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FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

 

 

RACQUETBALL 101 

 

  • What is MOHSRA?

    • All things MOHSRA can be found on www.MOHSRBALL.com  The goal of the Missouri High School Racquetball Association (MOHSRA) is to promote interscholastic racquetball competition, with coaches and athletes who reflect principles of integrity, hard work and excellence. Interscholastic racquetball competition can become an integral part of the total education and growth experience for students in high school.  The Missouri High School Racquetball Association provides opportunities for young people to be introduced to and participate in the sport of racquetball through sanctioning of events and administration of programs.   Click here for more information

 

  • When is the racquetball season?

    • MOHSRA recognizes Racquetball as a Missouri High School Winter Sport.   Due to the nature of club sports and schools not having courts on campus, most teams begin practice and hold tryouts and open houses as early as September.  

 

  • Is racquetball a MSHSAA sport?

    •  In our efforts to best parallel Racquetball to MSHSAA sanctioned high school winter sports, the MOHSRA league operates in accordance with most MSHSAA guidelines.  Eligibility to represent a school in interscholastic activities is a privilege students may attain by meeting the essential eligibility requirements established by the Missouri State High School Activities Association (MSHSAA).  Click here for more information

 

 

  • How do I register my child for racquetball?

    • Sign up for a membership at the racquetball club that your team practices at.  Every club has their own sign-up process

    • Join the MOHSRA league through your team.   Almost every school has team dues which covers league fees and sometimes also has uniforms and other miscellaneous expenses included.  

    • Every player in the league needs a current waiver with MOHSRA and USA Racquetball on file.  To complete the waiver online click here

 

  • What is the cost?

    • Team dues vary as mentioned above, but the league fee portion is outlined and explained here.

    • Every school practices at a different club.  Check with the practice facility for what the price of a practice membership is.  

    • Equipment also is a factor in the cost.  Your child will need their own equipment.  

 

  • What equipment does my child need?

    • Racquet

    • Eye guards

    • Glove (highly recommended)

    • Racquet bag 

    • Court shoes (an athletic shoe with a non-marking sole)

    • Water bottle

    • Racquetballs

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  • Where can I purchase the equipment?

    • Sporting goods stores and places like Walmart or Target may carry the equipment.  

    • For the best selection, pricing, and overall experience, MOHSRA has a partnership with Racquetworld.com and they have the lowest prices on all of their products.  In addition our league players receive a 10% discount.  Contact your coach for the promo code to take advantage of the great savings!


 

PRACTICES

 

  • How often do teams practice each week?

    • Most teams practice 1-2 times per week depending on the time of the season

 

  • How long does practice last?

    • Most practices last 1-2 hours 

 

  • What should my child bring to practice?

    • Bring all of the equipment listed above


 

COMPETITION

 

  • What do the different divisions/teams mean?  How many players are on a team?

    • Varsity High School Team:  

      • 6 Singles Players (Ranked Seed #1-#6) and 1 Doubles Team; a total of 8 players.  

      • Players compete against the corresponding singles player or doubles team on the opposing school’s team.  

      • School team winner is determined by best of 7 matches.  

      • Each individual match is two games to 15 points and, if needed, a tiebreaker to 11 points.   

      • Each school team plays a 10 team league match during the winter season.  

    • Junior Varsity High School Teams

      • JV1 Team:  

        • 4 Singles Players (Ranked Seed #1-#4)  and 1 Doubles Team; a total of 6 players.  

        • Players compete against the corresponding singles player or doubles team on the opposing school’s team.  

        • School team winner is determined by best of 5 matches.  Each individual match is two games to 15 points and, if needed, a tiebreaker to 11 points.   

        • Each school team plays a 10 team league match during the winter season.  

      • JV2 Team:  

        • 5 Singles Players (Ranked Seed #1-#5). Team winner is determined by best of 5 matches.  

        • Players compete against the corresponding singles player or doubles team on the opposing school’s team.  

        • School team winner is determined by best of 5 matches.  Each individual match is two games to 15 points and, if needed, a tiebreaker to 11 points.   

        • Each school team plays a 10 team league match during the winter season.  

      • JV3 League:  

        • Roster can be as many players as you want.   

        • Players from all participating schools are grouped together into one large pool/ladder.   

        • Each week every player competes against 3 unique opponents in 1 game to 11 points.   

        • The results determine the player’s week to week progress up and down the ranking ladder for the entire league.   

        • Based on the weekly ladder position, the player is grouped in a pool with similarly ranked players to compete weekly in games each Saturday.  

        • 9 Saturdays make up the league season and the 10th weekend is the State Tournament.  

        • 2-3 weeks of the 9 weeks are doubles.  The intent of doubles weeks is to introduce the players to doubles competition.  On those weeks all players are awarded points for three 11 point wins for participating.  

    • Middle School League:  Same as the JV3 League listed above but composed entirely of Middle School participants.  

 

  • How often and when does my child play league games?

    • Most teams play once a week during the winter season

    • Varsity, JV1, and JV2 teams play after school Monday through Friday either 3:30-5:30pm or 4-6pm.  Occasionally there will be Friday evening games at either 5pm or 7pm.  Based on conflicts schools have, some teams might play two matches in the same week.  

    • JV3 & Middle School play on Saturdays in 2 hours blocks 9am-5pm

 

  • How do I know when my athlete plays?  Where are standings and results posted? 

 

  • Where do the teams play matches?

    • Vetta Racquet Sports Concord, 314-842-3111 ext 4, 12320 Tesson Ferry Road, St. Louis, MO 63128

    • Vetta Racquet Sports West, 636-441-0006, 1330 Harvestowne Industrial Drive, St. Peters, MO 63304

 

  • If my child misses a match does it count against their record?

