New Adult Tournament Format for 2002-2003 Season
In the member
survey conducted two years ago, the single biggest complaint was that the
tournaments, and therefore the playing day, had gotten too long. Although
rally scoring has taken a few hours off for those who make it to playoffs,
pool play often doesn’t end until 5:00 or 6:00 p.m. For those with families
and other commitments, trying to balance a full day of volleyball with
those commitments has become increasingly difficult. The CHRVA Board of
Directors has been pondering how to shorten tournaments further in order
to satisfy this member need. Out of these many discussions, the half-day
tournament format was born.
As of this USAV season, CHRVA will offer a
half-day tournament format to hosts who would like the opportunity to bring
a new format to the players and teams. The best part is not only does this
allow for a shorter day, but this new format also EARNS POINTS for adult
teams.
The format brings six teams together to play
in two pools. Each of the three teams in a pool plays three-game, round
robin, matches. The host chooses whether the games will be to 25 or 21.
The teams who win each pool will play the winner of the other pool in a
final, best of three, playoff match. If there is a tie “to get off the
net,” it will be resolved as ties for second are resolved in a regular,
full-day tournament—with a single playoff game. The tournament winner will
receive four points. The second place team earns two points. Teams who
lose tiebreaker games will earn one point. Unlike a normal full-day tournament,
no points will be awarded for a second place pool play finish, and second
place pool teams do not advance to the playoffs.
The schedule allows for approximately five
hours of play including the playoff match. This allows flexibility for
tournament hosts who would like to host a halfday tournament in the morning
from 8:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. and another one from 1:30-6:30 p.m. For instance,
a host might hold a women’s tournament in the morning and a men’s tournament
in the afternoon. However, a host may choose to host only one half-day
event and change the start and end time as long as the Tournament Chair
approves the timing. The entry fee for a half-day tournament should be
reduced, although it is unlikely that it will be exactly half the fee of
a full-day tournament. This would depend on the cost of the facility, how
many officials are needed, and other tournament expenses.
The Board still has several minor issues to
consider and resolve before the program becomes fully operational. Some
of the issues involve such things as how the Officials Division would staff
these types of tourneys and how priorities may or may not be assigned.
Bear in mind that this format is a new experiment for the Region. We are
attempting to address the needs of our membership as expressed in the survey,
but there will be growing pains! Please don’t hesitate to give the Tournament
Chair, or any other Board member for that matter, your feedback, comments,
or suggestions. We want to make this the best possible experience for all.
If you are thinking about hosting a half-day
tournament—or any tournament—contact the Tournament Chair Ron Sommer at
ron.sommer@chrva.org, and he
will send you a tournament-hosting package. |
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