Here's the latest dilemma from the high school ranks. A coach asked me what I thought of this situation: the coach's best player always does well when she's in the game, but for some reason the team doesn't. Apparently she gets great stats, but the team loses.

When they put her on the bench and a less skilled player is in her spot, the team wins. The coach thinks it is ridiculous not to play her best player and so do the player's parents. What's a coach to do?

This is an unusual situation to be sure. But I would have to say that you must go with the line up that wins games. Your best starting six on paper is not always the best starting six in reality. Don't underestimate chemistry and other 'x' factors that may make the difference between winning and losing.

As a coach, your job is to win games as much as you possibly can. If you don't, you could soon be relieved of your duties. You should do what it takes to get the W, even if that means benching your best player.

There's a lesson in this for the player as well. Volleyball is a team sport. If you're the team's best player, it is not enough for you to just concern yourself with your own stats. Your job is to bring your team up to your level and make everyone around you better. Until this player can do that, she should remain on the bench.

As the talk of NCAA women's sand volleyball gets more serious, the debate over what the consequences will be continues.

My concerns when I first heard the news were two-fold: that it could have a negative effect on indoor volleyball and whether it was really necessary considering that U.S. beach teams continue to win in its absence. Both those concerns were adequately put to the test in Ali Wood Lamberson's recent analysis.

Lamberson took note of the differences between the games and the players that she based on statistics from top indoor players and top beach players. Turns out there are some major differences. According to the stats, successful beach players are shorter, have different skills and are less likely to have been indoor All-Americans.

The point being that the majority of players who will switch to sand will not take away from the elite indoor pool. Her stats are compelling. On height - 58% of top FIVB and 40% of top AVP beach players are under 6 feet tall while only 25% of AVCA D-I All Americans were under 6 feet and 40% were over 6'2" tall.

I can't believe I missed this story from a couple of weeks ago, but it seems the national champion UCI men's volleyball team got the shaft recently in what appears to be an appalling show of partisan politics.

It looks like the resolution to honor UCI's championship was pulled from consideration by a California senator as payback in a Republican vs. Democrat/SoCal vs. NorCal water dispute.

The reporting on this story is questionable because it is based on hearsay and an uncorroborated conversation. But if this is true, this Democrat has really crossed the line and an innocent volleyball team is paying for something that has absolutely nothing to do with them.

If this is just an exaggeration or a half truth disguised as news that the Republican propaganda machine put forward to make Democrats look bad, then shame on them for that blatant misuse of power.

The disturbing part is that either way this story is totally believable. Has it really come to this? Have we devolved so far into partisan politics that our innocent collegiate sports teams need to pay the price?

This kind of ridiculousness is becoming much too commonplace on both sides. The idea that our politicians lack the maturity to make even the most benign of gestures due to spite is frightening. So too is the rhetoric that currently passes for "news." Frightening, yet all too credible.

Still no change amongst the top three this week in the AVCA Coaches Poll. Penn State, Texas and Hawaii have a stranglehold on the top spots and by the looks of their upcoming schedules, it will stay that way until the playoffs.

There was however some movement among the nest three. Washington has returned to the #4 spot after losing it briefly to Stanford last week. The Huskies are now alone atop the Pac-10. Stanford is now tied for second in the Pac-10 with UCLA after losing to the Bruins in five sets in Palo Alto.

After a rough stretch at the end of September, UCLA is back. It was a big weekend for the Bruins who have not beaten the Cardinal since 2000. UCLA also took Cal down in four sets to rise four spots in the poll to #7. They've been all over the map this season, but it looks like they are past their rough patch and are enjoying a nice run. Winning seven of their last eight matches in October has got to feel pretty good about now.

Among the teams moving the wrong way down the poll are Minnesota, who lost to unranked Ohio State in three to drop five spots, and Washington State who lost to Arizona and Arizona State in four games each and fell three spots to #24.

UC Irvine is off the list this week after a rough weekend of losses to unranked Pacific and UC Davis. The Anteaters are replaced by Northern Iowa and St. Mary's who are tied for 25th.

There was a major upset on the FIVB beach tour this weekend in China. Jen Kessy and April Ross were the #1 seed, but lost to #11 seed Simone Kuhn and Nadine Zumkehr. It was a huge moment for Kuhn and Zumekehr as they became the first team from Switzerland to win an FIVB open tournament in its 18-year history.

They had to work for it too. After losing to Akers and Turner, the Swiss pair worked their way back through the loser's bracket and faced Kessy and Ross in Zumekehr's first final four appearance ever and Kuhn's first since 2005.

Americans Angie Akers and Tyra Turner took third place in the event. There is only one more women's FIVB tour tournament left this season to be held in Thailand November 3-8.

On the men's side, Americans did not fare as well in the last men's tournament of the year. Rogers and Dalhausser did not compete in this event, Lucena/Keenean took the highest U.S. finish at 13th, and Matt Fuerbringer, playing with John Mayer for the first time, finished 17th. Nummerdor/Schuil of the Netherlands won the tournament, beating Wu/Xu of China. Herrera/Gavira of Spain took third.

