Almost 30 former players, representing 40 years of volleyball at Palisades High, reunited on the court in the program’s first alumni match last Saturday, 30 years after the Dolphins won their only state championship. The PaliHi gym was overflowing with pride and tradition, as the alumnae and varsity split four spirited sets. The alumnae squad’s all-star lineup included Lulu (Schwartz) Kaseff (Class of 1980), member of the ’78 City Section champion and 1979 City and state championship teams who was a three-year All American at UC San Diego; Rhonda Stoklos (Class of ’78), who played on the ’77 City title team; and Nancy Cohen Fredgant (Class of ’76), who went on to play beach volleyball and is recognized on the sport’s Walk of Fame in Manhattan Beach. Before the match there were introductions for all of the alumnae and especially former Coach Gayle Van Meter, who piloted the Dolphins to 16 City titles in her 22 years at the helm. “The main reason that I had to come out here today was to say thank you to Gayle Van Meter,” Pai Svenson (Class of ’87) said. “If it wasn’t for her, I wouldn’t have volleyball. She changed the trajectory of my life.” Svenson went on to play at UCLA and for the Swedish National Team after playing under Van Meter throughout high school. Proving the program is still strong as ever, Coach Chris Forrest’s varsity squad started strong, winning the first two sets, 15-13 and 15-4. After the first set, Van Meter and her 1979 state championship team was honored. Back in those days, side-out scoring was still used and the Dolphins defeated Fremont High of Sunnyvale, 15-6, 11-15, 16-14, in the Division I state final at Santa Clara University. Through the 1970s and ’80s, Palisades remained the gold standard in the City, winning the 4A title 13 times in 14 seasons from 1974-87. Demonstrating that their skills have not diminished much over time, the alumnae won sets three and four with great play from Svenson, setter Amber Held (Class of ’02) and last year’s City Player of the Year, Laura Goldsmith, fresh off a stellar rookie season at Colorado College. Goldsmith enjoyed returning to play with other alumnae and against her former teammates. “It was exciting and a lot of fun to see everyone,” she said. PaliHi senior libero Tait Johnson thought the experience was memorable. “I think we had a lot of fun, and that is what the game is all about,” said Johnson, whose older sister Teal won City as a senior in 2007. “It’s a honor to be a part of tradition and it was really cool that they all came out here.” Forrest called the event a great success: “I had a great time and I’m so glad we did this. Congratulations to Korby Siamis and Eileen Savage for putting this together, and to all parents who helped out. It was a great time for everyone and I hope that we can do it next year.”

Sophomore Paces Harvard-Westlake Girls to Team Title

In cross country, it is not how you start, but where you finish that counts. Just ask Palisadian Cami Chapus, who overcame a 20-second lead with a mile to go and won the girls’ Division IV state championship last Saturday at Woodward Park in Fresno. The sophomore from Harvard-Westlake High caught Marin Catholic’s Theresa Devine inside 600 meters and won by seven seconds, completing the 5,000-meter course in 17:59 and leading the Wolverines to the team title in a California Division IV record 95:63, breaking the old mark of 95:53 by Corona del Mar in 1999. A team consisting of one senior, one junior, three sophomores and two freshman, Harvard-Westlake finished with 92 points to run away with the trophy. Junipero Serra was second with 129 and La Reina was third with 137. Chapus didn’t have to wait long to greet her teammates. Fellow 10th-grader Amy Weissenbach was fourth overall in 18:24. In becoming her school’s first state individual champion, Chapus cut a full minute off of her time at last year’s state meet, in which she came in 12th place. The victory capped a magical season for the Wolverines, who had won the program’s first Southern Section title in Walnut the week before. Chapus was a standout athlete at St. Matthew’s, winning league championships in track, soccer and softball. She also plays club soccer for the Westside Breakers. Although she has trained hard to reach the level she is at, Chapus has running in her blood. Her mother Victoria was a three-time Kinney National cross country finalist (1979-81) in high school while her father Jean Marc ran the 400 meters at Harvard University. Palisades High freshman Jacklyn Bamberger finished 55th in the girls’ Division I race in 18:56, fractions of a second behind Venice senior Jaclyn Walles, whom she beat at the City Section finals. Both Bamberger and Walles finished ahead of City champion Laura Delgado of San Pedro, who clocked 19:10 for 77th place. Molly Grabill of Rancho Bernardo won Saturday’s race in 17:06.

