Technical Rules

Opening Rush 

1. The ball countdown at the Opening Rush starts when the first of the 6 balls is activated. Once the countdown starts, the countdown applies to all 6 balls
   • Each individual ball has to be activated regardless of when the countdown starts
   • Players are out if they block with a ball that hasn’t been activated.  That ball becomes a neutral ball after the illegal block. The player is eliminated but the ball stays with the team and must be activated still.
   • Throwing an inactive ball is treated as a deadball throw
2. Teams have full 10 seconds to use their initial balls
   • If a ball is left at the centerline, the team still has up to the 10 second count to retrieve, activate, and use that ball.  At the utterance of deadball, the initial ball left at the centerline becomes a deadball and will be rolled to the opposing team
   • If a ball is pushed across the centerline at the opening rush towards the opposing team, it becomes a neutral ball
3. During the opening rush, all lines are inactive.  The moment the first ball is activated on the court and the ref begins counting the 10 second count, all lines are active
4. Teams are not allowed to interfere or intimidate the opposing team during the opening rush, any interference will result in a restart.

Deadball 

1. Aside from the opening rush, anytime a player manipulates a neutral ball continuously for more than the span of a 1 second count, the 10 second count begins on that ball
2. Slapping/kicking a ball over to a teammate with your hand or feet in one quick motion will not start the countdown.
3. Deadballs occur with the following scenarios:
   • The 10 second count has expired before being thrown across the centerline.  At the utterance of the sound “duh”, if the ball is still in contact with the thrower.
   • A throw across the centerline touches or is above the 5 ft line
   • When eliminated players manipulate play in any way. This includes intentionally shielding teammates on the way to the out-line, passing/flicking/kicking balls back to teammates, and interfering with balls
   • If a player projects the ball to the other side of the court without a conventional throw (kicking, spiking, chest-bumping, slapping, punching, headbutting, kneeing, humping, etc)
4. Deadballs must be surrendered with enough force to reach the wall, within boundaries, and remain in possession of the opposing team
5. Catching a deadball still counts as a catch
6. A player is not out if they are hit by a deadball
7. Deadball in Volley:  If a deadball is mixed in a volley of balls that hit a player, that player is not out.  A volley is defined as multiple balls thrown by the same team, same time, and same target.
8. While in possession of a deadball, a player cannot catch, block, or throw.
9. The ball that has exceeded the 10-second count or 5 ft line is the only ball that can satisfy the surrendering requirement of a deadball.
10. A dead ball on the ground will be given 3 “dead ball” calls and if players on the offending team show no intention of rolling the ball over, a time-out will be called and the dead ball will be surrendered to the other team.

Elimination 

1. Once a player has been hit, they are not considered ‘out’ until the ball that hit them has made contact with another object (this includes, but is not limited to, the floor, wall, ceiling, bench, other players, etc.)
2. A block must be clean, in other words, the ball cannot deflect onto you after the block. You cannot block with a dead ball
3. When a player’s throw is caught, the thrower is out and the catching team brings back an eliminated player in the order they were out
4. If a player is eliminated, they must drop all held balls and leave the court immediately to minimize gameplay disruption
5. An eliminated player cannot kick or pass balls to their teammates.  Any manipulation of balls by an eliminated player will result in the ball being turned over to the opposing team.
6. If an eliminated player cannot cross to the correct out-line, the player must inform the refs on the side they exited the court so the order can be retained
7. Infracting boundaries after the initial opening count has begun results in an elimination
8. When the ball contacts a player and another surface simultaneously, it is considered a Trap, and the player is eliminated
9. When a catch has been clearly made but the thrower cannot be identified, the player closest to the opening rush side is considered the thrower.  This decision will be made through a timeout by the refs.

Throwing 

1. Throws are defined by conventional throw involving grip and release using your hand
2. Illegitimate throws include but are not limited to kicking, spiking, chest-bumping, slapping, punching, headbutting, kneeing, humping, etc.  Just throw, please.
3. Chest Passing is considered a legitimate throw.
4. Throws are only active if the entire motion ending in the follow-through step is inbounds
5. Kamikaze plays: Players are not allowed to deliberately cross the centerline to make a play (ie. jumping across to make a closer throw). They will automatically be called out and their ball(s) thrown will not count. However, if the thrown ball is caught, it is considered a legal catch.
6. If 2 throws collide it is considered as contacting another surface and therefore both balls become neutral
7. Crushed (Scrunched) Balls: If a thrower has a grip without showing fingernails or excessively deform a ball against their body or another surface, the player will receive a warning.  Players with smaller hands requiring minimal folding to attain grip are allowed. Repeat offenders will be charged for the replacement of a damaged ball.
8. A hit on a target is not complete until the ball has touched a surface
9. If a throw is trapped between 2 players simultaneously without touching another surface, the player closest to the opening rush side is considered out due to trap

Counting 

1. Balls purposely placed out of bounds continue the 10 second count
2. When a player is out, balls in their possession become a neutral ball unless the balls were already dead
3. If a player is in possession of 2 balls and passes 1, the higher count is passed onto the receiving teammate
4. Timeouts reset counts on all live balls.  Deadballs prior to timeout should still be surrendered
5. If a player manipulates a ball in anyway for over a span of a 1 second ref count, the 10 second count will begin even if it hasn’t been picked up (i.e. if the player is pushing a ball back and forth on the floor for over a second)
6. Slapping/kicking a ball over to a teammate with your hand or feet in one quick motion will not start the countdown.

