Paul Franklin Thomas, a former football and track coach at Palisades High School, died peacefully at his home on the morning of December 24. He was 76. Born on November 9, 1927, to Dr. Herman Thomas and Florence Duncan in Blythe, California, Paul moved to Los Angeles where he attended University High School. He served in the Army during the end of World War II and returned awarded. After earning his undergraduate degree and teaching credentials from Cal State Los Angeles, Paul worked as a physical therapist and swimming coach at Kaiser Hospital. In 1962, he moved his wife and children to Pacific Palisades and began teaching at PaliHi in 1964. One of the school’s original faculty members, he coached football and track there until 1980. For years after retiring, Paul continued to enjoy his favorite pastime: playing volleyball on the beach near his home. He had met his wife of 51 years, Fleeta Joann Thomas, at Sorrento Beach in Santa Monica, just a few miles from where they ended up making their home. Paul was a selfless man who will be remembered in the highest regard by the many friends he made and the students he taught. All will miss him. In addition to his wife Joann, he is survived by his three children, Scott, Jon and Kelly, and three grandchildren, Brendan, Courtney and Morgan. Paul was buried on December 30 in a private ceremony at Woodlawn Cemetery. In lieu of flowers, a memorial donation to one’s favorite charity is suggested.
Patricia McCrone, 69; Active Volunteer, Traveler
Patricia Lee McCrone passed away after a long illness on December 29. She was 69. McCrone was born on January 24, 1934 in Buffalo, New York to Chester and Celia Stevens, one of four children. After graduating from high school, she attended the University of Buffalo and majored in business at which she excelled. She was later voted “Kelly Girl” of Pittsburgh. While in college, she met her husband Jack. They began life together in Kenmore, New York and moved upstate to Elmira, then to Pittsburgh before finally settling in Pacific Palisades, where they lived for 22 years. McCrone loved to travel, which prompted her to work in the travel business. Her husband’s work allowed them to travel all over the world and they continued to do so after retirement. Active in several groups, McCrone was on the board of the Palisades Newcomers Club for several years. She was affiliated with the Venice Family Clinic and helped raise funds, in particular for the annual Venice Art Walk and Children’s Christmas benefit-a challenge she truly loved. More recently, she was active in Las Doradas, a local women’s association which supports a children’s center in Venice. As expressed by dear friends, Pat was a “beacon of light, love and laughter to all who came in contact with her. She enlightened all our lives with her sincere interest in others and her total focus on their care, often brushing aside inquiries about herself.” In addition to her husband Jack, she is survived by her son James. A Mass was said by Msgr. Torgerson at St. Monica’s Catholic Church. In lieu of flowers, a contribution to any cancer organization would be gratefully received.
Back in the Saddle
Palisadian Stephanie Danhakl Survived Frightful Fall to Finish Equestrian Show
It was Week 2 of the Indio Desert Circuit Equestrian Championships in February and 16-year-old Stephanie Danhakl was well on her way to another victory when suddenly she met a cruel twist of fate. “I was riding and my horse tripped during competition,” she recalled. “I was thrown off and landed pretty hard. I got right up and thought I was fine. I tried to finish, but the pain became so unbearable that I just couldn’t continue.” Danhakl had broken her collar bone in two places and was told it would take two months to heal. But rather than give up on her favorite California show, the confident Palisadian persevered and was back in the saddle by the fifth stage of the six-week competition. Ignoring the pain and her doctor’s admonitions to be careful, she scored enough points to capture the Small Junior Hunter championship on a horse named Henley and the Large Junior Hunter title on Bellingham Bay. “I was really determined to get back in the competition because I had trained really hard for it,” she said. “I was at a disadvantage because I missed two weeks, but I did well enough in the weeks I did show to win.” That was just the start of a magical year for Danhakl in which she won at least one division at almost every show she entered. At the Monarch International Junior Hunter finals in Del Mar, Danhakl and her favorite horse, Lifetime, won the Large Junior Hunter championship.Then, at the Menlo Circus Club in Atherton, she was chosen Best Child Rider and won the Small Junior Hunter Championship with Henley. “I’ve only been riding for about three years, but I’ve loved horses for as long as I can remember. I’m fortunate to have a really good trainer who has matched me with the right horses.” For each show, divisions are divided up by age (hers is Junior, for 17-and-unders). Small or large indicates the size of the horse and the “hunter” classification is a method of judging that focuses on a horse’s form and technique on jumps. Barriers at her level are three feet, six inches in height. When choosing a mount, Danhakl has several musts: “They have to be quiet, they have to be well balanced and they have to respond the