The following has been reviewed and given the nod by
Tom Blue, USA Volleyball Rules Interpreter.
Q1: A ball is hit very hard and touches the outside edge of the line.
I called it "in" because I saw the ball touch the line, but this
guy tried to convince me that it was "out" because the ball's
initial infinitesimal point of contact was outside the line, and
that the ball only touched the line after it compressed. What's
the call?
A1: You made the right call. USA Volleyball rules on this matter
simply state: "The ball is 'in' when it touches the floor of the
playing court including the boundary lines....[The ball is out
when] no part of the ball contacts either a boundary line or the
area within the boundary lines." Notice the word choice:
"touches the floor," "contacts" and "no part."
If the line judge sees any part of ball touch the line, it's "in,"
(even if the super slow-motion replay reveals that it only touched
the line after compression).
Q2: I saw a ball hit the floor just outside the line. I called it
"out," but some other guy tried to convince me it was "in" because
part of the ball was was hanging over and shadowing the line on
contact.
A2: You made the right call. It's "out" since the ball did not
_contact_ the sideline (or the area within the boundary lines).
There is no "ball shadow," "overhang" or "infinite vertical
sideline plane" verbiage in the rules!
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