The Palisades High boys volleyball team may have been a straight-set winner over Sun Valley Poly in Tuesday night’s City Section semifinal. But anyone in the PaliHi gym saw a game that was far closer than the box score indicated. In the end, the Dolphins triumphed, 25-20, 25-23 and 25-10. But the Parrots opened up a 19-18 lead in the first set, before ultimately giving away the last five points of the set. Then, in the second set, Poly opened with a 17-10 lead to seize momentum of the match and send their cheering section into a frenzy. Once the lead hit 21-17 later in the set, the Dolphins struck back and rattled off six straight points to take their first lead of the match. With Pali nursing a 24-23 advantage, Poly’s Jose Tinajero found himself confused on the serve and took longer than the allocated five seconds’and the referees awarded the point to the Dolphins, something Pali head coach Chris Forrest said he had ‘never seen happen in 11 years of coaching.’ The Dolphins took the lucky break and a two-set advantage and wouldn’t look back, storming to a double-digit lead in the third set before winning resoundingly. But Forrest was candid about what he thought of his team’s play. ’I don’t have many positive things to say right now,’ Forrest said. ‘Our guys have shining moments, but tonight they didn’t have any of them ‘ They were nervous and they let the moment get to them.’ Even still, there were a number of bright spots for Pali. Outside hitter Alex Frapech set the tone with his leaping ability, both with numerous kills and an effective jump-serve. Meanwhile, junior Conor Nasch held down the middle and played a huge role in boosting the Dolphins in the second set when Poly looked as though they would go onto win the set, and captain Jack Scharf showed heady play throughout. Not to mention, Denton Van Duzer and Chance Earnest both keep improving as they work their way back into the rotation following injuries. The Dolphins could need everyone for Saturday’s final at Venice High at 5 p.m. against top-seeded Granada Hills (which beat Pali early in the season before the Dolphins were at full-strength).
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