooks and officiating manuals, and attend preseason clinics and meetings. And once the season starts, we usually have...

Tips to Stay Focused During Long Matches

Staying focused as a referee or line judge is of the utmost importance. Whether it’s a tight match or not, first point or last,...

Always Time for Teachable Moments

Whether it is during the prematch conference or a postmatch debrief, a formal evaluation or a self-evaluation, or in a classroom clinic setting, we...

You Have Two Shots to Look Good

You have two chances to make a great first impression at the start of every match: (1) your arrival courtside when you’re tending to...

No Tunnel Vision With Wide-Angle View

What problem is most common among second referees? Some might say coaches chewing them out about questionable decisions or missed calls by the crew....

Double Check Score After Unusual Situation

Communication between the referees and the scoring crew is crucial to ensure accuracy of the score and the information recorded on the scoresheet. Double...

Get in the Groove with Your Partner

There is nothing like throwing a perfect game as a pitcher or calling the perfect game as a referee. Just like in baseball and...

Set the Table

For years, we’ve never really acknowledged the importance of the scorer as an integral part of a volleyball officiating crew. It seems there has...

Don’t Become a Fan

“Spectacularity” sounds made-up and highfaluting, doesn’t it? Au contraire. This actual word should be in every referee’s vocabulary. What does it mean, anyway? And how...

Match Scoring is One of Your Most Important Tasks

Hey, referees. Remember years ago, when you used to show up at a match, went about your pre-match duties and focused on your responsibilities...

Situational Awareness Suits Volleyball Officials

Have you ever looked back on a tough situation in a match, one that maybe you wish you had handled better, and said to...

Still Work to Be Done When There’s a Break in Play

The referees accept the coach’s or captain’s request for timeout and blow the whistle, starting the timeout procedure. Both teams usually move to the benches for a quick...

Shorten Your Learning Curve

As a young or newer referee works to master the art of officiating, she or he soon finds out that, while the rules are...

No Time Off

Officials often wonder what higher-level officials are thinking between points while up on the referee stand. What is going through the minds of officials as...

Triple Check for Accuracy 

Taking a little extra time to properly make the triple check of rosters, the scoresheet and lineups prior to the start of a match and each subsequent...

Don’t Compound Missed Calls

We have all made mistakes, there are plenty of reasons why, but officials can't compound missed calls with phantom calls. It can happen with ballhandling....

Don’t Lose Focus

Some inexperienced second referees lose focus at times and turn their attention away from the net too soon to watch that great defensive play in the back row. As...

Check the Scoreboard after each Rally

During our careers, each of us is bound to hear those irritating words shouted by parents or spectators or a team, “The score is...

Take Your Line Judge Game to the Next Level

Line judging, at any level, has its challenges. The game can move quickly and there are so many things to watch and think about...

5 Minutes With NCAA Coordinator Steve Thorpe

NCAA coordinator of officials for women’s volleyball discusses the 2021 Championship in a bubble in Omaha, Neb. Residence: Doylestown, Pa. Experience: Currently the NCAA coordinator of...

Avoid Match Problems With Solid Communication

As crazy as this might sound, have you ever thought of volleyball referees being in the customer service business? One might advance the notion...

Nothing But Net

Work Together to Correctly Call Faults It should be easy, but there are many factors that play into our accuracy of whistling net faults. As...

Second Referees Need Training Too

Very early in my officiating career, I received a call to officiate a local collegiate match. My partner was someone I had not worked with previously. While I thought...

Discreet Signals and Teamwork To Get Out of Hairy Situations

The duties of the first and second referees are delineated in the rulebook. In the best of cases, this division of duties ensures that, between them, the referees...

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