Pali High Football Poised to Win League Title after Dramatic Victories over Venice and University

By STEVE GALLUZZO | Sports Editor

Seven nights after outscoring Venice in an offensive shootout the Palisades High varsity football team found itself locked in a defensive stalemate against University and, for a second straight  game, it took a heroic effort to preserve a two-point victory last Friday night on homecoming at Santa Monica College.

The Dolphins were clinging to a 19-17 lead when the visitors marched all the way to the five-yard line with 90 seconds left. The Wildcats lost three yards on a first-down run and on the next snap the quarterback was chased out of the pocket, got hit by two defenders, and fumbled. Adrian Romero scooped up the loose ball and sprinted to midfield before being dragged to the turf with 49 seconds left.        

“I was so tired… I missed the sack but I saw my guys knock the ball out,” a jubilant but exhausted Romero said. “I saw the ball fly out of his hand, I picked it up and ran for my life.” 

Having lost to the Dolphins 15 times in a row dating back to 2008, University was supposed to be easy pickings but the result was proof that anything can happen on the gridiron.

“We got very lucky and when you watch the film you’ll see why,” said third-year head coach Dylen Smith, who is now 26-6 overall and 11-1 in league play since taking over in 2023. “We can’t settle for this. Come to practice ready to work on Monday.”

Coming off a career-defining performance against Venice in which he threw for 473 yards and five touchdowns, quarterback Jack Thomas struggled to find a rhythm against University, connecting on 17 of 31 attempts, throwing an interception and losing a fumble. However, he also tossed a pair of 19-yard touchdown passes—the first to Demare Dezeurn midway through the second quarter and the second to Malachi Ross with 8:01 left in the fourth quarter that wound up being the game-winner. Dezeurn also scored on an 18-yard reverse to give Palisades its first lead, 7-3, in the first quarter. Ross had eight catches for 107 yards. 

Despite an “off” night, Thomas upped his season totals to 2,392 yards with 30 touchdowns and only three interceptions.    

University (6-2, 1-2) sacked Thomas on fourth-and-goal late in the third quarter, then took a 17-13 early in the fourth on a 75-yard run by Kamari Jones.

Linebacker Enzo Allen, whose interception near the 50-yard line with 10 seconds remaining sealed the Dolphins’ 56-54 win at Venice, wreaked havoc Friday to the tune of 18 tackles. Skyler Walters had 14, Romero and Nico Townsley had 13 apiece, Tavian Talbert had 12 and Chean Flowers and Augie Evans each had 11. Gabe Golub knifed through the line to block a 22-yard field goal try early in the second half that was crucial to the outcome.

Palisades (8-0, 3-0) stayed on track for an Open Division  playoff berth and can clinch at least a share of the Western League title with a victory at fifth-place Hamilton on Friday. The Dolphins will close out the regular season Oct. 30 versus Fairfax at SoFi Stadium. The game will kick off at 6 p.m.

The 59th and latest matchup between Palisades and Venicewas one of the best ever. Dezeurn had three touchdown catches and scored on a 48-yard interception return. The teams combined for 1,168 yards from scrimmage and 55 first downs.

The Rod Dedeaux Foundation will proudly host its sixth annual Charity Fundraiser Golf Tournament “Legends on the Links” on Monday, November 3 at Riviera Country Club. A VIP Par-Tee will be held the evening before. These exclusive events will bring together current and former professional athletes, celebrities, and local business leaders to raise critical funds for youth baseball and softball programs in underserved communities. The Foundation’s mission is to expand access these sports, fostering mentorship, teamwork and lifelong skills for young athletes. The Foundation also supports funding scholarships, programs and services for Los Angeles-area youth using baseball as a platform to cultivate success beyond the final out, to create equal opportunities for at-risk kids  to excel on the diamond, in the classroom and in the game of life.

