Dolphins Shine at Culver City Meet

Competing against 14 other schools from the Westside and the South Bay last Saturday afternoon, Palisades High’ track and field team performed well at the Culver City Invitational, especially in the distance events and relays.

The Dolphins’ foursome of David Tobin, Bodhi Sahakian, Daylen Dacay and Naveen Rutger won the varsity boys 4×800 relay in 8:42.41. Palisades’ No. 2 team of Joshua Kovacs, Noah Wexler, Alec Schmitt and Vafa Vosough took fourth place in 9:00.10.

Senior Ricky Holland was fifth in the 100-meter dash in a season-best 11.63 seconds, edging sophomore teammate Mikeal King-Haagen by one-hundredth of a second. Sophomore Max Fields, the reigning City cross country champion, placed second in the 1600 meters in a personal-best 4:33.92 while Schmitt was third in 4:39.91 and Wexler fourth in 4:40.30. Javier Tiscareno was fifth in the 110 hurdles in 20.17 while fellow junior Levy Shaked was fourth in the 300 hurdles in a PR 45.38.

In the varsity boys field events, Zaire Peters was second in the shot put with a personal-best throw of 42 feet, 2 inches. He also PR’d in the discus, finishing seventh with a throw of 86-6.50.

Finishing second and third with personal-bests in the varsity girls 1600-meter race were Ava Baak (5:37.45) and fellow Pali High junior Mollie Wittenberg (5:45.92). Junior Kelyse Burgess PR’d to win the 300 hurdles in 53.80 after a sixth-place finish in the 100 hurdles (19.78).

Alexis Ticer, Elisha Chae, Shyla Pierre and Mikayla Murphy placed fourth in the 4×100 relay with a time of 53.54 and the foursome of Elisha Chae, Avery Searle, Skyla Jones and Shyla Pierre clocked 4:34.21 to finish second in the 4×400 relay. Searle, Sadie Sabin, Layla Adeli and Tierney Smith were third in the 4×800 in 11:18.12.

Junior Aneesa Cole was second in the varsity girls shot put with a distance of 26-03 and threw the discus 56-04 for sixth. Cyun Williams leaped a personal-best 13-03 to place sixth in the long jump.

In the frosh/soph girls division, Palisades’ Skyla Jones, Keira Ishak, Scarlett Porter and Anisa Watkins were second in the 4×100 relay in 55.41 and Giada Musumeci, Leena Adeli, Scarlett Klein and Giada Rice were third in the 4×800 in 11:53.96. Ishak was fifth in the F/S lomg jump (14-4.5) and fellow sophomore Porter was sixth in 13-10.

Palisades competes in the Redondo Nike Track Festival on Saturday.