    • Kids are ranked in Varsity, JV1, and JV2 based on matches won.   Not playing gives a player fewer chances at wins, so they won’t be eligible for the maximum of 10 wins.  

    • Kids playing in JV3 or Middle School lose the opportunity to gain wins if they miss and that will reflect in their ranking, too.  

 

  • How are weather challenges handled?  How will I know if a practice or game is canceled?  Are canceled games made up?

    • There is a button for Weather Updates on the header of every page on the website.   Goto www.MOHSRBALL.com and click on Weather for updates.  

    • If a school is closed due to weather the match is typically postponed.  

    • All “canceled” matches are simply postponed and rescheduled for a later date.  

    • Coaches will notify their teams if a practice or game is canceled. 

    • The Weather Update page confirms postponed events, show new dates for the matches, and has the option to sign up via REMIND for cancellation notifications via your phone

 

  • Who do I contact if my child cannot make a practice, league match, or tournament?

    • Contact your child’s coach directly

 

  • What are the different MOHSRA tournaments all about?  

    • There 5 different tournaments that are part of the MOHSRA League Season

      • Top Seed Tournament is typically the Friday before Thanksgiving.  It features the top 3 Varsity players from every school.  The winning team is determined based on the performance in this tournament of their Top Seeds.  This is a Varsity only tournament.  Click here for more information

      • Winter Rollout is typically the first weekend (Friday & Saturday) in December.  It features divisions for every level of play.  Team scoring is based on a combination of results of Varsity and JV combined.   The winning team is determined based on the performance of the entire school program at all levels combined.  Click here for more information

      • Doubles Tournament is typically the third weekend in January.   Friday night has Mixed Doubles divisions for all levels in the league (Varsity, JV, and Middle School).  Saturday features Boys Doubles and Girls Doubles divisions for all levels of the league.  Click here for more information.

      • State Championships take place annually in the final half of February.  The first weekend consists of JV3 and Middle School.  The next week has preliminary rounds of Varsity, JV1, and JV2, with those divisions wrapping up on the weekend.  State team champions are crowned at every level as well as individual medalists at every single seed.   Over 150 medals are awarded and over 25 team trophies are awarded.  Click here for more information.  

      • USA Racquetball High School National Championships take place typically the first weekend of March.   This is not part of our league season but is something most of our schools participate in.   The event alternates annually between St. Louis, Missouri and Portland, Oregon.  Your entire team can play and there are Singles, Doubles and Mixed Doubles divisions.  It’s a lot of fun and a great way to connect with and compete against players from all over the country.   Click here for more information.  

 

  • How do I find starting times, brackets, and information?

    • All information is made available no later than 6pm on Thursday prior to the tournament and appears on our homepage www.MOHSRBALL.com 

 

  • How does team scoring work in tournaments?

    • Team scoring point distribution guidelines can be found on the information links listed above for each tournament.  


 

RULES

 

  • I have a rules question.  Where can I look for an answer?


 

REFEREES & SPECTATORS

 

  • Who referees these matches?

    • League players referee all of our matches.

      • After school matches are refereed by the players from each participating school

      • Tournament matches are refereed by winners from the prior round of matches.   We do our best to assign referees of comparable ability to the players they are refereeing.   Additionally we try to assign a referee that is not a teammate of either participant, but we recognize that is sometimes impossible to manage to and all season the players were refereeing teammates in league matches, so it’s never an issue.  

    • If you ever have any concerns about the referee assigned to a match, please bring that concern to the attention of your team’s coach.  

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  • Where can spectators watch the matches?

    • Please watch the matches from the upstairs viewing area.  

    • Leave the downstairs hallways uncongested so that coaches can coach and players have a more comfortable space on timeouts and between games.  

 

  • What are spectating/etiquette rules for watching a racquetball match?

    • No shouting or cheering when the ball is in play.  It’s alright to clap or cheer once a rally is concluded.  Please make sure the rally is over before making any noise.   

    • Respect the referees.  As mentioned above, the referees are all kids. They are doing the best they can.  If you have any disagreement with the referee’s call, please bring it to the attention of your team’s coach.   If you cannot find a coach, you can bring it to the attention of the tournament desk.   Parents should not be confronting referees.   Judgment calls cannot be overturned but rule interpretations can be.  

    • No excessive celebration (it will be self evident if it’s excessive) from spectators after rallies that makes the participating players uncomfortable.  You will be asked to tone it down or leave.  Comfort of the players and their enjoyment of the match is the number one priority.  


 

OTHER

 

  • Are there any summer camps or spring programs to which I can send my child?

    • There are annual summer racquetball camps at Vetta Racquet Sports Concord

    • There are weeknight evening spring racquetball programs at Vetta Racquet Sports Concord, too

    • Goto https://www.vettasports.com/racquetball/ for more information.

 

  • How does or should my child enter extra tournaments?  I am new to tournaments.  How do I know what division to enter?  Where can I find out about these tournaments?  When/where do I find out when my first match in the tournament is?   

    • The topic of tournaments pops up alot.  There are tournaments referenced earlier as part of the league.  There are also tournaments that are skill level based, that aren’t part of the league, that kids can sign up to enter for extra competition and experience (and fun!).  

    • Most coaches can help you determine what division to enter and can tell you how to enter.   For tournaments in Missouri, all sign up information can be found here… 

    • Most tournaments will have websites, at the link above, that can show you the draws and starting times for all matches.  It’s common to show up 30 minutes before your scheduled match time to check-in and be ready for your match.  

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