right way when you pull on the reins or let go of them.” Danhakl trains six days a week under the tutelage of Archie Cox at her barn in Lakewood Terrace. The little time she has away from the stable is divided amongst her friends, classes at Harvard-Westlake High (her favorite subject is science) and, of course, homework. “I go right from school to practice, so it does take a lot of time. But I love the competition,” said Danhakl, who lives in the Highlands and attended Calvary Christian School prior to Harvard-Westlake. “There is always room for improvement. I’m not really looking to go to the Olympics or anything, I’d just like to keep improving and try to keep winning.” As well as she performed at state competitions, Danhakl saved her best for the national shows. She won the Small Junior Hunter championship on her second small horse, Traditions, and rode Bellingham Bay to a second-place finish in the Large Junior Hunter category at the Capital Challenge Horse Show in Maryland. At the Metropolitan Show in New York City, she was runner up on Bellingham Bay and at the National Horse Show in West Plam Beach, Florida, she and Traditions were Small Junior Hunter Champions. Danhakl ended the year by riding Lifetime to the USA Equestrian Federation’s Large Junior Hunter national championship. The more medals she wins, the more determined she becomes. “This sport is a big time commitment. But if you enjoy it, like I do, all the hard work you put in is worth it.” Her immediate goal is winning again at the Desert Circuit Championships, which begin at the end of the month. Last year’s success and the adversity she had to overcome to win there have her feeling good about her chances.
TIMEOUT With… Jessica Kronstadt
Yale Volleyball Senior Overachieves On the Court and in the Classroom
Whether it’s a final exam or the finals of a big tournament, Jessica Kronstadt is as competitive as they come. A senior libero on the Yale University volleyball team, she registered 366 digs this season and had over 700 in her four-year career. She played all but one game this season for the Bulldogs and posted 20 digs in a match six times, including a season-high 31 against Dartmouth. She earned the Coach’s Award for her consistent play and leadership, made the All-Ivy League academic team in the fall and is involved in numerous campus activities-all of that while maintaining a 3.71 grade point average. A standout prep player at Harvard-Westlake, Kronstadt led the Wolverines to a CIF championship her junior year and played on Gene’s Team, one of the Southland’s most successful club volleyball teams, coached by beach volleyball legend Gene Selznick. Home in Huntington Palisades for winter break to spend time with her parents, brother Erik (a sophomore pre-med at Cornell) and sister Nicola (a sixth-grader at St. Matthew’s), Kronstadt visited with Palisadian-Post Sports Editor Steve Galluzzo this week to share her thoughts on volleyball, college life and her future… Post: Why did you decide to go to Yale, a university that does not give athletic scholarships? JK: I visited a number of schools my junior year of high school and I really fell in love with Yale and Dartmouth. The prospect of going to an Ivy League school always interested me, so when the Yale coach called me I saw it as a great opportunity. I went on a recruiting trip in September and I couldn’t imagine myself anywhere else. I liked the fact that there was no mediocrity. Nothing about Yale is mediocre. To be in this intensely competitive academic environment where students still have a great time and love the university was enough to sell me. Post: Being a student-athlete, how are you able to make time for your other interests? JK: What I wanted from college was not to have my life dominated by volleyball. I wanted to be able to pursue music and learn a language fluently. Of course, volleyball takes up a lot of my time, but I’m also in the Elizabethan Club, which is a literary society for professors and students who share a love of music and literature. I’m also a tutor and I’m involved in student mentor programs and those are things I might not have been able to pursue if I went to a big-time volleyball school. Post: After graduation next semester, what are your career goals? JK: I’m waiting to hear from law schools right now. I want to get a joint degree in business and law, which is a four-year program. If I get into Yale law school, I’m going to do that. If I don’t, I’ll probably work for a year in consulting or banking to have some experience and then go for my JDMBA. Yale law school is the best in the country, but I have as good a chance as anyone else. If I do get a law degree, I’d probably like to work in the DA’s office as a prosecutor doing the hands-on trial work. Advertising also appeals to me. It’s a very exciting field. Post: If you had to pick a favorite volleyball highlight at Yale, what would that be? JK: Just playing for four years at the Division I collegiate level is an achievement in itself. But if I had to pick one thing I’d say my proudest moment was beating Princeton this year. We hadn’t beaten them since 1997, it was at home and it was the last time I was ever going to get to play them. Everyone played great and the athletic director came into our postgame meeting and was so elated. It was just a huge win for our program. We beat Harvard on their senior