But do me a favor and please write return to sender in CAPS on the box with GAC in CAPS.

Until the folks at Pee-Wee's Playhouse learn to DWR - nice one IHSA first-year PR guru Matt Troha - Walgreen's should tell the IHSA and moneyball Marty Hickman to take a hike.

Tournament games on small fields, with no lights and horrible layout.

Yes, IHSA - DWR.

(P.S. GAC doesn't mean Girls Athletic Conference. It means 'Get A Clue.')

*Head coach boys - 29 years
*More than 400 wins
*Led Sandburg to IHSA title in 1993 and Lincoln-Way to second place finishes in 1999 and 2000
*Six-time sectional coach of the year
*IHSSCA soccer person of the year
*IHSSCA vice president - 1998-present

But what half of the people in the audience and even those sitting at the head table with him will never truly understand is the impact he's had on soccer in the South Suburbs.

Brian Papa is soccer in the South Suburbs.

And while Brother Rice's Nick Markulin also has done a ton, Papa - a St. Laurence graduate - has been the one consistent force when it comes to soccer in that area.

That's why he's referred to as the King out there.

He built the Sandburg soccer program, helping the South Suburbs claim its first IHSA title in 1993. Ask any of his former players, and they'll tell you the Sandburg program is where it's at today because of Papa.

After a gut-wrenching decision to take a physical education position at rival Lincoln-Way in 1994, Papa took the Lincoln-Way soccer programs to another level.

For years, the Knights had a hard time beating teams north of the Stevenson. Combined with the girls, Papa eventually took Lincoln-Way to the IHSA title game four times.

Talent helps, but so does experience and knowledge.

People need to remember that at times, the role of a high school coach is to see talent, put the right pieces together and monitor chemistry. When you only have three months, there's only so much each high school coach can do these days.

I always tell the story of my first meeting with Papa back in August 1996. I drove out to a Lincoln-Way preseason practice to do a preview story.

Instead of welcoming a college student and thanking him for giving his team some exposure, he says to me, "I don't know why they send you out here. You guys are going to do a preview story and then it's going to be all football and basketball the rest of the year."

I hated soccer prior to meeting Papa, who loves baseball and basketball just as much as soccer these days. But one thing I learned right away was that Papa was a fighter.

You might not like what he says or agree with him, but he's going to make sure you hear him. I've listened to him call newspapers and rip reporters for not covering the sport or not giving a player his due.

I've listened to him stand up to the IHSA, while other gutless coaches sit in the corner after moaning for months. There have been many of times when Papa and I have had a heated exchange or two (or three or four), resulting in me slamming the phone down.

But I've always respected him, and he's always made me think. When a person has been around as long as he has and gained the experience and knowledge that comes with it, you need to listen.

I'm just hoping that when someone rambles off a basic speech tonight and talks about his list of accomplishments, they go a little deeper and look at what he has truly meant to the game of high school soccer in the South Suburbs and the thousands of players he's had an impact on.

And let me be the first to say thank you Brian.

I wasn't a player of his, but to this day he's had an impact on my career.

- Joe Trost

But blogs and message boards have allowed the goons of the world to be heard.

It's going to be very interesting once this case is final to see how the world changes. It took another big, positive step in the right direction today.

November 18, 2009

BY STEFANO ESPOSITO Staff Reporter

A Cook County judge today set a Dec. 18 date for Buffalo Grove Trustee Lisa Stone to learn the name and address of the person who allegedly made nasty -- and anonymous -- comments about Stone's teenage son on the Daily Herald's Web site.

But an attorney for the online poster, listed as "John Doe" in legal proceedings, vowed to appeal Judge Jeffery Lawrence's ruling.

Experts and attorneys are keeping a close eye on this modern-day First Amendment case in which Stone filed legal papers asking the Herald's publishers for the identity of the commenter known as "Hipcheck16." The online poster made a series of unflattering comments on the Herald's Web site earlier this year as Stone was running for trustee and just before she took office.

In his six-page ruling issued last week, Lawrence said the poster's name and address can be turned over to Stone, but she is not permitted to distribute the information publicly. Lawrence had asked Stone's attorney, Stephen Tyma, to write an order specifying how to carry out his ruling, which was presented today in court.

John Doe has argued, through his attorney, that his identity is protected by free speech.

Stone's husband -- but not the trustee herself -- appeared in court today. After the hearing, Stone said he sees the ruling as a partial victory, because the Stones had hoped Lawrence would allow them to disclose John Doe's name to the public.

"I don't think he deserves any protection," Gary Stone said. "Certainly the comments are public, and (the name of) the commentator should be public."

- Joe Trost

Girls in a Rhode Island high school soccer game were involved in an all-out brawl that would make even their male counterparts blush. And it surfaced after a video of a New Mexico women's soccer player became an Internet sensation for its stunning examples of poor sportsmanship, if not on-field violence.

"A lot of times people will sweep it under the rug and say it's where we are moving in our culture," he said.

He disagrees.

