As the season winds down the Palisades High boys volleyball team is in a familiar position—atop the Western League standings.

Coach Carlos Gray’s squad hosts fifth-place LACES in its league finale this afternoon having already clinched first place, but while their league fate is already decided where they get seeded in the City playoffs is a mystery.

Tournament losses to West Valley League opponents Birmingham and Chatsworth earlier in the season likely cost the Dolphins the No. 1 seed and they could be placed anywhere from two to five in the eight-team bracket depending on how the rest of the regular season plays out.

Palisades (25-9) lost 2-1 to Birmingham at the Venice Invitaitional in early March but upset Chatsworth in another three-setter en route to the finals, where they fell to Windward 15-13 in the deciding set. A month later at the Chatsworth Invitational the Dolphins were swept in back-to-back matches by Chatsworth and Royal and did not get out of the first round in the Gold Division. Meanwhile, Chatsworth reached the finals of its own tournament to move back into the No. 1 spot in the City rankings, followed by Northern League champion Eagle Rock. Also in the mix for Open berths are LA Marshall (Northern runner-up), Venice (Western runner-up to Palisades) and Granada Hills, El Camino Real, Taft and Birmingham from the West Valley. Chatsworth finished 9-1 in league to take first.

The Chancellors (38-7) swept Palisades in the Open Division finals last spring. In 2022, Palisades beat Chatsworth in four sets in the finals.

Head football coach Dylen Smith is optimistic his second season at Palisades High will be better than his first. The 2024 schedule has been finalized and the Dolphins will be tested throughout as they hope to improve on last year’s 7-3 record.

The season kicks off Friday, August 23 against Dymally at Stadium by the Sea (JV at 4 p.m., varsity at 7). The schools last met two years ago in the Division I quarterfinals when the host Dolphins won 42-14.

Sxi days later Palisades travels to Boyle Heights for a Thursday night game at Roosevelt, which lost by 28 points at Palisades last August.

On September 6 the Dolphins travel to Granada Hills for the Charter Bowl. The Highlanders won 26-10 last year. The next week Palisades hosts Brentwood in the sixth Sunset Showdown. The Eagles hold a 3-2 edge after their 43-24 win last fall.

In Week 4 Palisades takes on Harvard-Westlake in Studio City.

After a bye week, Palisades opens Western League play at Fairfax. Back-to-back home games follow with Westchester and Venice before a final road trip to University. The last regular season game is at home versus Hamilton on Nov. 1.

By STEVE GALLUZZO | Sports Editor

Watching Thad Collins umpire it is hard to tell who is having more fun—him or the kids. That is because he was in the players’ shoes not so long ago and he knows what a thrilling win and a heartbreaking loss feel like, having experienced both as well as every possible emotion during his seven glorious years spent on the Field of Dreams.

Now, the proud PPBA alum is the newest member of his hometown Pony league’s umpiring crew and one month into the job he is having a blast not only calling out balls and strikes but teaching youngsters the fundamentals of baseball.

“I played all seven years from Pinto through Pony and loved every minute of it,” said the third oldest of four Collins boys whose father Joe headed the Cardinals organization, served as a board member and ran the Bat & Grill for many years while his sons were matriculating through the program. “I only got to play in one World Series, my last year of Bronco. We battled through the loser’s bracket to get to the finals but we lost to the Tigers . I loved to pitch but I also played third base, left field and catcher. [Head ump] Dirk Robinson called my games.”

Growing up in the Huntington, not far fron the park that became like his second home, Thad went to Corpus Christi, Calvary Christian and back to Corpus before moving on to Loyola High, where he was on the water polo and swim teams.

Before his junior year at UC Santa Cruz he started umping little league 9 and 10-year-olds for extra money and he found it rewarding in more ways than one. He also works as a counselor at St. Matthew’s Day Camp in the summer.

“I like encouraging them and making sure thery’re having fun,” said the 22-year-old, who graduated in December with a degree in film and digital media, which he has put to good use to collaborate with older brother Emmett (also a PPBA alum)on a feature-length screenplay titled The Golden Valley.”

Now living in the Alphabet Streets, Thad has decided to make unping his “career” for now while he gets his creative juices flowing on future storytelling projects. Younger brother Charlie is among his biggest supporters and with his pedigree Thad is well respected in the community.

“The best part is that I’m able to give back to the game and the league that gave me so much,” he said.

Sophomore slump? Not a chance for University of San Diego infielder and former PPBA All-Star Jack Gurevitch.

After appearing in 49 of San Diego’s 50 total games, starting 34 at first base and 10 as the designated hitter, and earning All-West Coast Conference Freshman Team honors last season, he has picked up right where he left off.

Gurevitch came out of last weekend’s three-game sweep at Pepperdine leading the Toreros in batting average (.381), hits (56) and on- base percentage (.489) in 38 games played (all of which he started) this spring. Entering Tuesday’s home game against San Diego State he had accumulated 35 runs, 10 doubles, one triple, six homers, 27 RBIs, 25 walks and a slugging percentage of .585. On defense he has been just as impressive, holding a .996 fielding percentage with 251 put-outs and only one error.

Gurevitch refined his skills at the Palisades Recreation Center, where he belted numerous home runs while playing Pony All-Star tournaments. He batted .357 and collected 41 hits his senior year at Notre Dame High in Sherman Oaks while earning All-State First Team, Mission League MVP and All-CIF honors. His plate prowess led the Knights to a 25-9-1 record and a CIF title game appearance his senior year. He played travel ball for Garciaparra Baseball Group and the Socal Giants.

By STEVE GALLUZZO | Sports Editor

Perfection is seldom achieved at any level in any sport, but last Thursday afternoon at Stadium by the Sea is a day Briana Vasquez will not soon forget. The Dolphins’ senior pitcher faced 15 Hamilton batters and not one of them reached base—a remarkable feat considering how many innings the University of La Verne commit has logged in the circle this season.

Vasquez was “in the zone” from the start and finished with 13 strikeouts in a game that was called after five innings with the Dolphins ahead 10-0. The only balls the Yankees managed to put into play were a lazy fly to center in the second and a slow roller back to Vasquez, which she flipped to first base for the first out of the fourth. Along the way, she surpassed the 100-strikeout mark for the season, but then who is counting?

“I don’t really focus on the number of strikeouts I get because I have great teammates behind me and they have my back,” she said. “Sometimes you can tell warming up that you’ve got good command.”

The dominating performance was a confidence booster after Vasquez threw 149 pitches in a heartbreaking last-inning defeat to archrival Venice three days earlier.

“You don’t feel it until after the game but my arm was sore so I took the next two days off [after Venice] so I’d be ready for today,” she said.

Vasquez needed 60 pitches to complete the masterpiece, which earned her hugs and high-fives from her teammates and the game ball from coach Manny Flores.

“It’s just Bri being Bri,” Flores said.

Vasquez nearly made it back-to-back perfectos, surrendering only a single and striking out 14 batters in another 10-0 shutout Monday, this time against University. She also flirted with perfection April 3 in a 15-0 victory over visiting Fairfax before settling for a one-hitter with nine punch-outs while tossing a mere 54 pitches. On April 11 she and Stella Honda combined to no-hit LACES (Honda pitched the first three innings, Vasquez the last two). That was three days after Vasquez struck out 12 of 18 batters in a two-hitter against Westchester.

Perhaps her best outing all season came in a game in which she did not get the decision when she held a potent Mira Costa lineup to two hits and fanned nine Mustangs in a 0-0 tie on March 9 at the TNT Classic in Torrance.

Palisades has three league games left, beginning today at Fairfax, and would clinch second place outright if it is able to win all three.