Team

• Team rosters shall include a minimum of 12 players, including at least 4 of each gender.
• Games start with a maximum of 8 players per team, including at least 2 of each gender.
• If a team does not have 8 players and at least 2 players of each gender, they may start with as few as 5 players, but must have a minimum of 1 female player to be a legal game.
• Substitutes are not allowed with the exception of 2 players from another Dynamic Dodgeball
• team.
• When a team has fewer than the required number of players of a specified gender available,
• players of one gender may not be substituted for members of another gender. For example, if a team has 8 total players available at game time, but only 1 is female, the team must play short start with 7 players.
• One team being short players for a full starting lineup does not obligate the opposing team to reduce their starting lineup.
• In the event of injury, a player of the same gender on the sideline may substitute for the injured player. The injured player may not play for the remainder of the match.
• Late Registration: a team may add players to the roster through the 3rd game, provided the team captain approves, and the pro-rated league fee is paid for the remainder of the season. All players must be formally registered with the League and paid in full prior to playing.

Officials

• Each game shall be officiated by 2 members of another team.
• Referees are responsible for:
• Maintaining the game clock.
• Recording the game score.
• Enforcing the honor system.
• Enforcing penalties.
• A referee may call a player out for any of the following reasons:
• The player does not voluntarily leave the court when required.
• The player engages in unsportsmanlike conduct.
• The player argues with the game official.
• The player uses abusive language.
• The referee may remove a player from the match if that player engages in any of the behaviors repeatedly, or behaves in an egregious manner.

Opening Rush

• Players shall line up along the wall on their respective side of the court, with at least one foot or hand touching the wall.
• The referee shall blow the whistle to start the round.
• Teams may advance to the center-line and retrieve the 3 balls on their right. They may not touch or interfere with the balls on the left, which are intended for the opposing team.
• Upon retrieving a ball, the ball must move back past the attack line before it may be used against the opposing team. This can be achieved either by carrying the ball across or tossing/rolling the ball to a teammate who is standing behind the attack line.

Game Play

• The objective of each team is to eliminate all players on the opposing team.
• A player is eliminated when one of the following occur:
• The player or any part of his or her clothing is struck by a ball thrown by an opposing player.
• The player's thrown ball is caught by an opposing player.
• The player's thrown ball hits an opposing male player above the neck.
• The player steps out of bounds, unless they are attempting to retrieve an
• errant ball and are exiting through the back of the court.
• The player steps over the center line except on the opening rush (or the
• opposing attack line when a neutral zone is in use).
• The player is the nearest to an out-of-play teammate who places any part of
• the body on in-bounds.
• The player's held ball is touched by an opponent’s thrown ball (no blocking)
• The player retrieves an opposing team's ball on the opening rush.
• The player throws a ball at the opposing team before the ball has retreated
• past the attack line on the opening rush.
• The player intentionally hits an opposing player who is already out.
• The player engages in un-sportsmanlike conduct, including name-calling,
• arguing with the other team, or a referee.
• A player is NOT out if the ball hits them after hitting the floor, the wall, another ball in the air, any other object or another person.
• A female player that is hit above the neck will always remain in the game, but the opposing player will also remain in the game. Head-shots are usually unintentional and should be regarded as such.
• When a player is eliminated, he or she must raise his or her hand and exit to the center of the gym. That player must remain outside the sideline until the conclusion of that round, or until a referee tells them to go back in due to a caught ball.
• Catching. If a player catches a ball thrown by an opponent, the thrower is out, unless the ball hits a wall, the floor or another object. If the ball hits another player first, but is then caught, the thrower is out and the person originally hit is NOT out. If a player catches a ball, the player from his/her team who went out first comes back onto the court from the center-line and then the 2nd player, 3rd player, etc.
• Friendly Fire. Friendly fire does not result in an out. A player who is hit by a teammate shall not be called out.
• Balls that leave the playing area may be returned to the playing area by out-of-play teammates, spectators or players. If a player retrieves an errant ball, he or she may exit and reenter the playing area only from the back court area behind the nearest line to the wall, and must immediately return to the playing area. Stepping out of the playing area for any other reason will result in the player being called out.
• Players must respect their opponent's half of the court in the out-of-play area by not attempting to retrieve errant balls past the center-line and may not enter the court to retrieve balls. They may REACH over the lines.
• If one team has possession of all the balls, they must give a ball to the other team in one of the following ways: throw it or roll it over the opposing teams clear line. The referees will inform the team if they have all of the balls. Throwing at players counts as throwing it over the clear line. You cannot just place a ball at the half way line.

Penalties

• The Referee may call a penalty on any player engaging in unsportsmanlike conduct, such as arguing, name-calling, abusive yelling, cursing, unnecessary aggression, etc. A penalized player will receive a yellow card and be forced out of the game for 2 rounds. A second yellow card=ejection. Teams must play shorthanded for those 2 rounds if a player receives a yellow card.

Matches & Rounds

• A match shall consist of two 20-minute halves, with a 2-minute half time between halves. The clock shall be a running clock and players will play as many games as possible in each half. A new game shall not start after 18 minutes have passed.
• At half time, teams will switch sides of the court.
• Teams shall play as many rounds as time allows in each half. Upon the conclusion of each round, the balls will be replaced on the center-line and the next round will begin at the whistle.
• Each round will continue until either:
• All players on one team are eliminated. The winning team wills score one point for the match.
• 3 minutes has elapsed.
• If 3 minutes elapses, the team with the most players remaining will win the round and score a match point.
• If 3 minutes elapses and both teams have the same number of players remaining, the round shall be considered a draw and no point will be awarded.
• No round shall begin after 18 minutes into the half.
• Each match won shall count as 3 points in the league standings. A tie shall count as 1 point. Losses and Forfeits shall count as 0 points.

Mercy Rule

• If a team trails by 4 or more points, that team may start the round with one extra person (for a total of 9). For each additional point the team trails, they may add an additional person to the starting lineup. For example, if a team trails by 4, they may start with 9; if they trail by 5, they may start with 10, etc. These players must be removed once the team has made up these points.

Forfeits

• Teams must be ready to play and meet game start requirements at the posted game time + 5 minutes. Any team not ready to play at this time shall forfeit, and the opposing team shall take a default win.
• If neither team is ready to play, both teams shall forfeit.
• Any team found to be playing with a player not registered with the League or team shall forfeit the game, with the exception of 2 subs per match from existing Dynamic Dodgeball teams. Legal subs must be registered to play for a different team within the league.