EMDA Rules & Regulations

OPENING STATEMENT:

The game of dodgeball is actually pretty simple. However, just to make sure all situations are covered, please read the following information so your team is well-educated about the rules. We will learn as we go and weekly announcements will be made to clarify challenges as they come up. Thank you for your team’s participation in this nationally recognized dodgeball league (in accordance with the National Amateur Dodgeball Association).

THE GAME:

1. Two teams pick sides & play a MATCH that consists of up to 3 GAMES. The team that wins 2 games will be declared the winner (Best of 3 Format).
2. 6 team members play at a time, and no more than 10 are allowed to play in any single match.
3. After each game, teams will alternate sides.
4. The game is won by either eliminating all team members of the opposing side (no player who has been eliminated ever returns back into the game).
5. In the rare case the game ends with in a tie (running out of time so ref says tied, probably will not happen) the winning team will be decided in Sudden Death.
6. If a match ends in a tie (for example, the match ends 1-1-1 with both sides winning one game and having one tie), the win will be decided in Sudden Death.
7. Each team will play 4 games per night during the regular 7 week season.

TEAM RULES:

1. Teams will be comprised of 6-10 players, no more than 10 players may participate during any match.
2. Co-Ed teams, when playing another Co-ed team, must have a maximum of 4 males playing. If a Co-Ed team plays a Males team, there is no such restriction. If a Middle School team plays a Co-ed or Males team, parents or adult friends of family are welcome to join in.
3. In the case of Middle School games, the number of adults per side will be even if adults are playing in the contest.
4. There are no time-outs outside of a stoppage by referee due to injury.
5. During the course of the season, there may be more than 10 people that play for a specific team. This is okay. But there can be no add-ons during weeks 6 or 7. Also, when the playoffs begin, please make sure that each team only has 10 people on their active roster.
6. Active rosters may be determined by the names of the people who have signed waivers.

GAME BEGINNING (CALLED THE RUSH):

1. Players begin standing behind the endline or touching the wall.
2. The official will say “3, 2, 1 Dodgeball.” Players may run forward on the “Da” of Dodgeball.
3. Both teams will have 3 balls stationed on the mid-line for them to retrieve. If a person leaves early, the rush will be a do-over with the opposite team receiving an additional ball (for example, one team gets 4 balls, the team that left early gets only 2).
4. Players MAY step over the mid-line during the rush (as long as the player does not receive a competitive advantage). Players MAY step ON the mid-line, but MAY NOT step OVER the mid-line at any other time during the match.
5. The ball retrieved during the rush may not be thrown until it is taken back behind the take-back line, and thrown by a person who is entirely behind the back line.
6. If a ball remains on the mid-line following the initial rush, that ball is now open for either team to grab.

OUT RULES:

1. If you are hit, you are out.
2. If you are hit in the head while standing in an upright or athletic position, you are still in (most head hits are outs, this rule basically only applies to blind side hits).
3. If you are hit in the head while in a crouched position (including kneeling, lying, sitting, diving, rolling, laying, kneeling, etc), the head is being used either intentionally or unintentionally as a block, and you are out.
4. If you are hit in the neck, since the neck is not part of the head, you are out.
5. If you catch the ball, the thrower is out.
6. If the ball hits you, and you catch the ball, you are in and the thrower is out.
7. If the ball hits you, and a teammate catches the ball, you are in and the thrower is out.
8. If a ball that is blocked hits a part of the body, the person blocking with the ball is out.
9. If a ball that is blocked hits the hand of the blocker during the block, the person is still in if the hit occurred simultaneously.
10. If the ball being used to block is dropped or bobbled, the blocker is out. Note, the held ball does not need to strike the ground to cause the holder to be out, it only needs to be knocked loose of the holder’s grip.*
11. If you step OVER the midline at any time after the initial rush, you are out.
12. If you step BEHIND the end-line to avoid being hit by a ball, you are out.
13. When the court is divided into 4 courts, there is no official out of bounds so you are fair game to get hit or hit someone (this includes running to a different court to catch a ball).
14. If a ball hits more than one person, all the people hit are out.
15. If any item of clothing is hit by a ball (loose shirt, hat, necklace, zoot suit, etc), since clothing is part of the body, you are out.
16. If the ball hits the floor, or wall, or person who has just been declared out (provided the out person is not illegally blocking), the ball is dead.
17. If you are “tagged” by the opposition with the ball, you are still in. The ball must leave the hand of the thrower.
18. If you call timeout, and then are hit by a live ball prior to the referee signaling the timeout, you are out (not really sure why anyone would ever call a timeout).
19. If you are hit by a ball thrown by your own teammate, you are still in.
20. If a player cusses either during, before, or after a contest, their team automatically loses the next contest.

