Palisades Softball on Verge of League Crown

When it became clear early in the high school softball season that Westchester was not the dominant team it usually is, the door was open for several other schools in the Western League to become king of the hill.

Palisades has emerged as that team, thanks to steady pitching by sophomore and the hitting prowess of freshman second baseman and junior first baseman .

The Dolphins have vaulted to the top of the standings and will return from spring break next week on the verge of clinching the league title. Palisades made a statement with its 11-3 rout over the defending champion Comets in the third game of the season--an indication that the balance of power might be shifting.

"That was more an indication that Westchester was down than anything else because we hadn't played the other teams yet," Coach said. "At that point, I thought there were three teams that had a chance to win league--Fairfax, Hamilton and us--but we've been able to separate a bit." 

While other teams have faltered, Palisades has tripped up only once--a 6-4 defeat at Hamilton on March 31 that briefly dropped them to second place. Since then, the Dolphins (11-5-2 overall, 9-1 in league) have strung together six consecutive league wins and have scored at least 12 runs in all of them. 

Marsden has mixed in tournament games wherever possible--a strategy that has paid dividends not in terms of wins and losses, but in keeping the Dolphins sharp for league play. An example was last Saturday when Palisades lost to King Drew Medical and Faith Baptist at the Spring Fling Tournament in San Gabriel.

"We had a couple of weeks there with a lot of rainouts and that can disrupt things, but we handled it well," Marsden said. "Our offense has been great, our pitching has been good and our defense--particularly the outfield--has picked it up. I now know the correct lineup and defense, and we are ready to take league."

Williams is batting .531 and slugging .781 with 34 hits, 32 runs and 30 RBIs. An All-Western League second team pick in 2009, Cortez is batting .508, slugging .885 and has 31 hits, 29 runs and 23 RBIs.

Sophomore center fielder has a.557 on-base percentage with 29 runs, 27 hits and 25 RBIs, sophomore shortstop is slugging .532 with 27 runs, 27 hits and 21 RBIs and sophomore catcher has 27 hits, 29 RBIs and 22 runs.  

Muir has a 5-2 record in 12 appearances with five complete games, one shutout and 30 strikeouts. She has also been solid at the plate, batting .463 with 25 hits, 19 runs and 15 RBIs for the Dolphins, much to Marsden's delight.

"Alexis has been terrific," he said. "She earned the No. 1 spot and she has the team's trust."

Freshman has a 2-1 record in five appearances with three complete games and 17 strikeouts and junior is 1-1 in seven appearances with 12 strikeouts.

"Pitching has been a key to our success--especially knowing we have more than one girl who can get it done," Marsden said. "We'll need that reliability in the playoffs."

The Dolphins have gotten contributions from every spot in the batting order and, being such a young team, they could be the team to beat in league for years to come. Of the 14 girls on varsity, five are sophomores and two are freshmen. Co-captain is the only senior.

Palisades has only two league games remaining. Next Monday it hosts Venice on , when the Dolphins invite the local middle school team to their game. Two days later, they will have a chance to avenge their loss to Hamilton on Senior Day. Next Saturday, they wrap up the Spring Fling with games against West Adams Prep and Verdugo Hills.