night, too, which was pretty cool. On a personal note, winning the Coach’s Award was very rewarding. Post: To what do you attribute your team’s success this year? JK: Our new coach, Erin Appleman. She put the smiles back on our faces. She connected with us personally and athletically. She has really turned the program around. We had an incredible season. We had our best start in 11 years and we beat teams we didn’t beat last year. We won tournaments that we wouldn’t have won last year. We opened the year at the West Point Tournament and beat a very good Army team. She knew how hard to push each one of us and got the maximum talent out of each player, which is a special skill that I think very few coaches have. I’m glad I got to play with her, but I’m sad it was only for one season. Post: How come you chose to attend Harvard-Westlake High [in North Hollywood] rather than, say, Brentwood or Palisades? JK: Harvard-Westlake was just a better fit for me. It was a bigger school than Brentwood and Marlborough, one of the strongest academically in the country and it was more diverse in terms of the student body. I didn’t love it. If I had to do it over again, I definitely would’ve gone to Pali. But it did prepare me extremely well for college because it’s real sink or swim. You’re surrounded by lots of really talented people who are just as smart as you are. My junior year of high school was as hard academically as anything I’ve experienced at Yale and that’s saying something. Post: Do you still keep in touch with anyone from high school? JK: Not from my high school team. Just my friends from Gene’s Team. I played club with them for four years and we’ve all kept playing in college. Jenna [Grigsby] is at Cal, Jenny [Badran-Grycan], is at Villanova and Lauren [Carter] is at Penn. I see Anna (Carter’s nickname) most because our schools play each other, but I see everyone else when we’re back here on vacations. We had so much fun together. Post: How much did it help learning your trade from Gene Selznick? JK: He was as instrumental a teacher and as big an influence in my life as any of my teachers in high school or any of my professors in college. Not only is he a phenomenal volleyball coach who can teach anyone how to play, but I’d say he shaped a lot of my character. A lot of the person I am is because of the way he coached me in volleyball. I think if you asked any of the four of us, we’d all say the same thing. He’s still the best coach we know. I love having Gene on my side. In terms of my volleyball skill, Gene gets all the credit. Post: Do you prefer rally scoring or would you like to revert back to sideouts? JK: Unfortunately I never got to play rally scoring in high school, but I like it. The games go quicker and I think that makes it more exciting to watch. It definitely gives the weaker team more of a chance. It forces you to concentrate on every point as opposed to just the serving point, so I think it’s a good change. You have to be a lot more disciplined. I’m a little biased because I’m a defensive specialist, but it’s true-defense wins games. Post: How have you liked playing libero the last two seasons? JK: I love it. It’s basically the same as being a DS except that instead of going in for the same person every rotation, a libero can substitute in for anybody at any time in the back row. You just can’t serve. I like it because I consider myself a good defensive player and I like being out there as much as I can. I know I’m biased because I’m a defensive specialist, but to me that and the setter are the most important parts of the team because without passing and defense you don’t get to hit the ball. Post: Have the lessons you’ve learned through volleyball helped in other aspects of life? JK: I wrote my personal statement for law school about this! I love the camaraderie of a team sport. I’ve learned more about teamwork and more about leadership playing volleyball than I have in any other part of my life. It’s also forced me to manage my time and learn to prioritize. Best of all, though, it’s been a great friend base for me. Going into college as a freshman is scary enough as it is, but when you play a sport you have to get there earlier than the other students, so it gives you a chance to get acclimated better, learn the campus, and meet new people before classes even start. Post: When did you first begin playing volleyball and what sparked your interest? JK: I would say that 8th grade is when I really started playing volleyball seriously and when I learned a lot of my skills. People thought I was good at it and I thought it was fun. I was on Jeff Porter’s last Club West team and it was phenomenal. There was me, Jenna, Michelle Davis, Cassie Bryan… a lot of good players. We took eighth place at the Davis Tournament that year. Post: What advice would you give to high school girls interested in playing college volleyball? JK: In the end, it’s just a sport. I’m as competitive as they come. You will not find a woman who is more competitive than I am. I hate losing. I hate it. But I can think of nothing worse than choosing a school or choosing what you do in life based solely on volleyball. I would recommend that you choose a school you’re happy with and the volleyball will fall into place. Volleyball is a great sport, but keep it in perspective at the same time. Your academics are always more important.
