Region Championships Information

Last Updated 4/7/2021

* * * PLEASE READ BEFORE YOUR REGION CHAMPIONSHIP TOURNAMENT * * *

Region Championships tournaments are right around the corner. The format is very different than our regular power tournaments. The tournament will last most of the day instead of just half day. Lots of information follows. Please click on the file below to read it over.

CLUB PARTICIPATION REQUIREMENT

Clubs which have a balance due to the Arizona Region will not have their teams entered into the Region Championships tournament. Payment of any balance due must be received before Noon on the Monday prior to the tournament. Once the tournament is posted on the website, the teams will not be placed into the tournament. The tournament will be posted by 1pm the Monday before the specific tournament.

PREPARATION TIPS FOR COACHES

Coaches: Come to check in with a CURRENT roster, your picture ID and medical release forms for each player on your team. The roster submitted should be current and signed by the coach. Any player on the roster that is not there should be crossed off. Any player or coach not listed on the roster is not eligible to participate.

DIVISION PLAY

Tournament seeding is based on the finish of the last power tournament. There was no movement up or down after the last tournament. Teams stayed in the order of finish for seeding of the Region Championships. The teams are then snake seeded through divisions into groups of 6 teams and then into 3 team pools. The divisions are made up of all different numbers of teams.

The divisions were broken out as follows:

TOURNAMENT FORMAT

Please see specific division tournament pages for exact regional formats. Some formats will be different based on the number of teams playing in that division.

The teams are snake seeded into 3 teams pools via 6 team divisions. The 3 team pools will play.

After pool play is complete there will be one cross pool match for each level of finish - the #1 teams from the two three team pools will cross pool, the #2 teams will cross pool and the #3 teams will cross pool. The cross-pool match will determine which division bracket the team will be placed in.

Most teams will move to another site for their bracket play. For the most part, the brackets will be 6 or 4 team single elimination brackets with consolation sets for place.

Snake Seeding
Snake seeding is a means to distribute an equivalent seed value to each pool or division. The teams are seeded into 6 groups of 6 teams which are then broken into 3 team pools for play.

An example of snake seeding for teams 1 - 36 is this:

Each Pool has a seed value of 111. The 6 team groupings are then broken into 3 team pools for pool play and cross pool play:

The teams will play a 3-team pool. The teams that finish 1st in their pool will play the team that finished 1st in the corresponding pool - A1#1 will play A2#1, A1#2 will play A2#2, A1#3 will play A2#3, etc. The finish of each cross-pool match will determine which 6 team bracket the team will then play. The winner of the 1 v 1 cross pool match will be placed in the Championship or Gold Division. The loser of the 1 v 1 cross pool match will be placed in the Silver Division. The winner of the 2 v 2 match will be placed in the Bronze Division, the loser of the 2 v 2 match will be placed in the Flight 1 Division. The winner of the 3 v 3 cross pool match will be placed in the Flight 2 Division, the loser of the 3 v 3 cross pool match will be placed in the Flight 3 Division. Everyone will play out their respective division for place in the final standings. Many teams will have to change sites to play their bracket - please go directly to your site. The brackets will start at the posted start time on the bracket. If your team is late, penalty points may be assessed.

If a division of teams ends with a group of 4 teams the teams will be placed in 2 pools of 2 teams. The teams will play each other in their pool and the resulting cross pool will take place to decide places 1 - 4 in that pool.

USAV TIE-BREAK PROCEDURE

Teams must be tied in both matches and sets to be considered a tie.

1.  2-way tie in match % - the head-to-head winner of those 2 teams earns the higher pool finish.
2.  3-way tie in match % - finish is determined by set % (sets won divided by total sets played)

* If 2 teams are tied in sets % after one team’s finish is determined by having the highest or lowest set %, then the head-to-head winner of those 2 teams in pool play earns the higher pool finish.

3.  3-way tie in match % and set % - If there is a tie in matches AND sets with all three teams in the pool, the finish will be determined by points percentage (points won divided by the total points played by the team).  

* If 2 teams are tied in points % after one team’s finish is determined to have the highest or lowest point %, then the head-to-head winner of those 2 teams in pool play earns the higher pool finish.

MEDALS

Medals and Champion t-shirts will be given to the winner of the overall division only. Medals will be awarded for places 1 - 3. Champion t-shirts will be given to the 1st place team only.  All other divisions are playing for place in the overall Age Division.

For Parents and Guardians - Format play preparation tips

We are at the end of a very long 2 years with COVID interrupting and dictating protocol for our events.  We want to finish strong which means we all have to take care of our business by wearing masks where required, limiting spectators where required, limiting team camp size where required.  We have 4 weeks of our Region Championships – please help us get all the way through the last week by complying with what the facilities and schools require.  We don’t want to end the season early for some divisions by ruining the ability to use a facility or school.  We don’t have a lot of choices when it comes to facilities and schools.  We need every one of the courts we secure to accomplish these events in this restricted time.

The Arizona Region of USA Volleyball values sportsmanship and the enjoyment of the game of volleyball. We ask your help in those pursuits by maintaining a positive outlook throughout your experiences with us.

With the above in mind, we also ask for your help in fostering an enjoyable environment for all by refraining from using negative commentary directed toward the opposing teams, the site directors and the officiating crews. The complete officiating crew includes the head officials, line judges, scorekeepers and the scoreboard flippers. Negative comments might include, yelling, "Point, Point, Point" or "That was a LIFT", etc. It will be a much more positive educational opportunity for them if they are permitted to work without the "help" of someone other than another crew member or site hosting staff. The official score is that which is on the score sheet - not the flip score board.

This notice is intended as a friendly reminder that negative comments or behavior will not be tolerated and that we all are examples to each other. However, if negative behavior presents itself, we will ask the individual(s) to remove themselves from our gyms. In addition, spectators must remain in the spectator areas only. Any spectators that come onto the playing surface or approach the score table may also be asked to leave the facility. This is for the protection of our athletes, coaches, and officials and violations of these policies will not be tolerated. It is the COACH'S responsibility to question the official about events of the match, not the PARENT'S.

The Purple Card Policy will be in effect at our Region Championships tournaments. Spectator behavior may cause a team to lose points to an opponent.

PLAN AHEAD

Parents: No lunch break is built into the tournament. Please bring food with you. Neither the coach nor the players should leave the site for food. Do not stop for lunch when moving to another site for bracket play. The bracket play has a start time assigned and will start when teams have arrived. Sites are in contact with each other to know when play has ended at each site. Penalties for being late to ref assignments or match play will be enforced. This is a long day already, let’s not extend the day by delaying arrival to the bracket play site.

BE PREPARED TO MOVE LOCATIONS

For seeding purposes, teams will be moving to different locations for cross pool play. Please prepare for transportation for your athlete mid-day.

MEMORABLE BLING!

Region Championship t-shirts will be for sale at all sites. The cost is $20 per shirt payable in cash, check made payable to "Arizona Region" or credit card.

Find your Team Name. They are all there - all 479 of them!!!

The proceeds of our t-shirt sales benefit the High Performance program. These monies will help to offset the cost to those participating. Please consider purchasing a shirt or making a donation to support our #AZHP Program.

Thank you for your understanding and cooperation over these 2 seasons. It has not been easy for anyone. 

We look forward to getting back to normal for 2022 season!