*Please note: if you block with a ball that then hits a part of your body, you MAY drop the blocked ball in order to attempt to catch the ball that hit you. Referees will use their best judgment in recognizing the difference between a loose ball and an intentionally dropped ball.

SUDDEN DEATH:

When both teams are tied at the end of their match, each team will choose one team member for a one-on-one sudden death match. Both participants begin with three balls. There is no blocking and no catching. The first person to hit the other is the winner. This usually applies to mini-tournaments when teams are tied with the same record.

BOUNDARY RULES:

1. If the court is divided into 4 courts, there are no official out of bounds boundary lines.
2. For play that has lines of court established, there can be no advantage gained by leaving the court area, and all attempts must be made to stay in the confines of the court.
3. Out of bounds is defined as having both feet touch down outside the boundaries: if one touches in, the player is still considered in (think college football rules).
4. If a player dodges out of bounds and gets hit by the ball, they are out.
5. If a player is hit while attempting to retrieve an out of bounds ball, they are in.
6. If a player dodges out of bounds and catches the ball, the catch saves them, the catcher AND thrower stay in (the thrower does not have to go out if his ball is caught out of bounds).
7. If a player is hit and the ball flops out of bounds, the hit player will run out of bounds to catch the ball and save himself.
   1. If the ball is caught, the person hit has saved himself.
   2. But, the opposite team can continue throwing at him until the ball is caught, if hit, he is out.
   3. Once the ball is caught, that player may re-enter the game from the back of the boundary lines. Once again, the thrower is NOT out if a ball is caught out of bounds.
8. Players must try to pass through their end-line to retrieve stray balls. Teammates and fans are invited to assist in ball recovery, and players that go searching for stray balls must refrain from stalling or they could be called out.
9. Players must immediately re-enter the playing field through their end-line (not the sideline).
10. The player re-entering through the end line may not throw another ball until that player has re-entered.
11. A player MAY step over the mid-line during the initial RUSH (unless a competitive advantage has been gained).
12. A player MAY NOT step over the mid-line at any other point during the contest, or he will be called out.
13. A player MAY step ON the sideline, but MAY NOT step OVER the sideline, or he will be called out.

TIMING, TIME-OUTS, & PLAYER SUBSTITUTIONS:

1. If an injury does occur, the injured player can be substituted for if the player cannot continue on. The new player must be of like age/playing ability.
2. Teams are encouraged to bring new people to play throughout the entire course of the season.

CUSSING & CLEAN UP PUNISHMENTS:

1. If a player cusses during the contest, the game is over and their team receives a loss.
2. If a player cusses on property before the contest, their team starts 0-1 in the first match.
3. If a player cusses on property after the contest, their team starts 0-1 in next week’s match.
4. All players who play in the final session are expected to stay after and clean up prior to leaving.
5. If a team is assigned a clean role and fails in their responsibility, that team will be awarded additional losses from the evening’s events.

CIRCUMSTANTIAL RULES:

