The Seattle Times has been running a chilling series of articles on coaches who prey on girl athletes. Today is the fourth installment in the series -- all of the articles are available here.

With the explosion in women's sports, there's been a huge demand for coaches. A unfortunate consequence of this demand is that it's created an easy opportunity for predatory men to gain access to girls and young women.

The series of articles discusses several cases where male coaches have assaulted girls or used their position of power to coerce the girls into sexual relationships. The articles also cites some studies suggesting that these are not rare or isolated incidents.

Worst of all, schools and athletic associations often turn a blind eye. Teachers unions prevent investigations. And even some parents are so focused on their girls' athletic prospects that they become complicit in these horrible events.

This is a terrible story -- bad for women's basketball, bad for women's sports. But ignoring it won't help. Kudos to the Seattle Times for the investigative work and reporting. (Hat tip to Eric McErlain for the link.)