In addition to the foundation’s annual initiatives and in light of the devastating fires that impacted Pacific Palisades in January, this year’s events will focus on supporting the recovery and revitalization of local youth sports facilities, including the Palisades Recreation Center and the Pacific Palisades Baseball Association. By investing in the restoration of these vital resources, the Foundation aims to help the community rebuild and ensure local children can continue to experience thebenefits of organized sports. Representatives from Live Like Braun will also be there to help raise funds for the foundation established in memory of Loyola High tennis player and Palisadian Braun Levi, who was killed by a suspected drunk driver in May only weeks before his graduation.

“The ‘Legends on the Links’ tournament, hosted by NFL Hall of Famer and former USC Trojan baseball pitcher Anthony Muñoz, is shaping up to be yet another remarkable day at the iconic Riviera Country Club,” Foundation Chairman Brett Dedeaux said. “Supporting inner-city youth through baseball and softball programs, including scholarships and grants, remains at the heart of our mission. This year, we are honored to extend that support to the Palisades community as it recovers and rebuilds. The combined efforts of our community partners, donors, and sports legends make this event truly impactful.”

The VIP Par-Tee on Sunday, Oct. 2 will take place at a private Pacific Palisades Estate from 4 to 10 p.m. and will be hosted by actor/comedians Anthony Anderson and Cedric the Entertainer.

Registration for the “Legends  on the Links” Golf Tournament is at 8 a.m. on Oct. 3 and the shotgun start begins at 10 a.m. for the 18-hole event. An awards ceremony and reception will follow at 3 p.m.

Among the athletes and celebrities expected to attend along with Munoz are ex-USC and NFL running back and 1995 Heisman Trophy winner Reggie Bush; ex-NBA stars Blake Griffin and Chandler Parsons; ex-Los Angeles Dodgers first baseman, 10-time All-Star  and 1981 World Series champion Steve Garvey; actor/producer Oliver Hudson; former Major League All-Star outfielder and two-time World Series champion David Justice; ex-USC and San Francisco 49ers safety and  four-time Super Bowl champion Ronnie Lott; ex-Los Angeles Lakers guard, three-time NBA champion  and 2008 Coach of the Year Byron Scott; and six-time MLB All-Star second baseman and 2008 World Series champion Chase Utley.

For sponsorship opportunities, please email: nicole@roddedeauxfondaton.org.

Riviera is set to host the Genesis Invitational in February 2026.

The Toronto Blue Jays host the Los Angeles Dodgers in Game 1 of the World Series on Friday night and Tyler Heineman is ready to catch or pinch hit if called upon. The 34-year-old Palisadian is the Blue Jays’ backup catcher (behind Alejandro Kirk) and did not see action in the American League Championship Series against Seattle.

Growing up, Tyler and his younger Scott lived on Radcliffe Avenue in the Palisades. Tyler made his major league debut in 2019 with the Miami Marlins a month after Scott’s  MLB debut with the Texas Rangers. The next season they became the first brothers to face off in a MLB game when Tyler caught for San Francisco and Scott played center field and hit a home run for Texas.

Tyler appeared in 61 regular-season games in 2025, batting .289 with 43 hits, three homers, 20 RBIs and 25 runs. Toronto won the AL East Division with a 94-68 record— one game better than the NL West champion Dodgers.

Heineman hit a school-record .619 as a junior at Windward then walked on at UCLA, becoming the Bruins’ starting catcher his junior year.      

The City Section girls volleyball playoffs get underway next week and Palisades is expected to be one of the top seeds in the Open Division (brackets were scheduled to be released today). The Dolphins enter the postseason with a 32-7 record and finished second to Venice in the Western League. The teams split their two league meetings, but a five-set loss to University on Oct. 3 dropped Palisades into second.

Venice also prevailed in two best-of-three tournament matches over Palisades but in head-to-head sets the Gondoliers hold only a 7-6 edge. Should the league rivals be seeded No. 1 and 2 they would not face each other until the finals Nov. 8.   