It must have felt like deja vu when the Palisades High girls’ varsity soccer team hosted Granada Hills in its nonleague opener last Tuesday night at Stadium by the Sea. The Highlanders scored a goal in each half to prevail 2-0, the same opponent and score as the Dolphins’ last game in February, a playoff loss that ended their season. Neither team was at full strength. Palisades was missing several of its top players, forcing Coach Kim Smith to juggle her lineup. “We had players in new positions,” she said. One change is moving Tiffany Falk from midfield to defense. Falk, a senior, is co-captain this year with junior forward Kathryn Gaskin, who led the team with 19 goals last season. As was the case in February, she was tightly marked and had only one shot on goal against Granada Hills. Meredith Kornfeind led the way with five shots and goalie Jessica Levin made five saves for Palisades. Smith has scheduled quality nonleague opponents to help prepare the Dolphins for the postseason. Palisades scored 105 goals and allowed only 12 last season, but it was not accustomed to playing close games against severely overmatched teams in the Western League. “We were winning every game so easily last season that we kind of panicked when we fell behind [Granada Hills],” Gaskin said. “Obviously we want to win league again but our goal is to get further in the playoffs.” Palisades hosted Taft Wednesday and its own tournament, the Palisades Holiday Showcase, begins Friday. The Dolphins host Reseda at 6:30 p.m. Friday, then play twice Saturday, against Bakersfield Stockdale at 1 p.m. and Sylmar at 7:15 p.m. Boys’ Soccer Coach Dave Suarez’ varsity squad won its season opener over Crossroads, 2-1, last week and beat San Pedro, 3-0, Monday at Stadium by the Sea. The Dolphins wrap up their nonleague schedule at home on December 14 against Santa Monica. The JV game kicks off at 4:30 p.m., followed by the varsity at 6. Santa Monica defeated Palisades in a practice game November 20.

Palisades High freshman Robbie Bellamy wasn’t quite feeling 100 percent, but he was good enough to capture his third doubles title of the season last Sunday, winning the USTA National Tennis Open in Irvine. Bellamy and partner Gage Brymer of Irvine were seeded No. 1 and played like it, beating duos from California, Nevada and Arizona. They lost just 12 games in five matches, even more impressive considering Bellamy was nursing bruised ribs and could barely hit a ball before the tournament. Earlier this year Bellamy won the Agassi Championships in Las Vegas with Abe Hewko of La Quinta. Two weeks ago he won the JP Yamasaki with Jake DeVries of Irvine. His latest victory could move him into the Top 10 in the nation for his age group. Bellamy’s recent success has come without his normal partner, fellow Palisadian Alex Giannini, who is back from a broken foot and will play with Bellamy this weekend at a tournament in Palm Springs. The pair is gearing up for the Copper Bowl in Tucson, Arizona, over Winter Break. Jake Sands, a fourth-grader at Palisades Elementary, reached the finals of the Rancho Cienega Tennis Shop Junior Open last Sunday. The 9-year-old upset No.2-seeded Christian Settles, 7-5, 7-5, in the semifinals before falling to top-seeded Ryan Nuno in the finals.

