Going to the net to figure out the volleyball rulebook

I confess to not being a volleyball rulebook authority.

But there is one rule that does grind my gears - the net violation.

I'm not disputing the validity or rationale that prohibits contact with the net. But like a cheap basketball hand check call 70 feet from the rim and the illegal pitch call for crow-hopping in softball, nothing messes with the rhythm of a match like a good net violation.

And don't get me started with the whistle of a net call deciding a crucial point, negating a dynamite kill or block.

Still, as my wife would be quick to remind me, a rule is a rule.

This fall, however, a gray area has emerged. If you've noticed a rash of net calls these first few weeks there is good reason.

Starting with the 2009-10 season, USA Volleyball began allowing contact with the net in all cases except hitting the tape at the top of the net or interfering with a play by the other team. Brushing, rushing, or falling into the net is no longer a violation in club.

Yet at the high school level, the rule prohibiting contact with the net remains.

Don't look for a rule change in IHSA volleyball anytime soon. The National Federation of High School Associations would have to first get the ball rolling. And the NFHSA wouldn't consider it until member associations expressed interest in the change.

Naperville Central coach Brie Isaacson, who also coaches for Club One in Plainfield, noticed an abnormally large amount of net calls the first two weeks of high school season.

"They're in it (the net) all the time now," Isaacson said, "because it's a different rule. I noticed it more the first five or six matches. Imagine the difference that you can touch different parts of the net in club which you play for eight months, then can't in high school for a three-month season. We're getting better because we're demanding it in practice but it is a hard change from one rule to the other."

Benet coach Brad Baker said the rule disparity could be a bigger issue long-term.

"It could be more of a problem then," Baker said, "because you'll have kids playing years and years of club before high school used to playing that way."

Isaacson's biggest concern with allowing more contact with the net was injuries.

"But I didn't see it this summer," she said.

Given a choice, Baker would prefer the game be played with the more relaxed net rules prevalent now in club.

"It allows for more athletic plays," Baker said. "You see violations that don't affect the play at all and it ends rallies. Now nets that give people an advantage should be called."

Count this observer with Baker on that one. I'm all for rules that allow for athletic plays to shine. And for rules that let athletes, not whistles, decide the outcome. It allows for a smoother, more crisp, game.

Whatever the case, though, can we please just have one rule 12 months out of the year?

It doesn't take a volleyball rulebook expert to figure that one out.

jwelge@dailyherald.com