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Fri Oct 15, 2004, 07:00pm
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Last night, I was working a HS JV match. I was R2. My partner, who I have worked with several times before, and I must have made about six illegal alignment calls against one team and I know that I recognized at least two others too late to blow the whistle. These were not close calls, in each case the players were overlapping by at least a step. Every time we called it, the players and coaches looked at us like we were from Mars! Once we explained the call, we didn't have any other problems.
There are only two weeks left in the HS season. I asked the coach after the match if these alignment calls had been made prior to this match. She said "no, never." She said that they had been running the same system all season. This really concerned me because, to me, these were obvious alignment calls and I'm sure that this team had been doing this all season. Are any of the rest of you that regularly do HS ball seeing this?
__________________
It's what you learn after you think you know it all that's important! 
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Sat Oct 16, 2004, 01:08am
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Quote:
I've noticed that I'm calling illegal alignment a lot more this year, and I think there are a couple reasons. First off, we're one of the "libero experiment" states, and I think that caused some confusion early on until the players got used to it. The second reason is that something clicked for me early this season - defensive set patterns suddenly were easier to see and knowing who was supposed to be where became almost instinctive. As a result I think I'm doing a better job of recognizing illegal alignment in time to do something about it. It's a skill I've been working very hard to develop, and it looks like it's starting to pay off.... It's been a rare match this season that I haven't caught an illegal alignment at least once, and have called as many as four against the same team in one game - not chippy ones either. There's also no doubt in my mind that some coaches, especially at the varsity level, either deliberately push the envelope, or allow their players to do so to try to gain that little bit of advantage. That's not really a bad thing, just a strategic part of the game - as one of my favorite T-shirts says, "It ain't nothing until I call it!" They know they're doing it, but aren't going to stop until the officials call them on it. Classic example - last night I was the U for a varsity match. The setter at LB went early and I called her for the overlap with CB - it was at least a full stride by the time the ball was struck for serve. I whistled & signaled the illegal alignment, coach asked me who so I told him, his response was "OK, thanks." As I turned to walk back to get in position for the next serve I heard him tell the setter "he's watching - you can't make the early jump or he'll call you on it." She didn't do it again the rest of the match. [Edited by TimTaylor on Oct 16th, 2004 at 02:10 AM]
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