Palisades won the last of its record 30 City crowns in 2021 when the fall 2020 season was delayed until the spring due to COVID. The Dolphns were seeded No. 1 in 2023 but got upset by No. 4 El Camino Real in five sets in the semifinals. Venice knocked Palisades out in the quarterfinal round in 2022 and in the semifinals last fall.    

Having achieved its first goal, the Western League crown, the Palisades High girls tennis team can now focus on what it covets most­—the City Section championship. That prize has eluded the Dolphins the last few years courtesy of Granada Hills, which  dethroned Palisades in 2023 and defended the title with a 17 to 12.5 victory in last year’s final.     

The schools have combined to win the last 23 upper division titles—a streak dating back to 2002—and have met in 13 of the last 14 finals. The trend  will continue for another year should both teams win their Open Division semifinals Tuesday afternoon. The final is scheduled for 11 a.m. next Thursday at Balboa Sports Center in Encino. Since the Open Division (consisting of the four best teams) debuted in 2017, Palisades has won it five times and Granada Hills three. The Dolphins hold the all-time record with 29 City titles, 21 of those coming under current coach Bud Kling. Granada Hills has won 14 titles.

Palisades wrapped up league play Monday with a 7-0 shutout of LACES. Maria Kandinova, Charlie Roberts, Penelope Mihal and Nina Araseth dropped a total of two games in four singles pro sets while all three doubles teams won 8-0.    

Palisades High alum Jaxon Bell and his teammate Ford Koch scored their first International Motor Sports Association podium at Road Atlanta on October 10 in the Fox Factory 120 race—the final event of the 2025 IMSA Michelin Pilot Championship.

Bell and Koch competed with the Toyota Supra GT4, a significant step up in performance over their Toyota GR Cup cars, moving from 220 to approximately 450 horsepower. The duo qualified fifth and finished second while logging the second and third fastest laps among the 54 drivers in the class.

“Fantastic result to finish out the year with our Toyota Supra GT4,” Bell said. “It was a massive team effort by our Copeland Motorsports group to give us a fast race car with great pitstops. Huge credit to my teammate Ford Koch to hand me the keys in the lead. Can’t wait for Daytona in 90 days!”

Bell, who grew up in the Alphabet Streets, is the  son of 10-time Indy 500 driver Townsend Bell. He began his pro career as a 19-year-old in November 2022 with two podiums in the Skip Barber Formula Series finale at Circuit of the Americas in Texas.

Nobody is a bigger fan of Palisades High football than Lee Schwartz. His two boys, Geoff and Mitchell, were offensive linemen for the Dolphins and went on to successful college and NFL careers  (Mitchell even won Super Bowl LIV with the Kansas City Chiefs).

In March, the proud papa published     “Raising Giants: My Extraordinary Journey with TWO NFL Sons” about his 20-year journey as a football dad.

Lee made a presentation to the Pali High team at a practice in August after which a fundraising idea by he and team parent Tommy Brooks was subsequently approved by the Pali QB Club.

Schwartz offered to discount his book by 20 percent and donate 100 percent of the proceeds to the program. So for every book sold, the team receives $20. Schwartz was in the stands cheering the Dolphins’ varsity team to victory at archrival Venice on Oct. 10.   

To order a copy of the book and support the team, visit the webpage at omella.com/vxezk.

The Television Academy Foundation announced that over $435,000 was raised October 6 during the 25th Emmys Golf Classic at Riviera Country Club. TV stars, sports luminaries, entertainment industry executives, influencers, Television Academy leadership and corporate partners competed in the silver anniversary event with proceeds benefiting the nonprofit’s education programs.

