Volleyball Bylaws and Sport Handbook

SPORT CHAIR: KEITH STOWE, SPORT RATER: HEATHER HAYS, UNIVERSITY KOKOMO AD SPORT LIAISON: GREG COOPER, INDIANA UNIVERSITY KOKOMO COMMISSIONER: MICHAEL SCHELL LAST UPDATED: SEPTEMBER 11, 2020 I. Playing Rules/Resources A. The River States Conference plays under NCAA rules with approved NAIA modifications. The current NCAA playing rules and interpretations can be found at http://www.ncaapublications.com/productdownloads/VBR19.pdf. B. Complete information (including the Coaches’ Manual) on NAIA Women’s can be found in the Coaches’ Corner section of the NAIA website (link below). NAIA Women's Volleyball Coaches' Corner

II. General Information A. Personnel 1. Sport Chair – Keith Stowe, Asbury University 2. Rater – Heather Hayes, Indiana University Kokomo, 2020‐2021 3. Ratings Oversight Committee a. Kim McConaha, (East Division) b. Jonea Rima, (West Division) c. Greg Cooper, Indiana University Kokomo (AD sport liaison) 4. Sport Liaison – Greg Cooper, Indiana University Kokomo 5. Referee Assignor – James Williams

B. Participating Teams 1. East Division a.) Carlow (Pa.) University b.) Indiana University East c.) Christian University d.) Point Park (Pa.) University e.) (Ohio) f.) West Tech

2. West Division a.) Asbury (Ky.) University b.) Brescia (Ky.) University c.) Indiana University Kokomo d.) Indiana University Southeast e.) Midway (Ky.) University f.) Oakland City (IN) University

III. Regular Season Competition A. Each team will play teams within division twice and teams in the other division once.

B. Each school is responsible for posting its team schedule and rosters to the conference website through the SID Help admin portal by August 1st of the season.

C. The official NAIA Championship volleyball (Baden Perfection) is used at the conference tournament and recommended for use in all regular‐season competition.

D. In the event of a tie in the standings, the following tie‐breaker procedure will be used for the selection and seeding teams into the conference tournament and to determine the regular‐season champion: 1. Head‐to‐head competition 2. Percentage of sets won among tied teams (conf. sets vs. tied teams only) 3. Percentage of points won among tied teams (conf. points vs. tied teams only) 4. Percentage of sets won within division of the tied teams 5. Percentage of points won within division of the tied teams 6. Percentage of sets won in conference play 7. Percentage of points won in conference play (Administrative Council Spring 2019) 8. Coin toss administered by the conference commissioner

E. In the event of ties between three or more teams in the final conference standings, the same tie‐breaker as above in I.B should be used with the following principle to be followed: Tiebreaker #1 will use the aggregate head‐to‐head record among the tied teams in an attempt to break the tie. Furthermore, once a team is eliminated via one of the first two tie‐breakers, then the tie‐breaking process should start over at tiebreaker #1 between the remaining teams until all ties have been broken.

F. Conference schedules will be created by the Schedule Committee at least two years in advance and be reviewed by the Administrative Council and all coaches. Conference play must be completed by no later than the Saturday prior to the conference championship.

G. The use of certified line judges, assigned by the assignor of officials, is required for all conference matches and is recommended for non‐conference matches.

H. The recommended match start time for weeknight conference matches is 7PM local time. The recommended start times for weekend conference quad matches (one court) is 10am/12pm/2pm/4pm local time. The recommended start times for weekend conference quad matches (multiple courts) is 10am and 12pm local time. In setting the matches for weekend quads, consideration will be given to teams with the furthest travel. Sufficient rest time will also be factored in for teams playing back‐to‐back matches.

I. The division winner with the best record in conference play will be the regular season champion and receive the top seed in the conference tournament.