"This has to do with leadership and the code of ethics that our coaches set," he said. "Maybe we're not doing a good job at modeling behavior or setting ethical standards that need to be followed. That moves up and down the ladder."

Both on and off the field. The Rhode Island incident - between Woonsocket and Tolman - started on the field, but it made its way to the stands. Adults scuffled in the stands during the awards ceremony, no less.

Action has been swift. The University of New Mexico suspended Elizabeth Lambert indefinitely the day after the game. The incident happened in the school's final game of the year, but it is unclear if Lambert, a junior, will be allowed to return to the team next season.

Some say this is perhaps the only unfortunate part of Title IX. Girls are not only gaining only the positive aspects of sports but some of the negative ones, too.

Lebowitz said this negative can be made a positive.

"In all aspects of life there is a flipside or an underbelly," he said. "This (violence, poor sportsmanship) isn't something that wasn't going to happen.

"The question is: How do we respond to it? Is it something that is correctable? How do we change the culture of how we address athletes and what we accept as positive behavior?"

After the game in Rhode Island, Woonsocket head coach Kathleen Fagnant did not take full responsibility for her team's actions. "I'm not going to take the fall for that," she said in a WPRI report.

Lebowitz said punishments for these acts must be quick and harsh.

He feels the Internet - which may help increase these acts of unsportsmanlike conduct by showing them to the world - can also help prevent them.

"We live in a media world," he said. "If discipline is handed out in a harsh way, it would get around.

"Twenty-five years ago, no one outside of Rhode Island would have ever heard of this. Now it's known in 15 minutes. But there is a plus side. If we hand out strict discipline for these acts, that would get out, too. It would send a message that participation isn't a given. It isn't just a right that can't be challenged."

The Center for Sport in Society, now in its 25th year, hopes to be a leader in improving sports.

"Leadership in sport can move social justice along," he said. "You start by figuring out how to set up standards for coaches and setting certain policies for sportsmanship that must be followed."

Just look at this photo of Sun-Times All-Area Player Harry Shipp, and you'll know who they focused on.

So which club is now the top dog in the Chicagoland area?

BY LISA DONOVAN Cook County Reporter

A suburban elected leader might find out who posted those anonymous -- and reportedly nasty -- comments about her teenage son on a newspaper Web Site, thanks to a Cook County judge's ruling Tuesday.

Experts and attorneys are keeping a close eye on this modern-day First Amendment case in which Buffalo Grove Trustee Lisa Stone filed legal papers asking the Daily Herald's publishers for the identity of the commenter known as "Hipcheck16."

The petition could lead to a defamation lawsuit.

In his six-page written ruling, Circuit Court Judge Jeffrey Lawrence said the poster's name and address can be turned over to Buffalo Grove Trustee Lisa Stone, her attorneys and staff as well as law enforcement, but to no one else.

"John Doe," as the poster is called, has argued his identity is protected by free speech.

Who are some candidates for the 2010 Sun-Times Player of the Year Award?

One player I'm really interested to see next year is Lyons' Horacio Sanchez. The junior forward finished the season as the team's leading goal scorer (14 goals, seven assists). He scored or had an assist in every game during the Lions' run to the Class 3A title.

There's no doubt Sanchez had a lot of good players around him that opposing teams had to focus on. So the question he'll answer next season is this: Was he coming into his own or did he just benefit from having other stars around him?

Time will tell.

But who else should people keep an eye on?

And yes, the world is all about marketing - as is the IHSA Tournament.

If you were to believe the scoreboard at North Central College this weekend, you would believe the best high school soccer is played there for the IHSA Finals. I turned to one reporter and one coach on Saturday and said, "How do they say that?"

It's not.

Coaches know it, players know it, common sense parents know and other members of the media know. We talk about it all the time, have for years actually. As I help with the ESPNRISE.com rankings each week, we talk about it. The problem is some people are still living in the 1970s, 1980s and 1990s when they think the IHSA Tournament is the best.

And the time has finally come to bust that marketing bubble.

Is a team that wins the Best of West the best team in the Chicagoland area at that time? For many years that was the case, but it's not any longer.

Is a team that wins the Barrington Tournament the best team in the Chicagoland area at that time? If that was the case, people would've thought Lake Zurich was ranked too high after beginning this season ranked No. 2 and struggling at Barrington.

Is a team that wins the Pepsi Showdown the best team in the Chicagoland area at that time? While the tournament seeds its bracket, it doesn't have every team.

Is a team that wins the IHSA Tournament the best team in Illinois? No, because as the IHSA has said it's a geographic-based tournament. It wants to have teams from every area of the state represented - not the best teams. It does use the word state champion, and that's where many have bought into the belief that it decides who the best is.

It's called marketing.

Teams that win the IHSA Tournament are very good teams in most cases, and many times they also are a team that had a little luck. It doesn't take anything away from a team winning that tournament, but it doesn't decide who's the best in soccer.

Are you telling me the best teams were in Naperville the past two weekends? There were some of the best, but not all of them were. I know they weren't, even though all three teams that won IHSA titles were in the Pepsi Showdown this year.

