They call themselves the Golfin Dolphins and their objective is simple: put the ball in the hole.
Coach James Paleno re-started the Palisades High girls golf program this fall and although some of his players had never swung a club before joining the team, they’ve been refining their strokes ever since and their scores have improved as a result. Proof lies in the numbers.
In the first two City 3 League matches, the Dolphins’ cumulative nine-hole scores were 305 and 320 for an average of 312.5 strokes. In the last three matches their scores have dropped to 266, 281 and 276 for an average of 274.3. That equates to a difference of 38.2 shots per round.
Although Palisades has finished behind LACES and Venice in all but one match (they edged the Gondos by a single stroke to take second place in their third match), they are narrowing the gap between them and their league opponents. Given the Dolphins’ youth and inexperience their results so far have been par for the course.
“The girls are working hard to improve,” said Paleno, who also coaches the Pali High boys team, which won its second straight City title in the spring. “We’re a team of beginners whose first time on a golf course was our first match at Penmar and their scores were reflective of that.”
In last week’s match, Sophia Eberlein led the way with a 52, sister Miya Eberlein shot a 54, Camila Paleno and Maury Marin each shot a 56, Izzy Simmons shot a 58, Carly Weitz shot a 61 and Sarah Maninger fired a 69. Heidi Kang and Paulina Shumilov have also posted scores.
Palisades plays its final City 3 League match Thursday and hopes to build momentum heading into next week’s league finals at Balboa Golf Course.
— Steve Galluzzo
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