Schwartz Chooses Oregon
Geoff Schwartz, a 6-7, 308-pound senior offensive tackle at Palisades High, has committed to play football at the University of Oregon next season. Schwartz was also considering UCLA (both of his parents are Bruin alumni) and Arizona, which just hired new head coach Mike Stoops, formerly the defensive coordinator for brother Bob Stoops at Oklahoma. Mike Bellotti electing to stay as head coach at Oregon was a key factor in Schwartz’s decision. “Theyv’e been there a long time,” Schwartz said of the Ducks’ coaching staff. “They’re an established program and they always win. I like the coaches and the environment up there.” Schwartz was selected to play in last Friday’s CaliFlorida bowl, matching the top prep players from California against the best from Florida. Schwartz also plays center for the PaliHi basketball team and pitches on the baseball team
Koral Signs Letter of Intent with UCLA
Former Palisades High quarterback David Koral signed a national letter of intent to attend UCLA, Bruins head coach Karl Dorrell announced last week. He is one of six junior college transfers who have committed to the school in the last two weeks. Koral, a 6-2, 210-pounder from Santa Monica College, enjoyed a successful sophomore season for the Corsairs, completing 155 of 281 passes (55.2%) for 2,202 yards, 18 touchdowns and six interceptions. He is expected to enroll at UCLA for Winter Quarter and will have two seasons of eligibility remaining. As a senior at Palisades, Koral earned prep All-America honors from PrepStar magazine in 2000 and was rated the No. 6 quarterback in the West. In two seasons at Pali he passed for almost 9,000 yards. His junior year, he threw for 4,902 yards and 57 touchdowns and as a senior he accounted for 4,057 yards and 44 touchdowns, including a national high school record 764 yards against Van Nuys Grant. He signed with Vanderbilt out of high school.
Landes Back on Court After Injury
Senior guard Ali Landes had 13 points, three assists and two steals in leading the Windward High girls basketball team to a 69-15 nonleague victory over Crossroads last Saturday. Landes, the Wildcats’ leading scorer last year and one of the Palisadian-Post’s athletes of the year, missed the team’s first 12 games this season with a back injury.
The Visual Treasure of the Santa Monicas
Photos and Text By JIM KENNEY I have been photographing in the Santa Monica Mountains since 1974. My initial interest began with wildflowers, which led to an all-consuming interest in fire ecology and its effect on the flowers and chaparral plant communities. The last few years I’ve been more involved with landscape photography. Success in this field involves some skill and a lot of luck. For example, the Temescal Ridge photograph on a clear day is appealing, but without the two hikers the result is ordinary. (See photo, page 1.) I did not plan to photograph the bright orange sycamores in Malibu Canyon, but I took advantage of the opportunity when I saw it. Of course, some of the photographs here WERE planned. I knew the Santa Ynez Waterfall would be there and set out with my tripod to capture the image. Same with the Giant Coreopsis-the previous week I scouted the area, then waited for a sunny day. (Not for the flowers, but for the ocean.) What I’ve found to be most important is to plan for the unexpected, and be ready to take advantage of it. Advances in film and digital photography are wonderful, but the same principles of managing light, contrast and composition apply now just as they did many years ago. Countless hiking excursions are not successful in terms of photography, but the marvelous exercise and visual excitement make it all worthwhile.
Nita Hughes’ First Novel Travels Between Gothic France and Now
For her first novel, Nita Hughes challenged herself by traveling between two time frames, 13th-century France and the present day in the same location. Hughes will be reading from “Past Recall” on Thursday, January 15, 7:30 p.m. at Village Books, 1049 Swarthmore. The story begins during the Inquisition, which is a threat to Clotilde de Mirepoix and her husband Jean, who possess the Cathar treasure, a set of manuscripts whose power they describe as so important as to change the world. Clotilde and Jean vow to return in the new millennium to unveil the treasure when the earth’s destiny looks darkest. The power of the Cathar treasure threatens the world once again in modern times when photojournalist Dana Palmer’s quest to find the treasure leads to her own peril. Hughes, a former international banker who lived in Australia, the Philippines and France, retired in 1994 to live in Maui and write. “I always was a closet writer and so after I retired I learned the craft. I read everything I could get my hands on, took a class and read novelists whose work I admire, such as Isabel Allende and Amy Tan.” Enjoying her new life in Maui, Hughes takes walks on the beach and a daily swim, but sticks to a disciplined schedule, writing from 10 till 1 and returning after a break at 3:30. A former Malibu resident, Hughes and her husband Douglas have three children who live on the mainland. She is already working on her second book, “Safe Haven,” which is loosely based on her time in Manila, when the Marcos’ government was overturned in 1992.
