Women’s Volleyball Overview

Volleyball is one of the sports created in the United States.  Ironically, it was invented miles from where basketball was created and only a few years apart. Volleyball was the brainchild of William G. Morgan, a YMCA physical education director.

Morgan saw how popular basketball had become and decided to create another indoor sport that can be played when the weather did not allow for people to be outside.  Morgan took the concepts for his game from badminton, tennis and handball.

The original game was played on a court 25 feet wide and 50 feet long.  The net was 6’6” above the floor.  There was no limit to the number of players on the court at any given time.

Slowly, the game evolved to what it is today, with each team having six players on the court.  Substitutions are allowed. 

In Minneapolis, the sport was part of the Girls’ Athletic Association.  The GAA was basically in intermural for females in each school.  Rarely would they participate in interscholastic competition.

That changed with the passage of Title IX in 1972.  Beginning with the 1973-1974 school year, The first State Tournament was held in the fall of 1974.