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RIO DE JANEIRO -- Each night, Kayla Banwarth would pack lunch for the next day, lay out her clothes and set an alarm to be out the door by 5 a.m.The U.S. volleyball player spent about five months this year working as a volunteer assistant coach for the mens team at Pepperdine University. She worked under Karch Kiralys former Olympic coach and current confidante, Marv Dunphy, and American assistant David Hunt.The commitment made for a hectic schedule. Banwarth began her day with a 60-mile commute at the crack of dawn from Orange County to get to campus before rush hour. After Pepperdine practice, she would immediately return to Anaheim to work out with the national team -- spending up to two hours on the court with Kiraly each day and hitting the weight room afterward four times a week.As the U.S. women chase their first Olympic gold medal, Banwarth believes shes all the better for having coached. She and the top-ranked Americans defeated Serbia 25-17, 21-25, 25-18, 25-19 on Wednesday to improve to 3-0 and reach the quarterfinals. Serbia upset the U.S. in five sets at last years World Cup in Japan, forcing the Americans to qualify for the Rio de Janeiro Games in Lincoln, Nebraska, in January.I for sure think if you coach it helps you be a better player, Banwarth said. Ive been more mindful how I am technically on the court. I think its helped me be a little bit more strategic seeing it from a coachs perspective, kind of what works and what doesnt work and maybe finding more solutions in a faster way.On all those long drives, she would listen to popular podcasts like Serial. Bedtime was 8:30 most nights -- if she wasnt driving home from matches late, that is.It was very busy, for about five months, said Banwarth, the Americans starting back row specialist since 2013, when she was the U.S. womens most improved indoor player. I had it figured out after about five months.The 27-year-old Banwarth studied video, scouted other teams, helped plan practice and learned from some accomplished coaches. Dunphy guided Kiraly and the 1988 U.S. indoor team to a gold medal in Seoul.At first, Banwarth and Hunt had joked about the idea of her helping at Pepperdine. But she also stayed home from playing overseas for a second straight year so it made sense to keep her hand in volleyball while also preparing for the Rio Games.It was a growing and a process that forced her to organize her time better. Shes said shes really out of it in the mornings so she would have to really plan out her day the night before, Kiraly said. It just forced her, or coaxed her, into becoming even more professional in terms of having these other obligations, being responsible for another program, understanding the game from a coaching standpoint. There were lots of really good things she benefited from that experience. Shes become more mature.Dunphy has been around volleyball for so many decades he is a good judge of talent, and he appreciated what his college players gained from watching a woman he considers right up there with the best in the world at receiving serve.It was great for us to have somebody of her stature, Dunphy said. As Im around these Olympic Games, I hear announcers say things and coaches say things, `Oh, the best in the world every match, `that players the best server in the world. Its thrown around too loosely. But receiving serve as a passer, I dont think theres anybody better than her. Our players at Pepperdine knew that when she would say something it held water and very seldom did she demonstrate but there would be a couple times we would give her a workout, and it was like, `Oooh, shes nailing every one of those.Banwarth and Hunt have been able to draw off the things they learned in college and with the national team.It was cool to be able to coach her in this then have those same coaching conversations with her, Hunt said. Coachings more than technique. Its a lot of interpersonal, getting a vibe of how somebodys doing to help them be their best. It was cool to see that.In other Olympic volleyball matches, the Netherlands women responded from losing captain Maret Balkestein-Grothues to an ankle injury Monday to beat Italy in straight sets after China also won its second straight match 3-0.Joe Sakic Jersey . -- Nathan Pancel scored twice as the Sudbury Wolves defeated the North Bay Battalion 4-2 on Saturday in Ontario Hockey League action. Teemu Selanne Jersey . Q: Team Canada announces their Olympic roster three weeks from today. Who is general manager Steve Yzerman watching? LeBrun: Over the last 48 hours, hes taken in the home-and-home between the Dallas Stars and Colorado Avalanche with Jamie Benn and Matt Duchene being the obvious targets. http://www.hockeyavalanche.com/authentic-samuel-girard-avalanche-jersey/ . PAUL, Minn. J.T. Compher Jersey . -- Team after team passed on Andre Ellington in the draft. Ian Cole Avalanche Jersey .Y. -- Sabres defenceman Tyler Myers had no intention of changing his hard-hitting style before taking part in a disciplinary hearing for his illegal check to New Jersey forward Dainius Zubrus head.TORONTO -- Toronto Blue Jays left-fielder Melky Cabrera was in the starting lineup for Wednesday nights game against San Francisco after an MRI exam revealed no major problems with his sore legs. Exam results found only irritation in the right quadriceps and left hamstring and no other significant findings. Cabrera can continue to play to tolerance and will continue to be monitored and receive treatment, a team spokesman said. Cabrera, who had four hits Tuesday to boost his average to .278, has beeen on a tear of late.dddddddddddd He entered play Wednesday as the team leader with 45 hits and has a .383 batting average since May 3. The Blue Jays also confirmed that Sergio Santos will undergo surgery Thursday to shave down bone spurs and clean out loose bodies in the right elbow area. Hes expected to miss six weeks. General manager Alex Anthopoulos has called the procedure a "minor cleanup." Santos went on the disabled list a month ago with a right triceps injury. ' ' '