While every victory is sweet, but Palisades High setter Scott Vegas admitted there’s a little something special about beating archrival Venice. “The excitement is always greater, the emotions are stronger and the lows are lower,” he said. By the same token, the highs are higher when you win. So the Dolphins were on Cloud Nine after beating the host Gondoliers, 25-18, 25-22, 16-25, 25-18, to seize control of the Western League race and stake their claim to the No. 1 seed in the City playoffs. “The main reason we’re better is because of the La Jolla tournament,” Matt Hanley said. “That brought us up a whole level. If we continue to progress I don’t think there’s a team in the City that can beat us.” Palisades Coach Chris Forrest believes if his team can win its last three matches it will be as worthy of the No. 1 seed as any team in the San Fernando Valley’including Chatsworth. “We’ve beaten them [Venice] twice and they swept Sylmar in a nonleague match and beat El Camino Real in a tournament,” Forrest said. “Those are two of the best teams in the Valley so I definitely think that puts us in the conversation.” Jordan Cohen, who finished with four aces, got the Dolphins off and running with a five-point serving run in the first game. Vegas had four blocks and served six straight points as Pali built a commanding 13-8 lead in the fourth game. Hanley had 10 kills, Noah Kauss added seven and Taylor Savage finished with 10 digs. Baseball Palisades’ varsity remained undefeated in the Western League with a 10-0 victory at Fairfax–a game that was stopped after six innings because of the mercy rule. Brett Whalen went four for four with one RBI, Jake Kramer went two for two with a triple and one RBI and Garrett Champion added two hits for the Dolphins, who hosted Fairfax on Wednesday (result undetermined at press time). Buck Traweek (4-1) pitched a five-hitter with 10 strikeouts. Softball The Dolphins improved to 5-2 in league with blowout victories over LACES and University. Palisades scored eight runs in the bottom of the fifth inning in a 14-2 drubbing of the Unicorns last Monday, then scored seven runs in the top of the first inning of their 16-3 victory over the Wildcats on Thursday.

Palisadian Tom Hill has competed in, and completed, countless races in his cycling career but few have been as difficult for him as last weekend’s Mulholland Challenge. It wasn’t just the grueling 109-mile course that required some 12,500 feet of climbing that nearly did him in–it was the sweltering 100+ degree temperatures that caused almost 25 percent of the field to drop out. Still, tired as he was, Hill finished seventh in the 45-50 age group and 25th overall in seven hours and 57 minutes’just under his goal of eight hours. He also easily met his goal of finishing among the top 10 percent. “It was like riding through a hot oven,” Hill said. “I cramped up badly after about 80 miles but I kept icing down my thighs and I toughed my way through it. Judging by the times I’d estimate the heat slowed people down by about 30 minutes.” Hill had company for his second Mulholland Challenge (he completed his first two years ago). He has been riding and training with Palisades High sophomore Sam Dubin, who was the youngest racer in the field and was by far the youngest finisher. “He has a real passion for cycling and he’s got a lot of potential,” Hill said of his young apprentice. “We road parts of the course together a few times but never in that kind of heat. It was nice to see him complete the hardest event of his life to date.” Dubin, who finished exactly two hours behind his fellow Palisadian, was happy to see Hill waiting for him at the finish line. “He said ‘I’m so dead, I wasn’t prepared for this mentally,'” Hill said. “I told him ‘Yeah, it’s not easy.’ It takes a lot of determination.” The course started at Las Virgenes Road in Calabasas, wound through Malibu and Topanga Canyons and included several treacherous stretches, including the Rock Store, Little Sycamore, Deer Creek, Decker Canyon and Stunt Hill climbs.

It’s been some turnaround for the Palisades High boys lacrosse team. After opening the season with losses in four of their first six games the Dolphins have won five in a row and are looking like the team Coach Scott Hylen expected to see this spring. Palisades’ streak started modestly enough with a 5-2 victory over a struggling Mira Costa squad. That was followed by three more home victories?a 6-5 overtime win over Crespi, a 15-9 win over Oaks Christian and a 14-4 win over Huntington Beach. On Monday, Pali blanked host Manual Arts, 13-0, completing a stretch in which they outscored the opposition 53-20. Palisades travels to Malibu for a 4 p.m. game Friday. Palisades’ junior varsity boys were 3-6 heading into Tuesday’s game at Mira Costa (result undetermined at press time). The girls’ varsity team resumes play next Wednesday at Manual Arts.

The Pali Storm, a local AYSO girls’ U10 All-Star team, dominated its competition and won top honors at the Apricot Jam Tournament at Arroyo Vista Community Park in Moorpark last weekend. The Storm braved 100-degree weather and strong winds to outscore its four opponents 20-5. “I’m most proud of the fact that of the 20 goals the girls scored, they assisted on 18 of them,” Coach Scot Vorse said. “We had phenomenal passing the entire tournament and our defense play was incredibly solid. We are now winning not because of individual efforts but because of our excellent teamwork. The girls all played with amazing heart and determination.” The Palisades-based team, also coached by Dan Brecher and Don Parcell, beat the Agoura Westlake Lightning 5-1, blanked Santa Barbara 7-0 and defeated a highly-regarded Woodland Hills squad 5-2 to finish first in its pool and earn the top seed for the finals. In the championship game, Pali Storm faced hometown favorite Agoura Westlake Inferno, one of the most accomplished teams in the state. With the wind at their backs, the Storm surged to an early 2-0 lead. Westlake answered with a goal late in the first half. Pali’s defense held tough against the pressing Inferno throughout the second half, but in the final 20 seconds Westlake scored to force overtime. Undaunted, the Storm began extra time with resolve and renewed determination. No goals were allowed by either team in the first five-minute overtime period. In the second overtime, moments before the final whistle (and preventing a penalty-kick shootout), Pali Storm scored to win the championship. Six different players scored throughout the tournament as the Storm skillfully passed the ball from sideline to sideline, frustrating opponents and creating excellent scoring opportunities. Pali’s offense was led by Caitlin Keefe, Kaitlyn Parcell, Erin Ross, and Sydney Brecher. Defenders Michaela Keefe, Jayne Baumgarten, Charlie Robinson and Lili Vorse were solid throughout the tournament. In addition to their efforts in the field, goalies Georgia Raber and Katie Lord made key saves in the title game. With 30 victories this season, the Pali Storm next strike the Chino Hills Kickin’ It Up In the Hills tournament.

