Eclipse Ball
Mr. Mettler
What is Eclipse Ball?
• Eclipse Ball is a racquet and ball sport created
in the front yard of a family from Michigan. It
is fun to play and requires both aggressive and
non-aggressive players to work well together.
This game was designed to have the
camaraderie of volleyball, the spontaneity of
badminton, and the excitement of tennis, with
rules designed with fun and action in mind.
Scoring and Set up
• The first team to score 21 points, wins. Only the
serving team can score. Must win by at least 3
points.
• Divide teams where there are equal players. Court
size is standard volleyball court. Net height is 8’; it
may be lowered.
• Players cannot score on a double hit, this is to
discourage setting themselves up for a slam,
however other players may set you up. Team work is
strongly encouraged!
Serving
• All serves must be underhand from ¾ court or further
back. The server only gets one chance to get the ball
over the net and in bounds.
• The Eclipse Ball is usually returned with the racquet,
however if a player is hit with the ball on a serve or
during a volley and the ball cleanly rebounds off of
them, this is considered a legal hit.
• To determine who serves first, you may volley for serve
the ball must go over the net three times during volley.
In class we will do rock, paper, scissors for the serve.
Winning team gets to serve first.
Rules
Only serving team can score. Questionable calls or interference calls can be replayed.
A ball that lands on the line is always in.
Balls that hit the net and go over while serving or during a volley are always good.
A ball that hits the ceiling during a volley and comes down on that same team’s side of the
net, without breaking the plane of the net, remains in play. A ball that hits the ceiling and
goes over the net on either a serve or during a volley is out of bounds.
Player rotation is like volleyball – clockwise. Decide placement of players at the beginning of
the game because player’s placement cannot be switched once play has started.
Games are to 21 points and must be won by three points. 11 to 0 is a skunk!
A team has unlimited number of hits to get the ball over the net.
The same player can hit the ball twice in a row they just cannot set themselves up for a slam.
A player is not allowed to touch the net with their body or racquet during a volley.
A player must not enter the opposite team’s court in any way to recover the ball.
A player cannot go under the net.
The ball may be played out of the net as long as the net is not touched.
Bounce Rules
• Single bounce rule – the ball can bounce once
between every single hit.
• Double bounce rule – The ball can bounce twice
one time per side, per volley.
• Triple bounce rule – Three bounces are allowed
to recover the ball that first lands in bounds and
then goes out of bounds and bounces off the wall
or the bleachers. A team is NOT allowed to let
the ball bounce three times without it contacting
the wall or bleachers.
About the Ball
• The black and white design of the ball is intended to
give it a corkscrewing appearance as it spins through
the air. This effect adds to the element of
uncertainty in the Eclipse Ball game. The ball is also
designed to change shape with age which makes for
a less true bounce to add to the excitement of the
game.