Photos by Steve Galluzzo
By STEVE GALLUZZO | Sports Editor
When the buzzer sounded to end last November 8’s City Open Division boys water polo final, Palisades Charter High School head coach Adam Blakis stayed in his seat on the pool deck at Valley College watching his assistants and players take their celebratory plunge following another finals win.
“I thought I’d sit this one out,” he joked. After all, he’s been there, done that—10 times, in fact.
Splashing about below him the players counted from one to 11—the number of consecutive titles these Dolphins have captured and the second-longest active streak in the City behind Palisades’ boys tennis team, which has won 14 titles in a row.
Palisades spotted Granada Hills a three-goal lead before exploding for 23 of their own behind “super senior” Owen Grant, who put forth the most impressive individual performance in finals history, netting 12 goals and using his wingspan to disrupt the Highlanders’ perimeter passing.
“Owen is one of the best players to come through our program,” Blakis said. “He impacts the game on both ends of the pool—not just on offense. He can steal the ball, he can block shots, he does it all.”
With a 23-10 victory, Palisades won the section’s first Open Division championship and with it extended its current playoff winning streak to 42—more than any team in any sport in the City.
Grant deserved the game ball, but he had plenty of help from his friends. Charlie Speiser had three goals while drivers Sean Ellis, Jordan Zaman and Charlie Shortt each tallied two. Goalie Logan Mirzadeh frustrated No. 2-seeded Granada Hills (12-6) with several point-blank saves, and freshman Noah Chang’s goal made it 14-6 midway through the third quarter.
“I wasn’t paying attention at all to how many goals I had,” said Grant, whose seven in the first half propelled Palisades to an 11-5 lead. “I was going for more assists in the second half but I got a little greedy.”
Jared Espinoza scored six times to pace the Highlanders, who took a 3-0 lead in the first two minutes and were tied 4-4 at the end of the first quarter. After that it was all Palisades (17-12).
“We seniors talked at the beginning of the season about keeping the dynasty going,” added a fired-up Grant, whose brother, Avery, got on the scoresheet with 1:11 left in the fourth quarter, to the delight of Owen and their older brother Oliver, who was on hand to witness his siblings add to the legacy he helped build as a member of four championship teams from 2016-19. “It was very important to us.”
Owen Grant more than doubled his five-goal output from last year’s 16-10 finals victory over Birmingham. All of the Dolphins’ finals wins in its latest dynasty have come at the expense of West Valley League schools: five versus Birmingham, three versus Granada Hills, two versus Cleveland and one versus El Camino Real.
Palisades now has a record 17 City boys water polo titles. The Dolphins won six in a row from 1973-78 before the sport was discontinued for nearly three decades. It was reinstated as a co-ed sport in the winter of 2008, and split into boys and girls sports that fall.
Birmingham won four titles over five seasons before the Dolphins started their current streak under Blakis, who was aided last Wednesday by the strategical acumen of former Pali High girls pilot Kirk Lazaruk.
Palisades’ last defeat in the City playoffs was to Cleveland in the quarterfinals in 2011.
Having achieved their first goal by defending the City title, the Dolphins will attempt to three-peat as SoCal Regional champions. They won back-to-back Division III crowns in 2021 and 2022, and on Sunday, November 12, they were awarded the No. 2 seed in this year’s eight-team Division III bracket.
Palisades hosted No. 7 Summit of Fontana in November 14’s first round. The semifinals are Thursday, November 16, and the final is Saturday, November 18, at 1 p.m. at Mt. SAC.
This fall, for the first time, the City had two playoff divisions. The four best teams were placed in the Open Division, the next 15 in Division I.
Preceding Palisades and Granada Hills’ battle for the inaugural Open title, Cleveland edged West Valley League rival El Camino Real 9-7 in overtime in the Division I final.
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