Top 10 Stories of 2003
Compiled by STEVE GALLUZZO
1. Rec Center’s “Field of Dreams” No sporting event in the Palisades in 2003 was more important or carried as much long-term impact as the completion of the “Field of Dreams” renovation project at the Palisades Recreation Center. The new fields were inaugurated by AYSO soccer teams in November, culminating a three-month long, community-funded project that was several years in the making. The $950,000 project was spearheaded by Mike Skinner, a longtime Palisades resident and youth coach. It included new bleachers, new turf and new dugouts and installing fences around the baseball diamonds. The entire town will benefit, as the fields are used practically year-round by youth organizations like AYSO, flag football and the Palisades Pony Baseball Association. Skinner’s committee hopes to hold an official grand opening of the fields at the PPBA’s annual pancake breakfast in March.
2. PaliHi Swim Teams Sweep City The dynasty continued in 2003 for the Dolphins, who swept the City Section swimming championships for the second year in a row. Longtime head coach Merle Duckett retired shortly after, making Pali’s victory all the more sweet. Sophomore Sean McDevitt led the boys, winning the 50 Freestyle and anchoring two relays. Pali’s victory was convincing, as the team accumulated 253 points to outdistance San Pedro (189) and Cleveland (138). Pali’s depth was evident by the results of the 500 Freestyle race, where the Dolphins qualified three swimmers. Senior captain Greg Walther finished third in 5:12.01, David Nonberg was fourth in 5:24.70 and Daniel Fox was sixth in 5:31.86. Other standout performances included Brian Johnson’s second-place finish in the 100 Backstroke and Nonberg’s third-place finish in the 100 Butterfly. The 200 Freestyle Relay team, consisting of Gavin Jones, Nonberg, Walther and McDevitt, won in 1:34.14 and the 400 Freestyle Relay team finished second in 3:28.25. Pali’s girls won just as easily, racking up 277 points to finish ahead of Cleveland (240), El Camino Real (182), Taft (118) and Marine League rival Venice (117). Cara Davidoff, a junior, led the way with All-American times in the 50 Freestyle (24.10) and 100 Freestyle (52.31) events. The Dolphins’ 200 Freestyle Relay team of Laura Johnson, Shira Frankel, Sheri Dunner and Davidoff took first place by over two seconds in 1:45.29. The 400 Freestyle Relay team finished third and Johnson was second in the 100 Breaststroke in 1:11.22. Luiza Campos won the 100 Backstroke and Frankel was fourth. Senior Stephanie Powers was third in the 500 Freestyle. Caitlin Owens was third in the 200 Freestyle and fourth in the 100 Butterfly. Georgia Hamilburg won the consolation finals in the 200 Individual Medley and Wishan was fourth in the 100 Butterfly.
