Dolphins Back on Top

Pali High Girls Volleyball Rallies Past Granada Hills for 29th City Section Crown

Something had to give when Palisades met Granada Hills in the City Section Division I girls volleyball final Saturday night at Roybal Center.

Palisades entered having won five City titles in seven years (two of them in Division II) while Granada Hills had won four in the last five years, including a sweep of the Dolphins in last year’s Division I final.

However, Palisades showed how much it has improved since that match and a nonleague loss in September by rallying to dethrone the top-seeded Highlanders 20-25, 25-21, 25-22, 25-20 and net their 29th City title and first under second-year coach Carlos Gray.

“When we won it was more of a relief for me because there is an expectation of winning at this school,” Gray said. “I accepted that challenge and I’m very proud of this group.”

Junior Isabel Kelly led the Dolphins’ attack with 15 kills and senior Tielar Richards  added 10, including an uncontested spike to end the third set.

“We go as she goes,” Gray said of Kelly. “When she gets hot she energizes all of us and she got  hot in the middle of Game 2.”

The Dolphins’ latest triumph  came 35 years after the program’s first and only state championship and the seniors can graduate knowing they have added to Palisades’ winning legacy.

“We wanted this more than they did and we knew what they were going to do before they did it,” Richards said. “They were trying to find the easy plays, not the smart plays.”

With setter Delany Arth directing the offense, back-to-back kills by Domineque Jeffords, another by Sadie Gray and a stuff block by Kelly and Milena Gorum gave Palisades an early lead in the fourth set.

“I personally love the pressure,” Arth said. “The bigger the match, the better. We felt okay after the first set since we made a lot of mistakes and still almost won.”

“Once they get on runs they keep going so the key was to sideout right away,” said sophomore libero Olivia Zelon, the Dolphins’ dig leader. “At practice I looked up at the banners on the wall and said ‘I want my year up there.’”

She’ll get her wish.

Palisades (27-10) traveled to  Southern Section Division 1AA champion Redondo Union (35-2) in the first round of the CIF state playoffs Tuesday.