The all-day event featured a putting contest, a full round of golf, lunch and auctions culminating in an evening cocktail reception. First-place winners were Rhett McLaughlin, Ben Silverman, Meyer Silverman, Miles McConnell and Rob Leff. Second went to Norm Nixon, Donny Mowlds, Jeff Farley, Tony Behrstock and Ryan Wilson and in third were Andia Winslow, Luc Robitaille, Darren Abbott and Tyler Wright. Boxing champ and ex-honorary mayor of Pacific Palisades Sugar Ray Leonard participated.

“We’re grateful to the celebrities, media executives and industry leaders who brought their star power and generosity to the course,” said Tina Perry, chair of the Television Academy Foundation.

Pali High Cross Country Teams Shine at Bell Gardens

The Palisades High cross country squads were back in action Saturday at the 38th Bell Gardens Invitational in Griffith Park and the  Dolphins took first place in the girls senior race and second place in the boys senior race.

Daila Harinck ran three miles in a personal-best 18:10.3 to finish fifth overall and Louisa Mammen (18:19.9) was right behind in sixth. The 11th, 12th and 13th spots went to Zoey Morris (18:53.4), Kendal Shaver (19:08.8) and Maya Bhasin (19:09.3). Finishing 21st was Maribel Henderson-Maclennan in  20:02.4, Sadie Hedford (21:09.8) was 49th in a field of 168 runners while Violet Cash, Hanna Sadzik, Lucy Ames and Abigail Hanelin  rounded out the girls’ lineup. The Dolphins’ score of 34 far outpaced  second-place West Covina (109).

Jackson Taylor led the boys with a sixth-pace effort of 15:23.5, Theo Mayeda (15:31.5) was ninth, Andrew Razo was 12th in 15:37.5 (a PR), Lajus Collins was 25th out of 234 runners in 16:03.9 (a PR), Justin Funk came in 38th in a season-best 16:30.9 and twin brother Sebastian was 50th in 16:55.8,  also his best time season. Soren Cohen ran a personal-best 17:25.2 and Richard Lopez, Darby Echikun-Woke, Toby Simon, Sam Salzer-Meyers, Lorenz Collins, Ashton Adibi, Noah Beroukhim and Noah Benharash rounded out the lineup. Palisades (67 points) was runner-up to Downey (57).

The Mt. SAC Invitational is this weekend in Walnut and the  Western League Finals are next Wednesday at Pierce College.

Palisadian Amelia Sarkisian, a junior at Brentwood, was 12th in the 5,000 meters in 17:58.5 at the Clovis Invitational on Oct 10.

Elia Rubin is making the most of her season season with the Stanford University women’s folleyball program.

In 63 sets played, Rubin leads the team in kills (212) and aces (27), is second in digs (166) and is fifth in blocks (27). On Sunday, she paced the fifth-ranked Cardinal with 17 kills and nine digs in a four-set win versus No. 14 Miami. Stanford improved to 16-3 overall and 7-1 in Atlantic Coast Conference play. Its only defeats are to No. 1-ranked Nebraska, No. 2 Texas (coached by Palisadian Jerritt Elliott) and No. 6 Louisville.

Stanford has captured a record nine national titles and is after its first NCAA championship since back-to-back crowns in 2018 and 2019, Last fall, the Cardinal made the regional final, losing in four sets to finals runner-up Louisville.

Rubin made the All-ACC first team last year, led the Cardinal with 3.93 kills per set and became the 23rd player in program history to register 1,000 career kills. The 6-1 outside hitter won gold with the U21 national team at the Pan American Cup in Mexico in 2022.

Growing up near Mandeville Canyon, Rubin  led St. Matthew’s to the Delphic League championship in 8th grade and went on to play for Palisadian Cari Klein at Marymount High, where she captained the Sailors to a 35-0 record, a CIF state championship and the No. 1 national ranking as a senior in 2021 while also earning Southern Section Division 1 Player of the Year honors.Playing for Klein’s Sunshine Volleyball Club, Rubin was the MVP while winnimg Junior National Championships in the 17 Open Division in 2021 and the 18 Open in 2022.