Tennis Takes Down Taft

It took less than a week for the Palisades High boys’ tennis team to get a measure of revenge against the school it lost to in the City finals last May. The Dolphins began the season determined to beat Taft and regain the section championship. Palisades defeated Taft 5-1 last weekend in the Division II finals of the California High School Classic in Fresno, and even though the City title wasn’t on the line it was a significant and satisfying victory nonetheless. “We went up there to find out where we were at as a team,” Dolphins’ senior captain Jeremy Shore said. “Playing Taft gave us a little added motivation. We also know we can beat them now so that will help when we play them again.” The Toreadors were without No. 1 player Josh Tchan but Palisades was also missing one of its singles players and it is unlikely Taft would have prevailed even with the defending City Individual champion in the lineup. “It’s a great tournament because the team gets a chance to establish an identity,” Pali Coach Bud Kling said. “The kids are together for two and a half days and they get to play good tennis against some really formidable teams.” In the championship match, Taft’s only point came at No. 1 singles, where David Engelberg beat Justin Atlan. All of the other matches were lopsided wins for Palisades. Kyung Choi won 6-0, 6-0 at No. 2 singles, Max Licona won 6-1, 6-3 at No. 3 and Spencer Pekar prevailed 6-2, 7-5 at No. 4. In doubles, Che Borja and Kramer Waltke won 6-3, 6-2 at No. 1 and Shore paired with Spencer Lewin to win 6-3, 6-4 at No. 2. Taft dropped two of its singles players down in an attempt to steal the doubles points but the gamble backfired. “We definitely made a strong case for the No. 1 seed in the playoffs,” Kling said. “We also have a tough nonleague schedule so hopefully we’ll stay sharp.” Palisades’ toughest match was in pool play on Friday when it tied Clovis West 3-3 in matches, 7-7 in sets and 76-76 in games. The Dolphins won because the fourth tiebreaker is No. 1 singles, where Atlan prevailed, 2-6, 6-4, 10-2. Palisades then beat El Diamante, Clovis North, Stockdale and Bullard to reach the finals. Having won Division II twice in a row, Kling said Palisades will move up to Division I next year. Last week, Palisades defeated a strong Santa Monica squad, 12-6, and on Monday the Dolphins opened the Western League with a 7-0 win over Venice. Atlan won 6-0, 6-0 at No. 1 singles, Choi won 6-1, 6-0 at No. 2, Licona won 6-1, 6-1 at No. 3 and Brandon Clark won 6-0, 6-0 at No. 4. Borja and Pekar won 6-1, 6-1 at No. 1 doubles, Shore and Waltke won 6-0, 6-1 at No. 2 and Lewin and Kenneth Choi won 6-0, 6-0 at No. 3.