If you really believe that, put the IHSA marketing pop down that you are drinking. Or better yet, maybe you should watch ABC's remake of the show 'V' on Tuesday night to see what is being done to you.

Despite living in the 21st century, the IHSA Tournament is still not seeded and still ran under the same concept as it was when it was first created three decades ago. Why is that?

Because you accept it.

So let's give everyone a piece of the pie to make everyone happy. It's the AYSO concept. Why do you think the Public League received an automatic bid for so many years? How messed up was that looking back on it now if this tournament is supposed to stand for deciding who the best is?

But when you are the largest school district in the state, you pay a lot of dues to the IHSA, and the IHSA wants to keep you happy.

Pay to play for years in the IHSA? You tell me.

Soccer and its community have begged for respect. But when it comes to this tournament, it's allowed the folks at Pee-Wee Playhouse to treat it just like everything else in between watching YouTube videos. Football didn't put up with money-ball Marty Hickman. They demanded changes, pushed them, jammed them and then finally received them.

I continue to ask the soccer community this - why can't the tournament be seeded out and why isn't there someone on staff with some soccer background? The IHSA was able to send Providence on a four-hour bus ride, so why can't teams travel a little (within common sense) to make it a true seeded tournament?

Are you telling me Barrington coach Scott Steib wouldn't like to play against some of the teams in the south suburbs this year instead of being stuck in his tough sectional? Couldn't Naperville North travel to a Warren or play in the St. Rita Sectional this fall? The IHSA sent Hinsdale Central to the DeLaSalle Regional this year, so why can't this be done.

I've had Downstate coaches email recently and tell me I'm right on hitting this subject. They have travel issues, too, but they are willing to travel to make this tournament what it can and should be - a true state tournament.

I listened to coaches for years talk about how the IHSA Tournament wasn't run right. Where do you think I came up with the idea of the Pepsi Showdown? I looked the NCAA Tournament, listened to the coaches, players and parents and was willing to create and battle with some athletic directors to show it can be done.

The IHSA doesn't care if its tournament is better - it doesn't. You believe it decides the best, but they really don't care what you think. The tournament is still going to go on every year. The more classes they have equals the more kids involved, and that's what the sponsors like to hear.

Welcome to Marty Hickman money ball. There's really nothing wrong with that, because you accept it.

In the end, until you stand up and demand for something better, it will never change. And right now, as I've said time and time again, the Illinois High School Soccer Coaches Association needs to rally together. But it just continues to accept it, just as it continues to waste time listening to IHSA assistant director Beth Sauser ramble the same speech each year.

And until it changes, the IHSA Tournament does not decide final rankings because it's just another tournament - just like the Best of the West, Barrington, Glenbrook South, Peoria, Gateway Classic and the Pepsi Showdown. It will always be a goal of teams to win the IHSA Tourament, just as it is to win conference, beat a rival, win another tournament or win 20 games.

But just because you win a tournament, it doesn't decide who is the best team that season.

- Joe Trost

Some closing thoughts:

1. As always, the Sun-Times All-Area Team and Player of the Year Awards are based on the regular season. It only states that in the story EVERY year.

2. Why doesn't the IHSA host the Class 2A and 3A title games back-to-back on the final Saturday - as in 5 and 7 p.m.?

Here are the final 2009 rankings...

* Beat 3A champ Lyons two of three times, just not in supersectional

2. Lyons 26-3

* McGuinness, Meingast, Fox will be missed

3. Lake Zurich 21-5

* Janus, Kreutz, Pothast were tough

4. Palatine 21-2-1

* Best season in recent history

5. WW South 20-5-2

* Another 20-win season

6. Naperville North 16-3-4

* Will be one of area's top teams next season

7. Naperville Central 15-4-2

* Chris Prince will be tough to replace

8. St. Viator 24-4-1

* Lions shut the critics up

9. Geneva 17-4-1

* Solid season for Vikings

10. New Trier 19-7-3

* Who will replace Ben Beaver's offense?

Others: Deerfield, Hinsdale Central, Lake Forest, Stevenson, Marmion, Wheaton Academy

- Joe Trost

I have always believed in that saying.

I think that stands true for the Lake Zurich boys soccer team this season. After getting off to a slow start in the Barrington Tournament, the Bears are now within two games of capturing the Class 3A title.

- Joe Trost

All games are done for most teams, records are final and you know who goes where. If Lyons and Lake Zurich play one another this weekend, that would be the only game to make a difference in the final rankings. The Lions beat the Bears 1-0 in the Pepsi Showdown quarterfinals earlier this year. Lake Zurich began the season No. 2 and Lyons was No. 5 I believe.

Neuqua Valley, which finished the season with just one loss, is this year's No. 1. Lyons handed the Wildcats their lone defeat on Tuesday, but Neuqua Valley won the season series 2-1.

As someone pointed out to me on Wednesday, it was nice to see two Pepsi Showdown teams in the Class 1A title game. St. Viator is in Class 2A, and Class 3A features three teams from the Pepsi Showdown.