Executive VP of LA’s Premiere Sports Franchise Is Proud of Her Roots

Ask any Lakers fan to name their most valuable player and the answer you’re most likely to hear is Kobe Bryant. When it comes to the organization’s most valuable person, however, someone who deserves to be in the conversation is Jeanie Buss, Executive Vice President of Business Operations. No one bleeds purple and gold more than the daughter of team owner Dr. Jerry Buss. She has long been the voice and face of the team, having worked on both the promotions side and operations side of the business, but her first claim to fame was being named Miss Palisades in 1979. Thirty years later, the memory hasn’t faded. “It was a great experience for a 17-year-old,” said Buss, the guest speaker at last Friday’s Pacific Palisades Chamber of Commerce general membership breakfast at Riviera Country Club. “It improved my speaking skills, my posture, my demeanor, everything. Actor Adam West (who played the Caped Crusader in the ‘Batman’ TV show) was one of the judges, and I remember being so shocked and surprised when I won. That was something totally different than homecoming queen or class president because those are more about popularity.” When Jeanie was growing up (she is the third of six children) the Buss family lived on Ranch Lane in Rustic Canyon, and she recalled holding a graduation party at her house on the same night her father bought the Lakers (along with the Kings hockey franchise and The Forum in Inglewood, where both teams played). “It got pretty loud and the police came,” she said. Little did Jeanie or her siblings know then how dramatically their lives would change: “I’d grown up knowing I’d be involved in the family business, which at the time was real estate development, but this was a whole new venture.” Buss has learned a lot about the intricacies of the game through her boyfriend of 10 years, current Lakers coach Phil Jackson, who has educated her about the pros and cons of zone defense and how to execute the pick and roll. “He can get pretty intense sometimes,” she said, laughing. Jeanie traces her knowledge of basketball, however, back to Palisades High, where she tried golf and JV basketball and, most significantly, kept statistics for the boys’ varsity team, coached by Jerry Marvin. “I learned the rules, how to keep score and all of the terminology that enabled me to talk about it once I got involved with the Lakers,” she said. “If someone asked me what traveling meant, I could easily explain it to them.” When she began her career at the age of 19 while attending USC, Buss had to think of creative ways to fill The Forum on the 200 nights a year the Lakers and Kings weren’t playing. She found her niche in the “orphan” sports, serving as general manager of the L.A. Strings (World Team Tennis) and later the L.A. Blades professional roller hockey team. “My dad realized that child labor is very cheap,” said Buss, who worked while pursuing her business degree. “I guess you could say that was my way of paying off my tuition.” One question posed to Buss at last Friday’s breakfast was what she has learned the most from each of her parents: “My father taught me to hire the most talented people and let them do their jobs. My smile and my laugh come from my mom [Joann]. She’s taught me the importance of having fun.” At the time Jeanie broke into the sports business, it was still a male-dominated profession. She learned early on that simply being herself was the best way to establish credibility amongst her peers: “I’ve gotten used to it. In fact, the other day I was in a meeting with eight guys and I broke the ice by suggesting we sit boy-girl, boy-girl. That lightened the mood a bit.” Now in her sixth season as executive vice president, Jeanie describes her job as the “revenue-generating side” of the Lakers, whereas basketball is the “revenue-spending” side. One of the riskiest decisions the organization made was relocating the team to Staples Center in 1999. “I was of the belief that nobody goes downtown, but it’s been 10 years and 95 to 98 percent of our season ticket holders renew every year,” said Buss, who now resides in Playa del Rey. “The downtown area has been revitalized and the Lakers moving there has stimulated that whole movement.” Buss’ tireless dedication to her trade has helped build the Lakers into one of the world’s most popular professional sports franchises. “We like to think the Lakers are America’s team and that’s why we travel to other markets in the preseason,” Buss said. “We want that NBA fan who doesn’t root for a specific team to adopt the Lakers. That’s why we have fans all over the globe.”

She didn’t have that normal spring in her step, but Palisades High freshman Jacklyn Bamberger handled the pressure of her first big race like a seasoned pro, running the three-mile course at Pierce College in 18 minutes, 32 seconds to place third at Saturday morning’s City Section cross country championships. Bamberger was in the lead group from the start but couldn’t maintain the brisk pace set by San Pedro senior Laura Delgado, who pulled away in the last half mile to win in 18:16 and spur the Pirates to their seventh team title in 11 years. Senior Fany Alvarado of Taft came in second, three seconds ahead of Bamberger. Bamberger easily qualified for Saturday’s state meet in Fresno–an experience she is looking forward to. ‘Definitely. It will be a lot of fun,” she said. “I’m anxious to see what that course is like.” Bamberger ran a personal-best 18:20 at the City prelims one week before the finals–clocking the fastest time in any of the three qualifying heats. She predicted she would need to run under 18 minutes to beat City contender Jaclyn Walles of Venice, who was under the weather at prelims and ran 18:42. Walles wound up fourth in the finals in 18:43 and also qualified for the state meet. “When I was warming up, my legs just felt heavier than usual today,” said Bamberger, who set several school records this season for a ninth-grader. “I gave it my all but it’s hard to know when you’re going to have a good day or a bad day.” Saturday’s performance was perfectly fine for Dolphins’ coach Ron Brumel, who believes the sky’s the limit for his freshman phenom. “If she continues to work at it, there’s no telling how good she can be by the time she’s a senior,” Brumel said. “What’s she’s done already is amazing considering that she’s only been running competitively for a short time.” Senior Michelle Colato was the Dolphins’ second scorer, completing the course in 20:27 and finishing in 36th place. Sophia Stone (20:50) was 49th, Jamilett Maldonado and Wendy Gomez crossed the line together in 22:51 and Melissa Tallis finished in 24:52. As a team, Palisades’ girls placed 10th with a cumulative total of 227. “It hasn’t really sunk in yet that I made state,” Bamberger said. “I’m a little disappointed I didn’t win, but the two girls who beat me are seniors so hopefully I’ll have more chances.” Sophomore Grant Stromberg has paced the boys’ team all season and did so again the boys’ finals race. He started in the middle of the pack but began to pick off tiring runners late and finished 20th in 16:05, falling a few spots short of a berth in the state meet. Freshman Drake Johnston finished in 44th place in 16:46, followed by Danny Escalante (17:55), Daniel Hernandez (18:22) and senior Carlos Bustamante (18:30), who persevered despite being hampered by injuries all season. He has served as a mentor to the Dolphins’ up-and-comers and hopes to return to form on the track this spring. Evan Shaner (18:44) and Alex Hernandez (18:54) rounded out the PaliHi squad, which was 13th in the team competition with 228 points. San Pedro senior Pablo Rosales, a friend and rival of Bustamante the last several years, won in 14:31, a new City finals record. Stromberg was the fastest sophomore at this year’s City championships and ran the eighth fastest time for a 10th grader in finals history. Not to be outdone by his older PaliHi teammate, Drake Johnston was the fastest freshman at the finals and ran the ninth fastest time for a ninth-grader in finals history.

