The NCAA women’s volleyball rules committees recommended a player’s foot completely crossing the center line be ruled a fault, beginning with the 2026 season.
Additionally, coaches could challenge whether an opponent’s foot completely crossed the center line. Officials would also be able to look at possible net faults while reviewing a challenge as to whether a player’s foot completely crossed the center line.
The Division I Women’s Volleyball Playing Rules Subcommittee and the Division II and Division III Women’s Volleyball Rules Committee met in Indianapolis this week to propose rules changes in the sport.
All rule recommendations must be approved through the governance structure before becoming official. The Division II and Division III Playing Rules Oversight Panel will discuss women’s volleyball rules recommendations Feb. 12. The Division I Women’s Volleyball Oversight Committee will review proposals during a meeting Feb. 16-18.
Both committees wanted to bring NCAA volleyball more in line with the international center line rule.
Currently, it is not a fault for a player’s foot to completely cross the center line unless the player causes interference or creates a safety hazard. Center line faults currently may not be challenged.
“It’s always about safety when you talk about the center line,” said Keylor Chan, chair of the Division I rules subcommittee and women’s volleyball coach at Samford. “I think, through the course of modern volleyball, this rule has gone back and forth through the years. The hardest part was there was some subjectivity to it. We are trying to take the subjectivity out for the referees and for the safety of our athletes.”
Bench protocols
Both rules groups proposed that teams switch benches after the completion of the second set. Also, the rules committees are recommending that after the coin flip for the fifth set – where a team can choose to serve, receive or which side to compete on – the teams remain on their sides of the net the entire set.
Rationale for making the change is to aid pace of play and limit the delays of teams changing benches.
Currently, teams switch benches after each set, and the teams also switch benches in the fifth set when the first team reaches 8 points.
“The time it takes to play a match is something that we are conscious of,” Chan said. “This helps with moving the sport forward in a positive direction.”
DII/III substitutions
The Division II and Division III Women’s Volleyball Rules Committee proposed increasing the substitutions allowed per set to 18. Currently, teams can make 15 substitutions per set.
“With the rosters increasing over the past few years, we felt like this was a good move to give our student-athletes more opportunities to participate,” said Julia Rowland, chair of the committee and deputy director of athletics and senior woman administrator at Coker. “It gives our coaches more opportunities to get creative with their lineups. The committee felt we should keep these two divisions aligned on the number of substitutions.”
Experimental rule
Both committees approved an experimental rule for conference games to allow the electronic transmission of live video to the bench area for coaching purposes only.
Other rules recommendations approved by both committees:
- Players on the serving team would not be allowed to raise their hands above their heads during the serve until the ball crosses the net.
- Challenges would not be permitted once a timeout is initiated.
- When making a video review challenge, coaches would form a “C” with their hands instead of presenting a card to indicate requesting a review.
- Jewelry could be worn above the chin only. There would not be limitations on the size of the jewelry.
- Misconduct sanctions would remain for the entire match and not reset after a set is completed. Sanctions for procedural reasons (delays) would reset each set.
- Players could go around the net pole to pursue a ball and play it back to their side. This action would be allowed for a ball that has crossed the net plane to the opponent’s free zone over or outside the antenna. There would need to be at least 2 meters of space behind the referee’s pole to use this rule. Television cameras also could not be placed between the attack lines on the side where the referee’s stand is located. Players could not go under the net to pursue the ball.
- Officials could go to the statistics crew or use the Challenge Review System to address a scoring discrepancy. Coaches would not have to make a formal protest in these instances.
- Another optional timeout format would be added in which technical/media timeouts occur when a team reaches 15 points for sets 1-4, regardless of whether a team has already taken a timeout. The technical/media timeout will be a maximum of 90 seconds. A team timeout maximum time would be 75 seconds. There would not be a technical/media timeout in the fifth set.
- If a disqualified player doesn’t sit out the next match as required, the head coach and player would be required to serve a two-game suspension. If a coach who is disqualified doesn’t sit out the next match as required, the head coach would be required to serve a two-game suspension.
- Two commercial logos would be permitted on the playing surface that would be no larger than 10 feet by 10 feet. One logo could be placed at each end of the playing court located between the attack line and end line. The logos should not interfere with any court marking or boundary lines.