3. Palisadians Win Will Rogers 5K Undeterred by scorching conditions, Peter Gilmore set a new Palisades- Will Rogers 5K course record for the second straight year, crossing the finish line in 14:10-eight seconds better than his previous record. It was Gilmore’s sixth 5K victory and he has set the course record on four occasions. “My goal is to break 14 minutes,” said Gilmore, who grew up in the Palisades but now lives in Menlo Park, where he trains with the Nike Farm team. “The heat isn’t really a factor in a short race like this. I figured I had to run the first two miles in nine minutes to have a chance. I ran them in 9:07, so I knew at that point it would be tough to break 14. I’ll probably try it one more time next year, then switch to the 10K.” Gilmore won the Post Cup Award as outstanding senior athlete at PaliHi in 1995 and went on to run cross country and track at UC Berkeley. He ran his first-ever marathon in Chicago last year, finishing in 2:21:48. Fellow Palisadian Kara Barnard won the women’s 5K for the fifth time, finishing 11th overall in 17:02. She won the 5K four straight times from 1997 through 2000, when she ran her best time of 16:50. Barnard switched to the 10K in 2001 and 2002 and won it both times, but the heat convinced her to stick to the 5K this year. “It was fun-it’s the fourth of July, I couldn’t miss this,” Barnard said. “What would the Fourth of July be like without the race?” Besides Gilmore and Barnard, several local runners won their age divisions in the 5K, including Peter’s mom, 63-year-old Rita Gilmore, who ran the 3.1 miles in 27:13. Gregory Myerson, 12, won the youngest men’s division in 22:37 while 16-year-old Ryan Gordon won his age division and finished fifth overall in 16:17. John Holcomb placed atop the 45-49 category in 17:03, finishing one second behind Barnard. Palisades’ kickboxing champion, Baxter Humby, placed 17th in the 5K in 17:33. Elizabeth Farnan finished first in the 30-34 age division in 19:57. The Riley family once again pulled off a trifecta in the 5K. John Riley finished first in the men’s 55-59 division in 20:15 while his wife, Bev Lowe, did the same in the women’s 45-49 division in 20:49. Daughter Ali, a standout in soccer and track at Harvard-Westlake, was first in the women’s 13-15 age group in 19:48. Kimberly Selby, 30, was the first Palisadian to finish the 10K, placing fifth overall in 42:27. Palisadian Maria Marrone placed first in the 45-49 division of the 10K with a time of 46:12. Three local runners won their age divisions in the men’s 10K. Ethan Meyers was first in the 13-15 division with a time of 38:04. Mervyn Cooper, 65, who has qualified for the Boston Marathon in April and will run the New York Marathon in November 2004, won his division in 54:18. In the 70-74 age group, Palisadian Andrew Martin won the 70-74 took first in 53:58. Palisades Bike Shop owner Ted Mackie, who has run almost every race since 1978, finished fourth in the 70-74 division of the 10K, completing the course in 1:00:43.
4. PaliHi Volleyball Wins 22nd Title Hanging in the gym at Palisades High are the banners of all the schools’ City championships. The girls volleyball team has accounted for 22 of those titles, including the one it captured in November at Occidental College in Eagle Rock. The Lady Dolphins won their first City title since 1999 by besting Granada Hills 25-19, 25-13, 18-25, 25-19 in head coach John Caravella’s first season. Palisades had reached the finals two seasons before, but lost in five games to Van Nuys. This time, Pali finished the job. “I’ve been wanting this for two years and now I’ve finally got it. It feels great,” said PaliHi senior defensive specialist Tracy Takemura, who finished with 20 digs and two aces. The match was the culmination of a season’s worth of hard work for the third-seeded Dolphins (16-1), who won 16 consecutive matches after losing their season opener to Sylmar in five games. Setter Diana Grubb ran the offense expertly en route to 28 assists, three kills and two aces. Senior Allison Houpt led the Dolphins with 13 kills while Ann Marie Barrette and Natasha Vokhshoori each had six kills and junior Stephanie Vaughan added five kills and an ace.
5. Nissan Open Playoff at Riviera Mike Weir shot a five-under-par 66 on the final day of the Nissan Open to overcome a seven-stroke deficit and beat Charles Howell III in a playoff in one of the most exciting finishes ever at Riviera Country Club’s famed golf course. “Everything went right for me today. I made some key putts on difficult holes,” said Weir, who walked away with the winners’ check of $810,000 and his second PGA title of the year. “Charles is a great player and he’ll have plenty of chances, as good as he is.” What made Weir’s effort improbable was the fact that he had failed to make the cut in four previous tries at Riviera. Like so many of his peers, Weir considers Riviera one of the best stops on the PGA Tour and said the course was as challenging as it’s ever been. “It says something when a course this old is still one of the hardest we have on tour. It’s a tremendous golf course and, in my opinion, the prototype of how a course should be designed.” After both players made par on the first playoff hole-the par-four 18th-Howell III hooked his drive on the 10th tee into a bunker. Weir hit the fairway. Howell III recovered by chipping his second shot within six feet and Weir’s second shot rolled to a halt eight feet from the hole. Weir calmly sank his birdie putt and when Howell III tapped his try left of the hole, he had to settle for the runner-up prize of $486,000. Lost amid the excitement of the playoff was Tiger Woods’ final round 65-the lowest score of the tournament and equal to Woods’ best round ever at Riviera. After shooting a 73 on Saturday, the world’s No. 1 player found himself in an unfamiliar position-11 strokes back and out of contention on Sunday. He finished tied for fifth with K.J. Choi with a four day total of 278-three strokes behind the leaders. Fred Funk, who held the lead after Thursday’s first round, tied for third with Nick Price at seven-under-par, Fred Couples finished at five-under-par and defending champion Len Mattiace tied Chad Campbell at four-under par. The playoff was the first at the Nissan Open since 1998, when Woods lost to Billy Mayfair at Valencia Country Club in Santa Clarita.
