Volleyball: A crash course in how to play the game

Volleyball is a sport played by teams of 6. In competition, teams are separated by gender, although there are many intramural co-ed teams.

The object of volleyball is to score points by grounding the ball on the other team’s side of the court for what is called a kill. Teams can also get points for failures. The most common foul is when the opposition’s ball falls out of bounds. Other fouls are catching the ball, a player touching the ball twice in a row, or four team players touching the ball without successfully going over the net.

A coin is tossed to decide who gets control of the ball. That team kicks the ball over the net. From there, teams hit the ball back and forth over the net until someone gets a point. Often the ball is passed to a teammate to set up an attack against the other team. A rally occurs when they are able to return the ball. The rally continues until a kill or foul is committed. The team that gets the point also gets the ball to serve, at which point they rotate players clockwise.

A volleyball match consists of 5 sets. Generally, sets are played to 25 points with a 2 point lead requirement. Best of 5 wins the match.

The volleyball courts measure 59 x 29.5 feet, divided by a net that sits 7’11” above the court for men’s competitions and 7’4″ above the court for women’s competitions. (Young people’s nets are shorter.)