Pali High Tennis Rolls Over Hills

Given the wealth of skill and talent that his team possesses, girls tennis coach Sean Passan probably wishes the Dolphins could play round robin all season.

The Dolphins ventured outside the for the second time and routed host Beverly Hills 14-4 using scoring.

"This is exactly what I thought the score would be," Passan said. "I heard that they were not as strong as they normally are and given how we fared against Mira Costa I thought we'd do well under these rules because our lineup is strong from top to bottom."

The Dolphins played perennial power Mira Costa to a draw in their season opener and were riding a wave of confidence after winning Wednesday's Western League match against Los Angeles Center for Enriched Studies 6-1 in the City's straight-up format, where a maximum of seven points are available.

"I like head-to-head during the season, but I wouldn't mind if they switched to round robin for the playoffs," said Dolphins senior Jessie Corneli, who swept her three sets playing at No. 3 singles. "That's when we want to be playing our best."

The Dolphins won all six sets in the first of the three rotations—an indication they would have won even if City scoring had been used. Playing No. 1 singles was freshman Diana Silvers, who quickly took care of her first two opponents.

"I had to wait a long time for my third set and the other girl took forever to get on the court," said Silvers, who plays in the 14s age division in the USTA. "Overall, we did great as a team and I'm very excited about our chances this season."

Senior captain Perri Zaret and sophomore Julie Takakjian dropped only two games in three sets at No. 1 doubles. They were paired up against LACES and have since won 26 of 28 games played.

Since his team had already clinched the victory, Passan altered his lineup for the third rotation. He moved Jesse Zand from No. 2 doubles to No. 2 singles, switched Melody Wilkenfeld from third to second doubles and inserted varsity reserves Julia Levitan and Alexa Ebner at No. 3 doubles.

"I'm always looking long-term and now there's a gap in competition until the playoffs," Passan said. "We want every spot we can get for the Individuals and I'd also like to get the younger players as much experience as they can."

Beverly Hills has undergone what Coach Mike Margolin called "an exodus of mass proportions" this season. The Normans lost five players to graduation—including Margolin's daughter Megan—from a squad that won the Ocean League title last year.

In addition, the Normans' four best returners are not playing for various reasons and a fifth potential No. 1 player suffered a season-ending injury in a junior tournament the week before school started.

"I've never had this happen before—our roster shrunk from 15 players to 10," said Margolin, now in his 10th season. "I thought for sure we'd be strong enough to win [CIF]. Other teams in our division seem to be down this year... the problem is that we are too."

Lack of depth is not an issue for Palisades, which won seven of nine sets in both singles and doubles against the Normans. Corneli solved each of her three opponents using a different strategy.

"Against the No. 1 player, I just hit the ball deep, against the No. 2 player I used a lot of drop shots and with the No. 3 player I tried to make her run," said Corneli, a four-year singles starter. "The key to every match is playing your game."

The Dolphins have three league matches next week—at the Monday against Venice, at Hamilton on Wednesday and back at the Rec Center against Fairfax on Friday.

MATCH SUMMARY

Palisades 14, Beverly Hills 4

SINGLES

(1) Diana Silvers, Palisades, d. Victoria Mamatova, 6-4; d. Paula Alexe, 6-0; lost to Miriam Binman, 6-3.

(2) Katie Vincent, Palisades, d. Alexe, 6-4; lost to Binman, 7-5; Jesse Zand, Palisades, d. Mamatova, 6-2.

(3) Jessie Corneli, Palisades, d. Binman, 6-3; d. Alexe, 6-0; d. Mamatova, 6-2.

DOUBLES

(1) Julie Takakjian-Perri Zaret, Palisades, d. Sheila Farzani-Charlotte Frank, 6-2; d. Nikole Okhman-Allison Lee, 6-0; d. Meghan McMurray-Alex Lee, 6-0.

(2) Jesse Zand-Katie Pfannkuche, Palisades, d. Okhman-Lee, 6-2; d. McMurray-Lee, 6-2; Melody Wilkenfeld-Katie Pfannkuche, Palisades, d. Farzani-Frank, 6-4.

(3) Emily Wettleson-Melody Wilkenfeld, Palisades, d. McMurray-Lee, 6-4; lost to Farzani-Frank, 6-2; Julia Levitan-Alexa Ebner, Palisades, lost to Okhman-Lee, 6-2.

Records: Palisades 2-0-1; Beverly Hills 0-3.

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