Week nine brought the first change we've seen in the AVCA Coaches Poll's top four all season. Previously #4 Washington was stunned by a loss to unranked Washington State in four sets. The loss takes Washington down one spot to #5 and brought Washington State onto the poll for the first time at #21.

Stanford took Washington's spot at #4 after its two wins over the weekend. The Cardinal is now tied with the Huskies for first in the Pac-10, but they have two big matches this weekend against UCLA and USC. They'll need to win both to stay there.

There was an upset in the mid-west as well when then #14 Iowa State beat then #5 Nebraska in five. Iowa State moves up five spots to #9 and Nebraska falls three spots to #8 this week.

Don't look now, but as the season drags on, the unbeatable Penn State women's team is starting to drop a few sets here and there. That could be good news for all the other top teams vying to knock them off in the playoffs.

The #1 Nittany Lions bageled their opponents for the first fourteen games of the season. But at the start of October, they dropped a game to unranked Iowa and one to unranked Ohio State. Then mid-month, they went five sets with then #11 Michigan for their closest call of the season.

Penn State is clearly head and shoulders above their regular season competition, but they lack the strength of schedule that some of the other top-ranked teams are experiencing week in and week out.

With only four ranked opponents so far this season, the lack of challenge could hurt them come playoff time. If unranked teams are starting to figure out how to take points and sets off them, Penn State may falter a bit when they face the top eight in December.

This weekend, the Nittany Lions take on Ohio State and #7 Minnesota. Two wins would bring their win-streak to 88-games, which would tie them with the 1971-74 UCLA basketball team for the NCAA record. An amazing feat for an amazing team.

If they can manage not to get too caught up in streaks, rankings and consecutive championships, they will definitely go down in history as one of the best teams ever. The pressure is on.

Someone asked me a tough question the other day. As a high school coach, she was running a drill in which one side of the court was trying to beat their teammates on the other side. During the drill, one of her players shouted words of encouragement to her competition. The coach reacted by calling the player over and setting her straight. That kind of thing would not be tolerated. Later she wondered if she did the right thing.

There is no easy answer here. Clearly, I played for some tough junior coaches who made us work extremely hard and get serious from a young age. If the team is aiming for a state championship or if it contains players with D-I aspirations, it may be necessary to inspire them to want to win at all times.

However, the sport is also supposed to be fun. And since most junior and high school teams are out there to enjoy themselves, I think the coach's reaction might have been a little harsh. Sure, in that particular drill the players were opponents. But most of the time they're teammates. It is never bad to encourage a teammate.

Now if your players start encouraging opposing teams during real matches, you may need to talk to them. Sportsmanship is great, but I think teaching players to want to beat their opponents is an integral part of the game.

The key is making sure that the players understand what their coach wants and expects from them before going straight to the reprimand.

No major moves were made among the top ten in this week's AVCA Coaches Poll.

The bottom 15 changed a bit as Colorado State found itself ranked for the first time this season. Long Beach State dropped out of the top 25 this week. The Beach debuted on the poll in Week Four and steadily climbed up to #20, but had two big losses to Pacific last week and UC Irvine this week to drop out of sight.

The wacky Pac-10 continued its roller coaster ride. Oregon beat #5 Stanford in five sets and #14 Cal in three to move up three spots to #12.

After stunning #6 Florida last week with a three set victory, newly ranked LSU continued to roll over its opponents and moves up four spots to #20.

Anyone who has ever played volleyball at the University of Hawaii knows that Hawaiians love their volleyball. Don't be fooled by the docile Rainbow moniker or the spirit of Aloha. Those fans come in droves and they are fierce.

This weekend over 8,000 UH fans packed the arena to watch Dave Shoji, their coach of 35 years win his 1,000th match.
Shoji is now a part of a very exclusive club of two along with Andy Banachowski, UCLA's coach of 43 years, who won his 1,000th match back in 2005.

Shoji has lots to show for his years at the helm - an unreal .851 winning percentage and a record of 1,000-175-1 (please don't ask me how you tie in volleyball because I have no idea.)

With four national titles and countless playoff and regional appearances, Shoji has managed to be among the top teams year after year. This year's squad is no exception. The Rainbow Wahine are currently ranked #3 in the nation with a 16-2 record. There are many more wins to come for this squad before season's end.

Along the way Shoji managed to lure some of the nation's top talent to the island. He coached Olympians Deitre Collins, Teee Williams, Robyn Ah-Mow, Heather Bown and Kim Willoughby and UH greats Tita Ahuna, Diane Sebastian and Angelica Ljundquist to name a few.

So congratulations must go out to Dave Shoji, a fixture in NCAA women's volleyball. He has deservedly gained a unique place in the annals of history. Go 'Bows!