The League By-Laws

The By-Laws

Revised Aug 2019

I – MEMBERSHIP FEES

1. The entry fee shall be determined by the Executive by August 1st of each year. League registration will begin on August 1st of each year. Entries received prior to that date will not be accepted.
2. A completed League Application Form (which includes the second contact person’s information and a list of expected team players listed with their contact phone number) MUST be accompanied by payment which will be accepted by any of the following methods: certified cheque, money order or by E-transfer (nblvlpayment@gmail.com). The payment and application form must be received by email or in the league mailbox no later than the last Friday in August.

II – SIGNING OF PLAYERS

1. All players must sign a roster, submitted by their team, and it must be emailed or in the league mailbox no later than the last Friday in October. Any team not handing in this final roster by this date will immediately lose 2 points, plus an additional 2 points for every match played without a properly submitted final roster. Player’s names must be printed on the left and this roster must be signed and dated.
2. A player meeting league requirements and not previously signed on a roster may spare up to four times for any given team. When a spare is used, they must sign the score sheet as well as print their name legibly and add the word SPARE beside the signature.
3. The addition of two players, who meet league requirements, may be added up until the second Friday in January. Written, signed, and dated notification to the league executive must be received by email or in the league mailbox by this date. The names, phone numbers, and signatures of the additional players must be included.
4. After the second Friday in January, a team may pick up no more than two non-roster players due to: serious illness or injury, pregnancy, or team members moving out of town. A signed and dated letter must be submitted to the Executive via email or the league mailbox, stating the reason for adding a replacement player and must include the players name, contact number and signature. The team submitting the request so the Executive can make a timely decision on approval must advise their division Vice President. After receiving a letter of request, a decision will be made within one week and the captain will be notified of the decision.
5. Prior to the deadline date of the first roster, a player may only play for one team per week. Once a player has signed on a roster and it has been submitted to the Executive, she may not play for any other teams unless a written, signed, dated request is submitted by the player to their division Vice President via email or the league mailbox. Approval must be given by the Executive. A decision must be made within one week upon receipt of the letter and the player and team will be notified of the decision.
6. Teams who use ineligible (illegal) players will receive defaults for any matches in which the ineligible players participated if the ineligible (illegal) player was their 6th player. If there were more than 6 players the team will receive a forfeit. The Executive withholds the option to further penalize said teams.

III – SCHEDULE

The league opening dates and schedules of games shall be directed by the Executive using, as a guide, the standardized schedules for seasonal play as they appear in the constitution. The Executive will assign a number to each team for this purpose.

Routine Schedule for 8 Teams

• Play each team 3 times
• 84 games in season (21 weeks)
• 21 games for each team

• Each team plays an average of 5 games per time slot over 21 week period.

Routine Schedule for 10 Teams

• Play each team 2 times
• 90 games in season (18 weeks)
• 18 games for each team

1. The league shall consist of six divisions:
   Competitive (A)
   Advanced (B)
   Intermediate (C)
   Intermediate (D)
   Recreational (E)
   Super-recreational (F)
2. After regular season play, the top team of B, C and D will move up one division. The bottom team of A, B, and C will move down one division. The top two teams of E and F division will move up one division. The bottom two teams of D and E will move down one division.

IV – DISCIPLINE

1. Any person associated with the league as a player, coach, or manager, and whom an official penalizes in any way, may be subject to further penalty in accordance with O.V.A. rules and regulations. Written reports of all such incidents shall be given to the Officials Coordinator by the official involved, and shall be passed on to the Secretary.

V – PLAYING RULES

OVA (Ontario Volleyball Association) Volleyball rules will apply with the exceptions noted below.