The St. Matthew’s golf team is breaking new ground this season. After winning only once in the previous three years, it won two Pacific Basin League matches last week. First, the Falcons beat Brentwood 245-270 at the V.A. Hospital’s par 3 course. Ryan Kahn (38) and Peter St. John (39) posted the two lowest scores for St. Matthew’s. Next, the Falcons edged Crossroads 240-245 at Rancho Park. Andrew Tinger (37) and Lawrence Kondra (39) shot the two lowest scores for the Falcons. Also contributing to both wins were Nick Kearley, Nick Lenard, Matt Chen, Taylor Stokes, and Preston Clifford Softball St. Matthew’s avenged an earlier loss to Windward with a 6-3 victory. Willa Ashley hit a two-run home run in the first inning and added an RBI later. Kristen Goldberg handled seven chances at second base, recording one-third of the Falcons’ put-outs, including four pop-ups. She also had three hits, one RBI and scored two runs. Jessica Goodkin had two hits, including a clutch triple, and scored a run to push the lead to 6-3 late in the game. Cami Chapus and Jackie Carr split the game on the mound, combining to strike out 10 Windward batters with the help of catchers Grace Kuhlenschmidt and Ashley. Track & Field Julia Newman won the 100 meters in 13.1 seconds and Cami Chapus won the 800 in 2:36.1 and the 400 relay team of Newman, Lily Donnell, Jessica Goodkin and Chapus finished first in 54.5 for St. Matthew’s in a Delphic League meet. For the boys, Ryan Hilterman won the 400 in 58.5 and was second in the high jump with a height of 5-2.

The biggest challenge for the Palisades High swim team this season has been finding pools for practices and meets. Once they get in the water, however, the Dolphins are lapping their competition. Last Friday, Palisades met Western League rival Venice at the Westwood Recreation Center and won three of four divisions. Palisades’ frosh/soph girls won 70-65, the frosh/soph boys won 65-64 and the varsity girls won decisively, 113-59. Palisades’ varsity boys lost, 86-73. Overall, Palisades outscored the Gondos, 186-145. The varsity boys lacked the depth needed to beat the Gondoliers. Swimmers are only allowed to enter four events per meet and every Palisades boy maxed the total events allowed. On Monday, Palisades took on host Hamilton at the EG Roberts pool on Pico Boulevard. This time, the Dolphins won all four categories. The girls? varsity remained undefeated in league this season. Palisades Coach Maggie Nance was pleased that her swimmers persevered despite not having use of their home pool in Temescal Canyon, thus having to practice at Santa Monica College. “I’m so thankful that SMC is bending over backwards to accommodate us,” Nance said. “We’re swimming a lot fewer minutes that we normally would if we had our own pool. The kids’ times are slower this year, and they’re not in as good of shape.” The impact of the Dolphins’ decreased practice time may not be felt until the City Section championships in May, when the varsity girls will look to win their third consecutive title and 18th overall. Defeating Venice by such a wide margin was an encouraging sign for Palisades’ varsity girls because the Gondos finished runner-up to the Dolphins at last year’s finals. The varsity boys, meanwhile, finished eighth last spring. They last won the City title in 2005.

Connor Treacy won the Boys’ 18s division at the 92ns annual Dudley Cup Tennis tournament last weekend in Santa Monica. Despite ‘playing up’ the Palisades Tennis Center trainee won all of his matches in straight sets, including a 6-0, 6-3 victory over second-seeded Dylan Tevlin in the finals. In the Boys’ 14s, third-seeded Alex Giannini defeated second-seeded Alexandre Miaule, 6-2, 7-5, in the final after beating fellow PTC player Robbie Bellamy in the semifinals. Micah Gordon also reached the semifinals of his draw. Palisadian Will Kehrer made the finals of the Boys’ 12s and it was an all-PTC final in the Boys’ 10s, with top-seeded Nicholas Koln beating second-seeded Lucas Bellamy. Rose Schlaff reached the quarterfinals of the Girls’ 18s and Palisades High teammate Samantha Kogan made the semifinals of the 16s division. In the Girls’ 14s, Perri Zaret lost only one set on her way to the finals. PTC standout Clay Thompson of Crossroads High advanced to the finals of the Boys’ 16s division at the Easter Bowl in Rancho Mirage. Thompson lives in Venice but trains at the Palisades Tennis Center. Palisadian Walker Kehrer, the No. 1 player at Brentwood School, switched to doubles and swept his three sets to spark the Eagles’ 15-3 victory over Crossroads last week. The decisive victory moved Brentwood into first place in the Olympic League.