I. For Friday/Saturday division matches, match start times should be set for 7 p.m. local time on Friday night and no earlier than 12 p.m. local time on Saturday. The recommended start time on Saturday is 12 p.m. local time.” (Administrative Council Spring 2019)

IV. Conference Postseason Tournament A. The conference tournament will be a single‐elimination, two‐day tournament held on the Friday/Saturday before the national tournament opening round.

B. The top four teams in each division will qualify for the conference tournament.

C. First‐round matches will be played on Friday; and the semifinals and finals will be played on Saturday.

D. The conference tournament quarterfinal scheduled start times of 9AM, 12 PM, 4 PM and 7 PM local time with a minimum 45 minutes of warm‐up time prior to the start of each match. (Administrative Council Spring 2020)

E. The conference tournament semi‐finals and finals matches will have the set times of 10 AM, 12:30 PM and 6 PM Local Time.

F. The tournament bracket will incorporate a crossover format between the two divisions.

G. In 2020 West Division hosts, 2021 East Division hosts

H. The matches will be scheduled as follows:

1.) Match #1 – Host division #1 vs. Alternate division #4, 9 AM 2.) Match #2 – Alternate division #1 vs. Host Division #4, 12 PM

Awards

3.) Match #3 – Host division #2 vs. Alternate division #3, 4 PM 4.) Match #4 – Alternate division #2 vs. Host division #3, 7 PM

5.) Match #5 (semi‐final #1) – Winner of match #2 vs. winner of match #3, 10 AM 6.) Match #6 (semi‐final #2) – Winner of match #1 vs. winner of match #4, 12:30 PM

7.) Match #7 (championship match) – Winner of match #5 vs. winner of match #6, 6 PM

I. The brackets attached will be utilized based on the overall winner of the conference based on the overall regular season champion.

J. The conference tournament field, seeds and bracket will be officially approved by the conference commissioner, conference SID, AD sport liaison and sport chair at the end of the regular season.

K. The conference tournament shall be held at the winner of the division alternating each year between the East and West Divisions. If the winner of the division set to host in any given year is unable to host, the tournament will go to the second‐place team in that division next followed by the third place and finally the fourth place or last qualifying team in that division. Should all four not be able to host the winner of the other division will be next in line followed by two through four in the other division.

L. Seeding is determined by regular season standings in each division. The regular‐ season conference champion will be the overall #1 seed in the tournament. In the event of a tie in the division standings, the tie‐breaker procedures outlined in Article III, Section C will be used.

M. In the event of ties between three or more teams in the final conference division standings, the same tie‐breaker as above in Article III, Section C should be used with the following principle to be followed: Tiebreaker #1 will use the aggregate head‐to‐ head record among the tied teams in an attempt to break the tie. Once a team is eliminated via one of the first two tie‐breakers, then the tie‐breaking process reverts back to tiebreaker #1 between the remaining teams until all ties have been broken.

N. The conference volleyball coordinator of officials will assign officials for the conference tournament championship.

O. Officials fees, certified line judges (minimum NFHS certification), and expenses for the conference championship tournament will be paid by the conference.

1. The host institution is responsible for paying a conference host fee of $1,000. All gate receipts, concessions, etc. are retained by the host institution.

2. The host institution is responsible for providing competent and experienced scorers, libero trackers, scoreboard operators, statisticians, sports information personnel, and ball personnel. (Administrative Council Spring 2019)

3. The host is responsible for providing a live video stream for all postseason matches. Postseason matches will be broadcasted on a pay‐per‐view format on the conference portal via Stretch Internet. The conference will retain all revenue from video streaming subscriptions/sponsorships. No other provider is permitted to broadcast/stream video of the matches.

P. The RSC is required to follow the NAIA Postseason roster/party size limits as outlined by the NAIA. The NAIA Official Roster Form must be submitted to the tournament host no later than 45 minutes prior to the first match.

Q. The regular‐season conference champion (AQ1) and the conference tournament champion (AQ2) will receive the automatic qualifications to the NAIA National Championship Opening Round. If the regular‐season champion wins the conference tournament, then the tournament runner‐up will receive the second conference qualifying berth (AQ2). If the event the conference has only one automatic qualification, the conference tournament champion receives the national qualifying berth (AQ1).

