elimination would be appropriate for recreational teams or for an "older group" of people who want to play in a tournament, but do not want to spend 10 hours at it. The double elimination or pool play formats are more appropriate for the volleyball enthusiasts. In double elimination, a team must be beaten twice before it is eliminated from the tournament. The schedule of the facility would be a factor since this type of tournament would take approximately 10 hours to complete.

The format most frequently used in tournaments is pool play.

The format most frequently used is pool play. Pools of four to six teams are set up, with each team playing against all teams in its pool. It is recommended that a match of two out of three games be played if there is a four team pool. The five team pool should play two games to either 11 or 15 points, and the six team pool should play two games to 11 points. The time frame on these different matches is one hour for the two out of three match, one hour for two 15 point games, and 45 minutes for two games to 11 points.

Once the pool play is completed, the playoffs begin. It is best to take the top two teams from each pool of the same level of competition. The first place would compete against the second place in pool B, and the first place team would play the second place team. If only one pool exists, take the top two teams and play a best two out of three match to determine the championship.

The individual awards given out should be appropriate to the sport. Awards are given only to the playoff winners. T-shirts, trophies, sweatshirts, beer mugs or steins are frequently given. They encourage teams to participate in future tournaments.

A paid official should referee all games in single elimination play. The double elimination and pool play formats should make participating teams responsible for refereeing a given number of matches. Paid officials would do the main officiating in the semifinal and final matches with the teams being support officials. Each team must supply a head official, secondary official, two linesmen and a scorekeeper for its assigned match. In the semifinal and the final matches, teams that lose are required to provide all but the head official, who is scheduled and paid by the tournament director.

Rules should be established and clarified at a captains' meeting at least 30 minutes before the tournament begins. Exceptions to the normal USVBA rules will be determined by the facility hosting the tournament and the recreational or competitive tournament format.

A concession stand can provide additional income. Volleyball players have a tendency to eat a lot during the day. Therefore, items such as hot dogs, barbecues, pop, orange juice, candy, fruit, etc. could be provided. Teams do not then have to leave the premises for refreshments.

The most important thing about running a tournament is that it is organized and free of problems. A volleyball tournament is easy to run, but the tournament director must have everything prepared. If you run a successful tournament, it becomes an annual event. An unsuccessful tournament becomes a one-time event that is bad public relations for the sponsoring agency.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Ted Thomas is sports supervisor at the Woodridge Park District. He has been involved with volleyball for 11 years and played varsity volleyball at George Williams College. Anyone interested in sample schedules or more information about tournaments organization may contact him directly.