Peeves III

I hesitated to continue with this exhibition of Peeves on Parade. Some grump, who shall remain nameless, let’s just call him/her ladeda, posted that dirt was more interesting than my blog. Dirt! I have to tell you I was offended at first, cut to the quick. Not only was my quick bleeding, my feelings were bruised, sulking and scared to go out of the house. Although I had promised myself that my blog would be an instrument for Good, I was sorely tempted to type ladeda a new one. Then I googled “dirt” and discovered just how fascinating soil can be. Judge for yourself, but I think ladeda has a valid point.

http://www.answers.com/topic/soil?cat=technology

So even if it is admittedly less exciting than dirt, we move along to my second pet peeve: backrow block and backrow attack calls. You know the play. Team A’s player passes or digs Team B’s wicked serve or blistering attack (or feeble free ball, for that matter), and the ball ends up somewhere near or in the space over the net. Team A’s setter valiantly attempts to set the ball and it is simultaneously or subsequently touched by one or more of Team B’s blockers. A sharp whistle pierces the air. All eyes turn to the first referee, who is still flush from tooting the play dead.

The thing is, the first referee, if the ball was completely above the height of the net, has to make a call. There is no gray area, as there is for most other calls. There was a fault, the only question is: whose fault was it?

The 2007 NCAA Women’s Volleyball Rules and Interpretations* -- a spellbinding tome if ever there was one -- is the mother of my peeve. I’ll let it speak for itself.

14.5 Attack-Hit

14.5.1 Definition

An attack-hit is an action, other than a block or a serve, that directs the ball toward an opponent. An attack hit is completed the instant the ball completely crosses the vertical plane of the net or is touched by an opponent.

Furthermore,

14.5.4 Back-Row Attacker

14.5.4.1 A back-row player who is in the front zone may not complete an attack-hit if, at contact, the ball is entirely above the top of the net. The contact does not become illegal until the attack-hit is complete. (See Rule 14.5.1.)

So here’s the deal. The first referee, who is above the height of the net (unless he or she is of Pygmy descent) and possibly, but not necessarily, perched at the center of one end of the net, must, in the instant the ball is contacted, be able to discern

+ whether or not the ball is completely above the horizontal plane of the net

+ whether or not the blocker has touched the ball after some part of it has entered the vertical plane of the net

+ for which team (R)uffda! is rooting (so he or she can make the call in the other team’s favor)

And, again, the call must be made if the ball is completely above the horizontal plane of the net. Also, I feel compelled to remind you, even though I feel pretty stupid doing so, the object in question is round, being a ball and all. This is not a volleybox, or any other volleyobject with straight edges, entering or not entering these imaginary planes; it’s a volleysphere. But there is our first referee, confidently indicating that Team A’s setter or Team B’s blocker has committed a fault.

It is my contention that these first referees, in 90% or more of these plays, do not have a clue as to where the ball was in relation to these vertical and horizontal planes and therefore has no business making a call which will cause poor (R)uffda! such grief. My motto is: If you don’t know, let ‘em play. (Well, that and “Don’t Tread on (R)uffda!”) So, why oh why do the rules force these poor first referees to pretend they know what happened and blow their whistles? Why can’t they be given the out of Man, that was close, I better just let it go? Why do they treat a complex play like this as if it were as simple as a linejudge guessing whether a ball was in or out?

It’s a pet peeve of mine, it is.



* The 2007 NCAA Women’s Volleyball Rules and Interpretations is published by The National Collegiate Athletic Association, with the manuscript prepared by the distinguished Marcia Alterman.

http://www.ncaa.org/library/rules/2007/2007_w_volleyball_rules.pdf