R. Contingency plan If the conference tournament cannot be completed, then the two division winners from the regular‐season schedule will receive the two automatic qualifying berths to the National Championship Opening Round. The AQ1 goes to the overall #1 seed. If there is only one automatic berth, then the regular‐season champion (overall #1 seed) will be the automatic national qualifier.

V. Conference/National Ratings A. Each sport committee will elect a member to serve as rater. If a sport cannot elect a rater, then the commissioner will appoint a rater after consulting with the sport chair and oversight committee. 1. Raters must be head coaches with at least one year of head coaching experience in the conference.

2. Raters will serve a term of two (2) years.

3. Raters may serve additional terms; based upon recommendations from the coaches and satisfactory evaluations from the sport and conference oversight committees.

4. If two divisions exist in any conference sport, then the division that does not include the rater will have a coach serve on the oversight committee.

B. Raters will familiarize themselves with and adhere to established NAIA and River States Conference ratings policies and procedures. Raters will serve the best interests of the conference and its member institutions and the NAIA at all times.

C. Raters will provide ratings and justification to members of the Oversight Committee for review before they are submitted to the NAIA. This e‐mail communication must be sent to the conference sport oversight committee no later than 9AM on Monday (or a minimum two hours prior to the deadline for submitting conference rating to the NAIA).

D. Raters will practice transparency by sharing conference ratings and justification with fellow coaches when requested. The conference sport oversight committee must be included in this process.

E. The commissioner will appoint a three‐person conference ratings oversight committee. At least one member of the oversight committee must be a head coach in the respective sport. In sports with two divisions, at least two members of the oversight committee must be head coaches with both divisions represented.

F. The conference office will coordinate an end‐of‐season evaluation process for all raters. The process will include input from the conference sport oversight committee and focus primarily on the following criteria:

a. Consistent weekly submission of conference and national ratings on or before posted deadlines.

b. Consistent and active participation in ratings conference calls and national ratings committee meetings.

c. Consistent communication with coaches’ group(s), sport/conference oversight committees, and the conference/national office.

VI. Statistical Reports A. Scores must be reported to the conference website through the SIDHelp Admin portal or single synced with Dakstats immediately after each match but no later than two (2) hours after a match. Scores must be reported by Sunday at 7 p.m. ET for the purposes of weekly conference rankings.

B. All statistics must be reported by single syncing to the NAIA Dakstats site immediately following but no later than four (4) hours following a match. by Mondays at 5 p.m. ET. Statistics that are not reported by Monday at 5 PM EST then are subject to the penalties outlined by the NAIA in the NAIA SID Manual for non‐reporting.

C. Statistics should be recorded live during the match. It is understood that with volleyball they might be delayed in serves or even sets. Video restating should be a last resort used only when something goes wrong.

D. Failure to report scores to the conference website within 24 hours or to report statistics to the NAIA Dakstats Websync site would result in the following sanctions:

1) First Miss – Email Reminder 2) Second Miss – Probation letter from commissioner 3) Third Miss – Student‐athletes ineligible for postseason awards 4) Fourth Miss – Team ineligible for postseason participation

E. For volleyball weekend quad matches involving neutral‐site opponents, each team is responsible for recording their own stats. The host SID is responsible for compiling and reporting all match quad match results.

VII. Video Exchange

A. Teams are required to participate in the on‐line film exchange program using Hudl. All home countable contests for regular season and postseason must be uploaded. Hosted games are to be uploaded as soon as possible, but no later than midnight on Sunday for weekend contests (Friday & Saturday) and midnight the next day for other contests. The RSC host for final championships will film and upload all contests for that event.

B. The films that are intended to be exchanged are for the primary purpose of coaches’ ability to evaluate performance. Coaches need to see the athlete position and balls in relation to the net for an effective evaluation. Film must be shot from the end line and may be moved left or right to accommodate facility obstructions.