Palisadians Ali Hoffman and Drew Hargrave hold the championship trophy after leading Washington University in St. Louis to its 10th NCAA Division III women’s volleyball championship with a 18-25, 26-24, 25-17, 25-21 finals victory over Juniata College last Saturday in Cleveland, Ohio. Hoffman is a junior defensive specialist and Hargrave is a freshman outside hitter for the Bears, who finished the season with a 34-4 record. Hoffman won a state title her senior year at Marymount High and Hargrave won a CIF title at Brentwood last year.

Nine-year-old Katie Schwartz, a fourth grader at Marquez Elementary and student at Gerry Blanck’s Martial Arts Center, recently took first place in Kids Green Belt forms at the Adlawan Cup Karate Tournament in Santa Ana. Also winning was third degree Black Belt instructor Chris Wheeles, who was second in Adult Black Belt Forms and Sparring and Carl Fredlin was fourth in the Senior Blue and Green Belt division. Madison Wojciechowski, a junior on the University of Pennsylvania women’s volleyball squad, has been named First-Team All-Ivy League. Penn won the league championship to qualify for the NCAA Tournament beginning December 3. Caitlin Blosser, a freshman on the Princeton women’s soccer team, has been named All-Ivy League–only the second freshman to make All-Ivy at Princeton since 2004. Seventh-grader Maile Lane led the Calvary Christian girls’ cross country team to the Delphic League championship last week, finishing in fourth place in 12:09 for two miles. Eight-grader Emma Seaman was fifth in 12:25. Seventh-grader David Grinsfelder was third in the boys’ race in 11:13.

Former coach Bud Kling was instructing Palisades High’s players during this year’s City Individual tournament and top player Jessie Corneli was still alive after two rounds at Balboa Sports Center in Encino. Corneli defeated Marshall’s Spencer Trotta, 7-6 (6), 5-7, 1-0 (6) Monday and advanced to yesterday’s round of 16 against Alexandra Tallas of Granada Hills. Tallas eliminated Palisades’ Elizabeth Silvers in the second round. In doubles, the Dolphins’ duo of Katie Takakjian and Charlotte Farrant fell to Grace Grogman and Amy Tu of El Camino Real, 7-6 (1), 6-3. Spikers Lose in Semifinals Taft of Woodland Hills snapped Palisades’ 12-match winning streak in the City Section playoffs with a stunning 25-17, 20-25, 25-17, 25-15 win last Tuesday night in the Division II semifinals. Freshman outside hitter Katie Kaufman led the Dolphins with seven kills, senior outside hitter Emily Cristiano added five kills, senior libero Tait Johnson had three aces and eight digs, senior middle blocker Hannah Fagerbakke had three blocks and senior setter Lauren Gustafson finished with 28 assists.