Screening

[jdoldn07]

For the first time in 20 years of coaching Military, Club and High School teams my HS team got called for screening. It was called on my R and M Front who where standing a little over a body distance apart. I didn't really notice the serve but it was a straight shot in between the 5 and 6 zone.
I talked to the UP Ref after the game and he told he been told new rules are in effect that the player have to be at least an arms lenght from each other (said he got this at training and at Nationals). I have checked all my rules books and online but haven't seen any changes to the screening rule. My players where not stacked at the net and the server wasn't hidden.

Thoughts???

[MCBear]

There have not been any changes in the rules concerning calling the screen as far as I know. I think that the Referee may have misunderstood what was being presented or created his own interpretation based on what was being said.

The NFHS Rules Book concerning Screening in Rule 6-4 has not been changed from what it stated in last year's Rules Book:

RULE 6, SECTION 4 SCREENING
ART. 1 . . . Players on the serving team shall not take action to prevent receivers from seeing the contact of the the serve or the path of the served ball. Potential screens exits, but are not limited to:
a. When a player(s) on the serving team waves arms, jumps, moves sideways or stands close to the server, and the ball is served over the player(s).
b. When a group of two or more teammates stand close together, and the ball is served directly over them.
PENALTY: A loss of rally/point is awarded to the opponent.

The NCAA Rules Book does a really nice job of covering screening in Rule 13.2.4:

ARTICLE 4. Players on the serving team must not take action to prevent receiving team members from seeing the contact of the serve and/or the path of the ball.

a. Potentially, screens exist when the ball is served over a player on the serving team who raises or waves arms, jumps, or moves sideways when the service is being executed. A sanction may be assessed for distracting or moving sideways to prevent an opponent from seeing the serve even if the ball is not served over that player.

b. Potentially, screens exist when a group fo two or more teammates stand in close proximity and the ball is served over them. The factors to be weighed when judging whether a screen has been committed are:
1. Relative positions of the players on the serving team;
2. Path of the serve;
3. Speed of the serve; or
4. Trajectory of the serve.

If the serving team players are positioned close to each other and a serve that is fast and has a low trajectory passes over these players, the probablility is greater that a screen has been committed. There is a lower probablitlity that a screen has been committed if the players are not positioned close to each other or are attempting to prevent he screen (e.g., bending over); the path of the serve is not over the player; the speed of the serve is slow; or the trajectory of the serve is high.

The thing that I like most in the way that the rule in both books is written is that it tells us that a potential screen may exist if those situations occur. It does not say that the screen must or does exist. So, I have a key question that arises in your specific situation: was the receiving team able to see the server or the contact of the serve and/or the flight of the ball? If the answer to any one of these questions is "yes", then a screen did not occur and the Referee goofed big-time in his interpretation.

[jdoldn07]

Thanks,

I agree with you but wanted to be sure something wasn't being past out there that I haven't hear about.

[refnrev]

Were they moving when the R called the screen or was the serve a flat missle right over the players heads? As for the arms length, not sure where he got that. You just rarely see a screening called.

[OmniSpiker]

Geez, I don't know, but while in Europe, there were a whole lot of mess of screen tactics. Then I also observe a lot of screen tactics by a lot of competitive B/BB level players. I usually see three people bunched up next to the net looking like they're gonna block or have their arms extended to their sides. Sometimes they move on the serve contact, a lot of times it's after the served ball crosses the plane of the net. What I've observed is that sometimes the ball is served directly over these frontal formation.

For the most part, a receiving player can move and position themselve out of the screen. Unless the trajectory of the ball is that low and flat above the screen, then most players could still see the ball in midair.

It's pretty rare to actually see a screen violation on a serve, but when one occurs, it should be noted that screening tactics may have been used.