1. The NBLVL will instruct officials to allow certain types of jewelry to be worn during the competition season. Allowable jewelry will include earrings, as long as they are not of a hoop or dangling type, nose rings/piercings, necklaces and pendants and Medic Alert necklaces or bracelets. Officials are instructed to not allow forearm jewelry including bracelets and watches and any type of finger rings. At the official’s discretion, any player showing up with banned items or an item that appears to be unsafe, will be asked to remove the item or tape it. Any player not taping or removing a banned item will not be allowed to participate until it is rectified. The league will not be responsible for lost, stolen or damaged items.
2. If a team defaults (no show, less than 5 players, 4^th plus 5 player game) a total of three times in a schedule (includes league play and playoffs), they will not be eligible to participate in any further games. Three points will be awarded to the team scheduled to play the expelled team. Any expelled team is not entitled to any refund in monies paid for entry or default fees.
3. Each team must have six (6) players on the court in order to play a set. If there are not six players at the start of each set, the first game is considered a 5 player game or default. If there are not six players for the second set, ten minutes after the scheduled starting time, the game is defaulted. If both teams are late, it is considered a 5 player game/default for each team. If there are 5 players present at game time, the team must play.
4. Each team will be permitted three 5 player games in one season, including play-offs. At any point during a match, a team playing with 5 players will be credited with a 5 player game. After that point, Bii) above is in effect.
5. Each team will be required to submit a default holding fee of $50.00. If a team defaults once, half the default fee is forfeited; a second default will result in a loss of the entire fee. A default is an entire match. Complete loss of the default fee will also occur as a result of a team having no representation present at the final season general meeting. The default fee will be returned to a team representative. It will be written to the designated name and/or company on the team’s annual registration form. If the cheque is not cashed within six months it will be declared stale dated and will no longer be negotiable. The NBLVL will not issue a compensatory cheque.
6. The best two out of three sets will win a game. The first two sets will be rally point to 25 with a 2-point spread required to win. If a third set is necessary, it will be rally point to 15, and the team must win by two points. There is no cap on any of these sets.
7. Substitutions may be made in two ways: i) rotation into the sixth position ii) substitution, position for position. Twelve substitutions per set will be permitted if using ii).

The official must be advised before beginning the first game, as to which method the team chooses. This cannot be changed during the match. In case of injury, method ii) may be used.

1. On a serve, any overhanging obstacles above the court area, excluding the ceiling and its permanent fixtures, will be considered a re-serve.
2. Once the ball is in play, all obstacles are out of bounds and a loss of serve will apply.
3. The Executive shall decide how score sheets are to be handed in to the statistician.
4. Should any member of the league be found smoking, drinking, stealing or littering on school property by a League Committee member, school official, or by the official in charge of the match, she will be suspended for the remainder of the season.
5. NO CHILD UNDER 12 YEARS OF AGE IS ALLOWED IN THE SCHOOL. Should a child be present, the match will not begin until the child is removed. Default rules will apply.
6. Only in Super-recreational (“F” Division), a player is only allowed to serve five consecutive serves, then she must rotate and allow the next person to serve.
7. Spectator noise level must be kept to a minimum. Anyone not complying with this rule will be asked to leave the school.
8. Should Halloween fall on a night that teams play we will reschedule games
9. All motions and amendments may be submitted electronically
10. The Action of playing the ball with a kicking motion will be at the discretion of the official. This action will be considered within the rulebook guidelines of “Actions of playing the ball”. The action of playing the ball must be considered a controlled kick. If the kick is not considered controlled, the play will be stopped, and the other team is awarded the point and gain serve if they do not currently have serve. Exception to the rule will be if the ball is played off the foot while the foot is in contact with the floor.
11. The ball may contact any part of the body

JUDGEMENT CALLS BY THE REFEREE ARE FINAL!  The captain is the only one to approach the referee.

Referees are requested to report any team misconduct to the Officials Coordinator

VI – PLAYOFFS

1. All teams (excluding defaulted teams) shall participate in the playoffs.

VII – AMENDMENTS TO BY-LAWS

1. The By-Laws of the league may be amended at any General Meeting, after notice of motion, in writing, has been received by email or in the league mailbox one week prior to the consideration of the amendment. A majority vote of the membership present shall be required to sustain an amendment to the By-Laws.

VIII – SCORING

1. A point system will be implemented in the following manner:
2. a) in the event of a split, each team will be awarded one point per set.
   b) in the event of a two set sweep, the winning team will awarded three points.
3. Final standings, in case of a tie:
   a) The head to head record between those two teams determines the higher ranking
   b) The team with the most matches won will be the team with the higher ranking.
   c) if a tie still exists, the team with the most three point matches won will be the team with the higher ranking

IX – INSURANCE

The Insurance Policy purchased each season by the North Bay Ladies Volleyball League shall only cover league sponsored activities – regular season, playoffs, and any league organized tournaments.