Being seeded No. 1 in the City playoffs has hardly bothered the Palisades High boys tennis team. Pre-season favorites to repeat as Section champions, the Dolphins have grown accustomed to the added pressure. In fact, they thrive on it. “We don’t let it get to us,” Palisades’ No. 1 player Ben Tom said. “We are pretty focused on our goal.” Now, Palisades finds itself one match away from its goal after decisive victories over El Camino Real last Wednesday and Taft on Monday. The Dolphins (15-0) play second-seeded Granada Hills (14-1) for the City championship Friday at Balboa Sports Center in Encino. Friday’s match will begin at 1 p.m. The City playoffs utilize a round robin format in which 29 1/2 total points are available. Each singles set is worth one point and each doubles set is worth one and a half points. The first team to reach 15 points wins. In the quarterfinals, Palisades made short work of El Camino Real, winning 22 1/2 to 7. Stephen Surjue and Sepehr Safii, doubles runners-up at the All-City Individuals tournament last year, swept 6-0, 6-1, 6-1. The rematch of last year’s final proved to be no contest as the Dolphins took seven of nine doubles sets and 12 of 16 singles sets. Heading into Monday’s semifinal against fourth-seeded Taft, however, Pali had cause for concern. With Surjue unavailable due to a family emergency and Daniel Burge sidelined with an injury, the Dolphins had to shuffle their doubles lineup. Seth Mandelkern and Michael Light moved to the No. 1 spot, Safii teamed with Mason Hays at No. 2 and junior George Hudak was paired with freshman Jeremy Shore at No. 3. “George and Jeremy hadn’t played together all year and they came up huge for us,” PaliHi head coach Bud Kling said. “They won their first two sets and were up 3-2 against the No. 1 team before losing the last four games.” Palisades won eight of nine doubles sets on its way to a 22 to 7 1/2 win. Playing Chase Pekar No. 1 singles, freshman Chase Pekar took three out of four sets and Tom did the same at No. 2, losing only in a tiebreaker to the Toreadors’ top player, Josh Tchan. “I’m used to playing with different partners, so it doesn’t phase me,” Shore said. “The key is to know each others’ weaknesses and try to hide them from your opponents as best you can. George’s forehand is better than his backhand so I played the ad court. He’s more aggressive at net than I am so he did most of the poaching and our strategy worked.” Mandelkern and Light lost just six games in three sets. Safii and Hays, who played together last year, lost only five games. “Our doubles are pretty strong, no matter who’s playing where,” Safii said. “I think we’ll be fine Friday as long as we remember not to be overconfident. Coach keeps reminding us just to play our tennis.” Ariel Oleynik won two sets at No. 3 singles, including a tiebreak victory over Taft’s No. 3 player Rashid Rahman, who had swept all four of his sets against the Dolphins in last year’s semifinals. Adam Deloje, Pali’s No. 1 player last season, won his last two sets at No. 4 singles, 6-4, 6-1. Kling announced his revamped lineup on the bus on the way to the match. “When we found out Stephen [Surjue] wasn’t playing, we knew there were going to be some changes,” Hudak said. “It’s nothing new. The great thing about our team is that everyone contributes.” Granada Hills was equally impressive in its semifinal, routing third-seeded Eagle Rock, 23 to 6 1/2, to set up a match between the top two seeds. Although he believes the final could be close, Taft coach Tom Wright gives Palisades the edge. “I think Pali is just a little tougher. I see them winning by at least four points,” he said. “We’ve played both teams now and Pali beat us more convincingly.” Taft (13-3) actually beat the Highlanders, 4-3, in the first round of West Valley League play when Granada Hills was missing several players. Back on their home court, the Highlanders won the second meeting, 6-1. Though he acknowledged Palisades as the favorite, Highlanders’ coach Simon Robertshaw said his team is capable of an upset: “If we bring our ‘A’ game, we should be able to take them.”
This page is available to subscribers. Click here to sign in or get access.
