Palisades Tennis Wins League Opener

On March 18-19, the Palisades High boys' tennis team will play some of the top teams in the country at the 12th Annual National Invitational Championships in Newport Beach. The Dolphins are seeded fifth and face Corona del Mar in the first round.

It was just another ho-hum victory for Pali on the afternoon of March 2 at the Palisades Tennis Center. The Dolphins blanked LA University 7-0 in their Western League opener to improve to 2-2 this season.

Two of the Dolphins' best players, Oliver Thornton and Robbie Bellamy, didn't even  play and Palisades still won the match without dropping a set under the City Section's head-to-head format. Max Licona won 6-0, 6-2 at No. 1 singles, Joseph Silvers won 6-0, 6-0 at No. 2, Spencer Pekar won 6-1, 6-0 at No. 3 and Sam Catanzaro won 6-0, 6-3 at No. 4.

Trinity Thornton and Robert Silvers won 6-0, 6-2 at No. 1 doubles, Cody Schiffer and Alex Nam won 6-4, 6-0 at No. 2 doubles and Austin Gingold and Brindle Palumbo won 6-3, 6-2 at No. 3 doubles for the Dolphins.

On Feb 28, Palisades lost 11-7 to intersectional rival Santa Monica, a rarity since coach Bud Kling took over the boys' program in 1979.

"I can't remember them beating us more than once and twice," said Kling, who owns a 909-96 record at the school. "They have really strong singles players." 

If its first match of the season is any indication, the Palisades High boys' tennis team should rack up plenty of wins this spring. The Dolphins are again loaded with talent and it was on display March 2 as they beat Beverly Hills 15-3.

Since Palisades was on the road against a Southern Section opponent, round robin scoring was used and the format suited the Dolphins just fine. They won each rotation by a 5-1 score and swept all nine singles sets, totaling 54 games to the Normans' 14. Palisades also won six of the nine doubles sets.

Thornton swept 6-3, 6-3, 6-0 at No. 1 singles, Bellamy swept 6-1, 6-1, 6-0 at the No. 2 spot and Licona swept 6-2, 6-4, 6-0 at No. 3 for the Dolphins, the defending City Section champions.

In doubles, Palisades' top tandem of Pekar and Catanzaro swept, 6-4, 6-3, 6-2. Playing in the No. 2 spot, Joe Silvers and Trinity Thornton lost to the Normans' No. 1  duo of Drew Freeman and Jon Jason, 6-3, before winning their last two sets, 6-0, 6-0.

Robert Silvers and Schiffer played two rounds at No. 3 doubles, losing to Beverly Hills' No. 1 and No. 3 teams. Joe Silvers and Eli Goodman were substituted in for the third rotation and posted a 6-2 victory over the Normans' No. 2 pair of Cosimo Bocci and Abhay Singh.

Palisades lost to Southern Section powerhouse Harvard-Westlake of North Hollywood, 12-6, the following day, but Kling noted that the final score was deceiving. 

"There were 11 close sets and they won eight of them--that was the difference," Kling said. "It was a tough match and very high-quality tennis."