Volleyball has gone through many scoring and rules changes over the years. Rules that kept the game's pace slow and methodical have been examined and changed to make the sport more exciting for players and fans. The rules changes and the introduction of rally scoring have helped the sport grow and attract more participants, but the many changes have caused some confusion regarding what rules currently are used.
Rally Scoring
Before rally scoring, a team could score a point only when having served the ball. If an opposing team won the rally, the ball would side out to them, but it would not affect the score. This led to long games in which teams could potentially side out to each other and the score would remain low. In rally scoring, a team is awarded a point regardless of who served the ball. For example, if a serving team hits the ball into the net on the serve, the ball not only sides out to the opposing team, but that team also is awarded a point. This led to points being accumulated at a faster pace, speeding up the game.
Points Needed to Win the Game
Now that the sport primarily uses rally scoring, the number of points varies depending on level of play. At the high school and college level, games are played to 25 and a team has to win by 2 points. Otherwise, the game continues until a team gains a 2-point advantage. Coed volleyball is primarily played on the intramural and club levels, so organizers might have the luxury of adjusting points to 15 or 21 depending on the time allotted. They also can adjust how many games are played in a match. Most will use a best-of-three or best-of-five format. That decision might affect the total number of points that is appropriate to play to.
Coed Team
Coed teams should have the same amount of men and women on the floor. Volleyball is played with six players, so there should be three men and three women on the court at any given time. The amount of bench players can vary, but they should substitute only for the same gender. If a team only has two women, itshould play one person down, rather than substituting another male in a woman's place. This is the only way to keep games equitable.
Coed Touch Rules
Some leagues will enforce a coed touch rule that is designed to make sure both genders touch the ball if a team uses the maximum of three touches before directing the ball to the opposing team. This can prevent the men from excluding the women and trying to play to an advantage of having the tallest and possibly more athletic players taking over the game. If a team chooses to use only one or two touches, it is not required that both genders make a touch before sending the ball over the net.
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