Bizarre Rec rules for 10 and 11 year old girls playing on a vball team

Question
they opened a recreational basketball/volleyball place in my area, so to keep some of the 7th grades at a public school going we formed a team of 5 7th grades and 3 6th grades. Our first game is Sunday and are hearing the we are only allowed 3 girls from the same grade and school on a team. I know this applies to high school girls play club outside of season but does this rule apply to recreations volleyball? We live in ohio.

Thanks
mary  

Answer
Hello Mary:

I was coaching Dixie Youth Baseball in 1982. I was given a low-income factory town team of 10, 11 and 12 year olds.  One day one of my boys forgot his hat.  The opposing coach wouldn't let him play.  The umpire upheld the opposing coach's demands.  I was infuriated.  "Are you kidding me?  You're going to keep a 11 year old from playing b/c he doesn't have his hat?  He's lucky if he's had a meal today."  But they wouldn't budge.  The little boy cried.  I'll never forget it.  I was 24 and it made an impression upon me about the cruelty of adults when winning is on the line.  

Is your situation similar?   
a) I can't answer your questions with 100% certainty b/c I'm in Virginia.  First, public school sports rules don't apply to any child in Virginia until they reach 8th grade.  And we have no school-limit on travel teams.  In other words, if a school coach has open tryouts, then he can coach 8 or 10 of his own players.  No problems.
b) Rec?  So it's not school?  And it's not USAV?
c) These rules probably apply to every team in your league?  Were these rules in affect when you were creating your team?  Were you told of any rules when you formed your team?  Are all your games are against teams who follow these rules?  Why weren't you aware of them?  
d) The more I think about what you've sent me, the more I think I see what's up.  The directors of this league want the little girls to be forced to branch out and make new friends!  It's a social league, not a "learn to play volleyball" or an athletic league.  These are the rules of the local rec center(s).  Huh.   
e) So, the purpose of this league isn't so the girls can be active and maybe improve enough to help them make a school team one day.  I guess not.  I guess the matches are social events and every game is like a mini-sleepover.  Thus the power believe that the girls are better off in the long run if they don't have many of their present friends on one team. I guess.  

I'd be tempted to tell the people to lighten up.  Who cares.  Who cares how many girls are on the team and where they go to school.  Let's let the kids play.  I imagine the answer would be, "You have no clue what we're trying to accomplish here, do you."  No, I guess not.  And if the powers don't allow your team to play, then you guys can just practice together and not participate in the matches.  

Now the ball is in your court:  You can break your team up so they can play, or maintain your team and be ineligible.  How unfortunate.  But I guess if that's the way it is, that's the way it is.  I've never been a member or a coach of a "social" league.  

What else can I do for you?  My staff now has scheduled 8 camps for the summer of 2010.  And we have room for more.  Let me know if your school needs an inexpensive, fun and intense site camp for this coming summer.  

Coach Houser