Perhaps one cannot judge a book by its cover, but one can learn volumes about a person by playing a round of golf with him.

And it likely wouldn’t take much longer than 424 yards — the distance of the par-4 No. 1 at Oahu Country Club — to learn this about Dave Shoji: that he coaches volleyball the same way he plays his favorite course. It’s about respecting the game, respecting the opponent, being very competitive, conservatively aggressive and — win or lose — knowing that the effort was the best possible.

Oh, and one other thing. Golf is never a good walk spoiled because walking is part of the game and part of Shoji’s commitment to exercise and staying fit.

"I so see myself aging," the 68-year-old Hawaii women’s volleyball coach said. "One thing I am afraid of is declining physically.

"I love to walk and I golf for the exercise as well as for the competition.

"Right now, I can still do pretty much everything that I like to do. Maybe I don’t play volleyball like I used to, but I can still golf, run, do stand-up paddling. Stand-up has just been a revelation for me, not only to get exercise but to get in the ocean. I’ve lived here most my life and I never really took advantage of it. But there’s going to be a day where it’s going to be, ‘Oh, my gosh, I can’t do that anymore.’ I’m not looking forward to that day."

What Shoji is looking forward to is his 41st season with the Rainbow Wahine. He and Hawaii tee off fall camp Monday bright and very early — 6:30 a.m. — the first day of two weeks of two-a-day workouts.

The roster includes 12 returnees from the 22-7 squad eliminated in the second round of the NCAA tournament by host Washington. Among those back are All-Big West first-team selections Tai Manu-Olevao, a senior outside hitter; senior middle Olivia Magill; and junior hitter Nikki Taylor.

Other starters returning are Tayler Higgins, a junior setter; and sophomore hitter Kalei Greeley, named last season to the Big West All-Freshman team. The two, as well as sophomore libero Savanah Kahakai, appeared to have recovered from last year, one that slowed Greeley in the postseason and kept Taylor and Kahakai out of the lineup for seven matches each.

All played well during Hawaii’s inaugural training trip to Europe in May, a bonding experience that Shoji expects to carry over to this season. The 12-day trek to Italy, Slovenia, Austria and the Czech Republic had a dual purpose: getting technically better and coming together as a team.

"I thought everyone made progress in Europe," Shoji said. "We spent a lot of time together and established leadership qualities in all our players. I feel like we’re a lot closer as a team, but only time will tell."

That core should be pushed by four newcomers who comprise one of the tallest classes in Wahine program history. The three freshmen are 6-foot-5 middle Natasha Burns from Vancouver, Canada; 6-3 hitter Casey Castillo from Oceanside, Calif.; and 6-foot hitter McKenna Granato, the Hawaii state player of the year out of Punahou and an Under Armour All-American.

"I think our freshmen will all contribute in the future; they’re all projected to be really good players," Shoji said. "But it’s going to be hard to crack the lineup on a regular basis.

"Granato may be the best volleyball player of the three — great arm, all-around skills. She could be in the mix this year, but she’ll have to beat out someone."

The wild card is 6-2 Annie Mitchem, the two-time national junior college player of the year out of Irvine Valley College whose coach was former Hawaii All-American Tom Pestolesi. Mitchem has been provisionally admitted to UH but still needs to have her associate degree and other paperwork cleared to be qualified to play this season. She does not have a redshirt year available.

"She’s probably the most mature, physically, of the group," Shoji said of Mitchem, who is scheduled to arrive on campus later this week. "She has more of an immediate chance to contribute."

Mitchem is a six-rotation player who could play left or right side, or middle as she did for IVC for two years. She helped lead the Lasers to three California Community College Athletic Association state championships, one in sand and two indoor, including last season’s 27-0 campaign.

There are several issues with the schedule, which was re-tweaked to avoid conflicts with home football games and now has the Wahine on the road for the last three weeks of the Big West season, a string of six matches between Nov. 6 and 21. The final home match is on Nov. 1, one of six scheduled Sunday matches, which continues to create a dilemma for Manu-Olevao. She sat out three Sunday matches last year for religious beliefs but has not yet made a decision about this season, a choice expected to be made and announced before camp ends.

Hawaii again was chosen as the Big West favorite in last week’s coaches poll, receiving eight of nine first-place votes. The Wahine (13-3 Big West) had their streak of 19 consecutive conference titles (WAC and Big West) snapped when finishing to second behind Long Beach State (16-0); the 49ers, receiving one first-place vote, were picked No. 2 in the poll.

"I’m looking forward to this season," Shoji said. "It’s got potential to have a really good year.

"We’re older and I think everybody’s better, everybody’s stronger, and more experienced. We have a lot of key players where we need. I think we’ll be good."

It’s that combination of optimism, anticipation and the unknown that has kept the game fresh for the past 40 years, a run of 1,347 matches (1,150-196-1), four national titles and no losing seasons. Did he expect to hold the same job that he did when he was hired by Donnis Thompson in 1975?

"I don’t think anyone imagines at the time (of being hired) that you’d last this long in anything or want to," Shoji said. "After graduation from UCSB (in 1969), I don’t think I had any idea what I wanted to do other than I knew I wanted to coach. When you’re 22, 23, I wasn’t thinking long-term goals, you were just trying to get by day-to-day.

"Obviously, the coach-player relationship has changed. They’ve become more like daughters or, even now, granddaughters, but there’s still a camaraderie. It’s invigorating being around young players and you kind of identify with them, you still want to know how they think, how they feel. But I do draw the line at music. I don’t listen to any of theirs."

Shoji hasn’t heard the call of retirement — yet. His contract was extended through 2017, "but that doesn’t mean I’ll stay until then," he said. "I’m still enjoying this and how the community has supported us throughout the whole time, from Klum Gym days through 2015.

"The best part of the job has been the unbelievable support. If we had done the same thing record-wise and there were only 500 fans, it wouldn’t be the same. This program has meant so much to so many people and you can’t replace that."

The idea of retirement isn’t so much about the when but the what, as in what would he do. Travel more, spend time with his grandchildren, watch his two sons play internationally for the U.S. men’s national volleyball team, go helicopter skiing, maybe become an assistant men’s golf coach at UH.

There is one number that keeps popping up when it comes to Shoji: 69. It is the year he graduated from UC Santa Barbara, the model year of the green Volkswagen Beetle he was driving when first hired as Wahine coach and his lowest round on the golf course. He also turns 69 on Dec. 4 and "I’d like to shoot my age," said Shoji, whose handicap is between 5 and 8.

That’s 2 under at Oahu Country Club. And on hold for the next five months with volleyballs playing through on Monday.