1. All players must sign waivers.
2. At no time will a player earlier declared out re-enter the game.
3. A person CAN reach over the line to pick up the ball, players should try to remain from making contact with any opposing player.
4. If a suicide shot is attempted (leaping over the line to hit an opponent), the person leaping over the line must not touch the opposition’s side prior to the release of the ball. If so the ball that is thrown does not count.
5. Players may NOT play for more than one team. If this is done on purpose to gain an advantage, games that have been won may be forfeited (if a player for one team is an adult leader of a Middle School team, that adult can play for a second team).
6. When a player has been hit, please walk to the “out” area out of the way of the game.
7. Do NOT throw balls at fans, even if they are your friends.
8. Encourage the fans to throw the ball back to the correct side, not the side they favor during the match.
9. Please assist in getting the balls back to the right courts quickly. If the ball flies over a net, please drop the ball back over the net on the side the ball departed from.
10. When bringing a ball back into play, bring them back into play from the back of the end-line.
11. Please do not squeeze the dodgeballs, this hurts them and makes them unplayable.
12. Please realize when a person is frustrated and avoid saying anything to increase their frustration.
13. All referees have absolute authority; therefore, they can make any decision they feel is appropriate.
14. Have fun and love the Lord.

UNPROFESSIONAL CONDUCT:

1. Ball-Hording: If a team holds the balls and the players on the other team does not have any, the team holding all the balls must roll one ball to the opposition (and dropping one just over the line does not count). The team holding the balls has 5 seconds to get a ball into the opposition’s hands or else the ref will stop the match and either order the balls to be evenly distributed (3-3) or give the other team 5 balls, or be accessed free throws.
2. Stalling: The team that is ahead near the end of regulation, needs to continue to throw balls at the opposition, punishment is referee’s discretion but may include a free throw.
3. Dirty Looks: If a player looks with negative intent at the referee in such a way as nonverbally arguing with the referee, the referee may stop the game and allow a free throw.
4. Strategic Stalling: Purposely holding 5 balls and only throwing 1 (this could be done by a team that has a numbers advantage late in the match) is wrong, punishment will be to for the referee to give 5 balls to the opposition. If this practice happens consistently, referees may call for a forfeit of that game. The game clock could be placed back at 5 minutes if deemed necessary.
5. Swearing: If the referee hears any curse word, the team that spoke the word loses the game. If it happens after a game just ended, that team’s next game begins down 0-1. If it happens in the bathroom, hallway, or anywhere on church property, the team will face a loss of game or games. The person who uses the curse word will probably be ejected by the referee or commissioner.
6. Obscene Clothing or Symbols: Anything that is obscene counts the same as swearing.
7. Checking: If a player performs a check at the mid-line (like knocking into them), that player may be ejected. The ultimate decision will be made by the referee.
8. Complaining to Referees: Speak in polite terms at all times, the referees know that sometimes emotions may get hostile. Continually complaining may receive punishment.
9. Illegal Re-Entry: If a player who is not in sneaks into the game, the match will be forfeited, that player will be ejected, and additional punishments could occur.
10. Destruction of Property: If anything in the church is harmed (a wall punched, electrical stuff played with, tire marks in the parking lot, etc), the amount of matches that will be lost will be determined by the referee. Losses may become retroactive if the destruction is discovered after the fact.
11. Threatening: If someone threatens to fight, and we hope this never happens, that person and maybe that team will be eliminated from the league and there will be no returns.

Note: Referees will not be perfect. If you have a question or a complaint, please contact the league commissioner so the problem can be corrected. We anticipate having problems, but obviously want to minimize them.

FREE THROW: If some violation has been made (for example, stalling), the referee could rule for a free throw. During a free throw, the clock is stopped and a throw is made at the person who attempted the stall. If the throw connects, the player is out. If the ball is caught, the player who threw the ball remains in the game.

DEVOTION TIME: Prior to every contest each week, there will be a time to give a league update and pray for the event. We ask that you will respect this time and that it be taken seriously. You as a player will be encouraged to attend church, plug into a Bible Study, and find a small group or youth group that you’d feel comfortable in. During the final week, prior to playing in the tournaments, there will be about a 15 minute brief Bible Study that may inspire you and challenge you. Just know this ahead of time

CONCLUSION: There are a ton of rules and things seem to be complex. However, after one week we are convinced you will understand how the league works and you will agree with us we are better off going over all the rules way ahead of time rather than to be after the fact. Thank you for playing dodgeball with us and we look forward to meeting you in the near future.

(ALL RULES APPLY WITH THE OFFICIAL NATIONAL STANDARDS AS
LAID OUT BY THE NATIONAL AMATEUR DODGEBALL ASSOCIATION)