Volleyball Court Terms - Four Zones and Zoning Areas to Be Familiar With

  • The volleyball court is made up of lines but it's also made up of specific zones that players and coaches should be aware of. These zones are reserved only for certain actions to take place. In this article you'll find more information about zones, the free zone, the replacement zone and the substitution zone.
    zones - The internal part of the volleyball court is made up of six zones.
    Zone 1 which is the serving area is located in the right back area of the court. On defense the right front player usually crosses over to the right back to play defense.
    Zone 5 is the left back area where usually the left front hitter will play in defense. Zone 6 is the middle back area of the court and is where the middle blocker or most often the libero will play. Since the middle back area has a lot more area to cover, the libero or defensive specialist usually is assigned to play defense in zone 6. These three zones make up the back court area of the court where the three back row players play.
    Zone 2 is the right front area where the off blocker also known as the right side hitter usually stays. Zone 3 is the middle front reserved usually for the player specialized in hitting from the center of the court and who becomes the middle blocker in transition while zone 4 is reserved for the outside hitter who is also the left side blocker.
    free zone - The free zone is marked by a limited amount of space that is outside of the boundary lines. The free area is approximately 6 feet wide and the referee allows each team to use this area to keep the ball in play.
    replacement zone - The libero has a special place of her own to enter the game. That area of the court is called the replacement zone and it's where the libero comes in to take the place of the front row hitter she is going to play the back row for.
    substitution zone - There is a designated area where volleyball coaches are allowed to substitute one of their players into the game to take the place of another teammate. Located between the attack line and the centerline along the sideline, the substitution zone is the area where the player coming from the bench and the player coming off the court meet and wait until the referee acknowledges that the substitution can be made. The most message resource come from Vibram five fingers review.