No shame in the game - Collegiate club sports are the best version of blending athletics and academics while teaching self-sufficiency. And you don’t have to listen to any middle-aged coach's postgame philosophy-of-life speeches. “Being better people makes you better players,” but it won’t increase your 40 time. Lacrosse standouts Ava Yenovkian and Ellie Merrick (Sussex Academy) have reunited on the pitch at University of Virginia, where they currently play on the women's club lacrosse team. Ava and Ellie contributed to a win against Navy and a tie with Virginia Tech in their recent opening lacrosse play day. Ava also plays on UVA's club field hockey team. The big story on action news is they cleared admissions at UVA, where the acceptance rate is 10% for out-of-state residents. The SAT average is 1410 to 1540. Hope Hicks was captain of the SMU club lacrosse team in 2010. Hicks was White House communications director in 2017 before becoming counselor to the president. My nephew Mike used to work in alumni relations at UVA and said the lacrosse network on Wall Street is second to none. Everyone knows everyone else, and that includes club-level players. 

Socratic Method - Plato was a student of Socrates, and Aristotle was a student of Plato. They are Greek BC guys, and I don’t mean Big Men of Campus. Imagine if those fathers of philosophy were 2026 American sports fan guys. Basically, decisions that result in unwanted outcomes are bad decisions. Time to throw the blame blanket on Brian Schottenheimer (Dallas), Nick Sirianni (Philly) and Don Mattingly (Philly). Going from Greeks to Romans – falling on the sword – doesn’t absolve a coach from owning it. And fans who are not into logic but outcomes will drive coaches to the broadcast booth where they can sit next to Mike Tomlin or Joe Girardi.

Action figure - I see Joe D’Amico every weekend. He’s on the bike leading a 5K field. Afterward, he's on the cart picking up cones, which sounds like a Randy Travis song. I captured a photo of Joe at the Dogfish Dash where 800 runners who have plenty of sense to stay out of the rain decided they just didn’t care. And then I saw Joe looking like English actor Jason Statham, an international who performs his own stunts and martial arts in films. Runners don’t mess with Joe, but then again, they are not exactly the ultimate fighting crowd. 

The Vortex - I’m thinking of a funnel cloud, dark blue/black, churning toward me, packed with debris including live cats going 200 mph – the place where sports and politics and the rest of society coalesce into one big mess. The Protect College Sports Act is a bipartisan Senate bill that passed 77-22 that aims to address fairness, equity and stability in college athletics by reshaping how student-athletes are compensated, how schools spend on them and how the NCAA enforces its rules. The House will vote on it when they reconvene after the midterm elections. You can read all about it wherever you consume your news or jump over a paywall like Mondo Duplantis in the Olympic pole vault. This is the zone where ”shut up and dribble” meets "shut up and quibble.” Sports and politics are inextricably intertwined.

Snippets - Mikaela Gordon, a Cape junior who scored four goals in May’s 17-11 state championship lacrosse win over Tower Hill, has verbally committed to join George Washington University lacrosse. A message for her mom Jess: “From her time playing Scoopers with Atlantic Lacrosse when she was 5 years old to her time on the field at Cape and with CCLax, it’s been such a fun ride … and the journey continues! Thanks to all of the coaches – past, present and future – for their time, commitment and support. Congrats MK!” Jason Baker (Cape), a freshman cross country runner at Lehigh, was named Patriot League Rookie of the Week after placing fourth overall at the Lehigh Invitational. An in-depth story is on the school's website. Cape football plays 1-3 Hodgson at 11 a.m., Saturday, Oct. 3, at St. Georges. Cape should always use a pencil when etching in a win. Am I supposed to be able to tell the difference between a two-seam and four-seam fastball? Because I can’t. When did that become a thing? Years ago, a Fred granddaughter chose a field hockey state tournament game over the sacrament of confirmation and the coach didn’t play her anyway. Many moral lessons to learn or none, take your pick. Go on now, git!