Catching 

1. Catches that result in the player going out of bounds are only considered valid if the player gains full possession/control of the ball while still in valid contact with the ground inside court boundaries. Valid contact is defined as:
   • Two feet on the ground (does not need to constantly be on the ground, as long as both feet touch the ground with the ball under control before going out of bounds).
   • Any body parts, other than hands, making contact with the ground before going out of bounds (i.e. if a player is sliding on their chest/belly, demonstrates control of catch, then slides out of bounds)
2. Catches in the air that demonstrates control are allowed to finish the motion without interference (including timeouts) but must demonstrate control until landing on the ground inbounds.
3. When attempting to catch a ball, a player may release a ball at any time in a controlled manner.
   • If the thrown ball pops up in the air after hitting the catcher, the catcher can choose to throw or drop the balls they had in possession; the throw is active and the player may choose to catch the thrown ball and the catch would count.
4. Each ball caught brings one player back, regardless if it’s the same thrower
5. Players cannot use clothing to assist with catching (i.e. wrapping an incoming ball with a shirt).  

Blocking 

1. When attempting to catch a blocked ball, a player cannot lose possession of any ball as a result of the block, otherwise, the catch does not count.
2. A block must be clean, in other words, the ball cannot deflect onto you after the block. 
3. If a player loses balls in possession as a result of a block, the player is eliminated
4. You cannot block with a dead ball, if you block with a dead ball you are eliminated
5. A player may release a ball at any time in a controlled manner following a clean block.

Boundaries

1. It is considered an out if a player’s foot is grounded and any part of the shoe covers the center line or sideline from a bird’s eye view
2. It is considered an out if a player’s back is against the back wall and any part of their back or shoulder covers the sideline from the ref’s vantage point
3. All center line and sidelines are activated once the first ball has been activated in a game
4. Sidelines extend up the walls and players are out if they contact the line or any wall space outside of the line
5. Balls that go out of bounds are to be returned to where they became out of bounds or stopped on the sidelines before they go out of bounds.
   • Balls that hit the ref or the back wall outside of the court boundaries are to be returned where they would likely enter or exit the court 
6. If the initial out-of-bounds location can’t be determined, then the balls should be placed on the centerline.
7. The 5 ft line is not an elimination boundary, it is there to penalize high throws (which become deadballs), but players are allowed to touch the 5 ft line.  

Timeout

1. Whenever there is confusion on the court, disagreement between refs, or safety issues (lost shoe, shoelaces, dropped glasses, etc) a timeout will be called.
2. Timeouts are freezes in time so no plays are allowed to continue past the utterance of “Timeout”, with the exception of a secured catch in motion (See Catching Technical Rule #2)
3. During a timeout, players should directly back up to their wall, and hold any balls they previously had in possession
   • No neutral balls should be manipulated during a timeout
4. Any live balls in possession before the timeout are reset to 10 count, but must remain in possession, and once the game is resumed, the 10 count will begin on those balls

1v1 prior to Showdown & Showdown

1. If there is only 1 player left from each team, showdown goes into effect after 10 seconds. The procedure for showdown is: Referees countdown 10 seconds, ending with “showdown” to pause the game. The centerline boundary is dissolved, while the sidelines remain active boundaries. Players begin with 2 balls in their hands at their respective walls. The other 2 balls go at the ends of the centerline. When ready, showdown begins with a “3,2,1, showdown” from the referees. 
2. Showdown calls are freezes in time so no plays are allowed to continue past the utterance of “Showdown”, with the exception of a secured catch in motion (See Catching Technical Rule #2)
3. Tagging the opponent in a showdown will not count; balls must be a conventional throw in order to hit someone out
4. The result of simultaneous hits is determined by the order of ball contact with another surface.
5. During showdown, players cannot charge another player with no demonstrated intention to stop safely.  Players who charge will receive a warning and the showdown will be reset. Players will restart the showdown with the same number of balls in possession at the time of reset. If a second charging attempt is made the offending player will be considered out.
   • Attempts to touch another player will be considered a charge
6. During showdown, if players come into proximity where the refs can no longer clearly see the play, the showdown is reset
7. If players make physical contact, the showdown is reset with each player starting with the same number of balls in each player’s possession at the time of the reset

Stalemate 

1. If a game comes to a point where neither team show intention to pick up a ball, the refs will begin a 10-second count with an indication of “Stalemate Count”.  At the end of the 10-second count, the refs will call a timeout and give a warning on game draw. In the next 10 seconds, if no balls were thrown with the intention to hit a target, the game is considered a draw and reset to the start

Delay of Game (resets)

1. Resets are defined as intentional throws off-target for the purposes of resetting the count on a player’s ball or bumping back a neutral ball, where the defending player could not stop the reset.
2. Any throws that touch or exceeds the 5 ft line is considered as a reset even though they are rolled across as deadball
3. A total of reset on 3 balls as a team before any attempt to throw at an opposing player is allowed.  Any additional resets will be considered as a deadball and surrendered to the opposing team.  A throw at an opposing player within arm’s reach will restart the counter of resets