Tennis Tops El Segundo

Even without its No. 1 player, the Palisades High girls varsity tennis team can still put a formidable lineup on the court. With freshman Samantha Kogan playing No. 1 singles, the Dolphins defeated El Segundo, 5-2, in their season opener despite the absence of senior Katy Nikolova. Kogan lost to El Segundo’s Hazuki Onaga 9-7 at No. 1 singles and Pali’s Kathryn Cullen lost 8-2 to Amy Romeo at the No. 2 spot. But the Dolphins swept the remaining five matches to win the intersectional match using the City’s head-to-head rules. “It was a good start,” PaliHi Coach Bud Kling said. “It’s always nice to start the season with a victory.” Kogan trailed 7-4 but rallied to tie her pro set, 7-7, before losing the final two games. Audrey Ashraf won 8-2 at No. 3 singles and Genna Rochlin won 8-5 at No. 4 singles. In doubles, Phoebe Driscoll and Erika Lee won 8-0 at No. 1; Rose Schlaff and Yasmin Ghiasi won 8-3 at No. 2 and Marina Sterngold and Amy Gore won 8-4 at No. 3. Palisades’ junior varsity team also won. Ann Doyle and Liz Silvers teamed to win 6-3 at No. 1. Other duos winning were Stephanie Taft and Debbie Shamsian; Gina Doland and Ashley Navas; Saba Youseffzadeh and Dalia Shamsian; and Charlotte Farrant and Josielle Abrot. Palisades played Marymount on Tuesday. Girls Volleyball The Dolphins opened the season at the Gahr tournament last Friday, sweeping the host school in three straight games. In the second round Saturday, Palisades lost in four games to Los Alamitos. In the third round later the same day, Pali fell to Alta Loma in four games–a match during which senior blocker/hitter Alex Lunder sprained her ankle. After Monday’s loss to Lakewood St. Joseph, Coach Chris Forrest pulled the Dolphins out of the tournament in order to prepare for Wednesday’s nonleague match against City finalist San Pedro (result unavailable at press time).