C. RSC penalties for missing deadlines‐

a. All hosts are expected to make every effort to upload video within the time frame allocated. In the event of any technical problems the host school must notify the commissioner and the hosted school AD and Coach as soon is the issue is noted, but prior to the upload deadline. If the issue is potentially with Hudl they must also be notified.

i. First violation – a written warning letter. Institutional Athletic Director will be copied on warning letter.

ii. Second violation – $500 fine. The Athletic Director and President/Chancellor will be copied on any violation that includes a monetary fine.

iii. Third violation – $1,000 fine, and a loss of postseason awards eligibility.

iv. Fourth violation ‐ $1,000 fine and the Conduct in Competition Committee will be asked to review the case and recommend any additional sanctions.

v. If the last regular season contest is not uploaded there is no warning and the financial penalty outlined for the second violation is implemented.

VIII. Awards A. The conference sponsors the following volleyball awards. Awards will be ordered and distributed by the conference office.

B. All‐Conference Team Voting Process a. First Round Voting Process i. The All‐Conference team will consist of fourteen (14) 1st Team and fourteen (14) 2nd Team honorees.

ii. To begin the voting process, coaches nominate players from their own team for All‐Conference consideration, as well as their team nomination for Player of the Year, Libero of the Year, Freshman of the Year, Assistant Coach of the Year and Setter of the Year to the volleyball commissioner and conference SID with a deadline of the Saturday prior to the conference tournament.

iii. All nominations must be accompanied by complete conference and season statistical information to be eligible for consideration.

iv. All nominees must have competed in 66% of the regular season sets played by a team.

v. A ballot will then be sent to all head coaches the following Sunday prior to the conference tournament by no later than 5 p.m. EST

vi. Coaches must vote for 15 players in rank order. Each player will receive the corresponding number of points (the top player on each ballot will receive 15 points, the second player 14 points, and so on). Coaches may not vote for their own players during this first round process.

vii. This ballot must be returned to the commissioner and conference SID by midnight EST on Monday prior to the conference tournament.

viii. The top fourteen vote recipients will earn 1st‐Team All‐Conference honors and be considered for NAIA All‐Region and All‐American. The next fourteen highest vote recipients (15‐28) will earn 2nd Team All‐ Conference honors.

ix. First round results will be sent back to the coaches by the Tuesday prior to the conference tournament by no later than 5 p.m. EST.

b. Second Round Voting Process i. First round results and the second ballot will be sent back to the coaches by the Tuesday prior to the conference tournament by no later than 5 p.m. EST and coaches will be asked to then order the top fourteen (14) 1st Team All‐Conference recipients in rank order.

ii. In this second ballot, coaches will need to order only the top fourteen (14) 1st Team All‐Conference recipients in rank order (the top player on each ballot will receive 15 points, the second player 14 points, and so on). You may rank your own player for this process.

iii. This second round ranking process will determine the order of recipients turned in for NAIA All‐Region and All‐American consideration; therefore, overall season statistics should be carefully considered over conference stats for this process.

iv. Additionally, on this ballot, coaches will vote for Coach of the Year, Assistant Coach of the Year, Player of the Year, Libero of the Year, Freshman of the Year and Setter of the Year. You may not vote for your own player for these awards.

v. Player of the Year will be listed as number 1 in the order of recipients turned in for NAIA All‐Region and All‐American consideration. The remaining 13 student‐athletes will be ranked in accordance with results from the second‐round ranking process completed by coaches.

vi. Deadline for turning in this final ballot will be the Wednesday prior to the conference tournament by 5 pm EST.

c. Per conference awards committee guidelines, first round ballot voting by coaches will be shared with all coaches.

C. Individual Special Conference Awards a. Player of the Year i. Coach will nominate a player if they believe they have an athlete worthy of consideration during the first‐round process no later than the Saturday prior to the conference tournament.

ii. Coaches will vote for this award during the second‐round ballot process which will be received Tuesday prior to the conference tournament by no later than 5 p.m. EST

iii. A coach may not vote for his or her own player.

iv. Deadline for turning in this vote on the second‐round ballot will be the Wednesday prior to the conference tournament by 5 pm EST.

v. The top vote getter in All‐Conference ballot will be named Player of the Year and be placed in the top spot of the re‐ranking.

b. Freshman of the Year i. Coaches will nominate a single player if they believe they have an athlete worthy of consideration during the first‐round process no later than the Saturday prior to the conference tournament.

ii. The Freshman of the Year will be a student‐athlete competing in their first season of volleyball eligibility, nominated by each school and selected by a coaches’ vote. (Administrative Council Fall 2019)

iii. Coaches will vote for this award during the second‐round ballot process which will be received Tuesday prior to the conference tournament by no later than 5 p.m. EST

iv. A coach may not vote for his or her own player.

v. Deadline for turning in this vote on the second‐round ballot will be the Wednesday prior to the conference tournament by 5 pm EST.

c. Defensive Player of the Year i. Coach will nominate a player if they believe they have an athlete worthy of consideration during the first‐round process no later than the Saturday prior to the conference tournament.

ii. Coaches will vote for this award during the second‐round ballot process which will be received Tuesday prior to the conference tournament by no later than 5 p.m. EST

iii. A coach may not vote for his or her own player.

iv. Deadline for turning in this vote on the second‐round ballot will be the Wednesday prior to the conference tournament by 5 pm EST.

d. Setter of the Year i. Coach will nominate a player if they believe they have an athlete worthy of consideration during the first‐round process no later than the Saturday prior to the conference tournament.

ii. Coaches will vote for this award during the second‐round ballot process which will be received Tuesday prior to the conference tournament by no later than 5 p.m. EST

iii. A coach may not vote for his or her own player.

iv. Deadline for turning in this vote on the second‐round ballot will be the Wednesday prior to the conference tournament by 5 pm EST.

e. Coach of the Year i. All head coaches are nominated for this award.

ii. Coaches will vote for this award on the second ballot to be received on the Tuesday of conference tournament week.

iii. A coach may not vote for themselves.

iv. Deadline for turning in this vote is on the second‐round ballot and will be the Wednesday prior to the conference tournament by 5 PM EST.

f. Assistant Coach of the Year i. Coach will nominate an assistant coach if they believe they have one worthy of consideration during the first‐round process no later than the Saturday prior to the conference tournament.

ii. Coaches will vote for this award during the second‐round ballot process which will be received Tuesday prior to the conference tournament by no later than 5 p.m. EST

iii. A coach may not vote for his or her assistant.

iv. Deadline for turning in this vote on the second‐round ballot will be the Wednesday prior to the conference tournament by 5 pm EST.

D. Each division winner will receive a regular‐season division champion award.

E. The conference tournament champion and runner‐up team will each receive an award.

F. Scholar‐Athlete Team Award: Each team will have a Scholar‐Athlete Team using the criteria as listed in the River States Constitution Article XV. This will be facilitated each season by the Commissioner and the Conference Office based on the semester and season (Fall, Winter & Spring) that the championship for that sport occurs. Announcement of this team is also governed by this Policy. (Administrative Council Winter 2018)

G. Champion of Character Award. Each team will select an individual to receive this award. The recipient will best model the NAIA’s Champions of Character core values and will also be eligible to receive the annual Conference’s Bill Melton Champion of Character Award. The Melton Award recipient will be nominated by the conference for the NAIA’s national award character award (Dr. Leroy Walker Character Award).

H. Player of the Week Award a. All Player of the Week nominations must be made by the school SID using the NAIA SIDHelp Admin portal by Monday at 12 p.m. ET. Voting for Player of the Week takes place between 12‐3 pm ET.

b. The Player of the Week program will be administered through the conference office with guidelines outlined in the RSC Bylaws and Sports Information Director’s Manual.

c. The conference SID will be responsible for releasing Player of the Week awards.

I. Tournament Brackets