6. PaliHi Baseball Takes City Invitational The “feel good” story of the year may have been the Palisades High baseball team’s improbable run to the City Invitational championship in coach Russ Howard’s final season. The seventh-seeded Dolphins routed fourth-seeded Granada Hills 10-0 in five innings in the finals at Dodger Stadium behind a one-hitter from senior left-hander Dylan Forrester and a near home run to left field by sophomore shortstop Dylan Cohen. “The feeling I have is indescribable,” senior outfielder Jeff Megee said afterward. “It’s been a dream of mine since I was three years old to play at Dodger Stadium. When we got on the bus [assistant coach] Kelly Loftus said ‘Let’s win this one for Howard’ and we went out there and did it.” A questionable decision by the official scorer on a hard ground ball to third base in the fourth inning was all that separated Forrester from a no-hitter. He pitched with poise, striking out four, walking two and allowing three fly balls to the outfield. Palisades (21-9) got stellar defensive play from Cohen, second baseman Matt Skolnick and right fielder Byron Brooks. Evan Reis, Spencer Kirksey, Adam Franks, Niles Cook and Ron Michel all had key hits in the final. “Yeah, it’s cool to be able to end it like this,” said Howard, who announced before the playoffs that he was stepping down after 18 seasons to spend more time with his family. “We finished the season playing great baseball. Through the ups and downs, we never gave up. That’s the mark of a good team.” Howard leaves several lasting legacies at Palisades. He was responsible for having the Dolphins’ field named after George Robert, a former PaliHi teacher and longtime athletics supporter who died of a heart attack in May 2002 at the age of 86. Howard also initiated the program’s chief fundraiser, the annual alumni game, which he started when he took over for Jerry Marvin in 1987.
7. Palisadian-Post Tennis Open The third annual Palisadian-Post Tennis Open in September and October was the biggest and best yet. Palisades Tennis Center pro Eric Horine organized a stellar event, which featured local players in 16 age divisions. Played exclusively on courts throughout the Palisades, the tournament’s men’s Open final featured a rematch between last year’s champion and finalist. This time, PTC pro Francisco Franceschini beat defending champion Ross Loel in three thrilling sets. Other winners included Alex Baettig (boys’ 10s), Brian Alle (boys’ 12s), Chase Pekar (boys’ 14s), Matt Dubin (boys’ 14s), Arden Shore (girls’ 10s), Emily Keating (girls’ 12s), Yasmir Navas (girls’ 16s), Alan Greenburg (men’s 3.5), Danny Sembello (men’s 4.5) and Heidi Wessels (women’s 3.5).
8. Falcon Volleyball Squads Repeat St. Matthew’s eighth-grade boys and girls’ volleyball teams both won the Junior Delphic League championship for the second consecutive year. In June, the Falcon boys’ squad rallied to defeat Calvary Christian, 10-15, 15-3, 15-13 in the final. Seeded third, St. Matthew’s beat second-seeded Chaminade in the semifinals. “Knowing Calvary was going to come out tough and give us a solid match and also knowing it was the finals, I think the guys came out a little tentative,” said Falcons coach Lyndsey Banks, who celebrated her fourth championship in three years at the school. “But after the first game the guys were really supportive of each other and hung in there as a team.” The Falcons opened the championship match with a serving run by setter Matt Kremer to build a 6-2 lead before succumbing. St. Matthew’s led from the start in Game 2, with Jonathan Sebastian serving nine straight points, including three aces. In Game 3, St. Matthew’s built a 9-3 lead on the serving of Kremer, Sebastian and Blaine O’Neill. Calvary, however, held the Falcons scoreless for 10 rotations and took a 12-10 lead. But inspired play by Sean Dennis, Clark Porter and Daniel Auten allowed St. Matthew’s to turn the tide again and close out the match. In November, the girls wrapped up an undefeated season with an 11-15, 15-12, 15-12 victory over Harvard-Westlake in the finals. The Falcons beat Calvary Christian 15-3, 15-1 in the semifinals, with Katherine Sebastian serving seven straight points in Game 1 (including three aces). Cathryn Quinn and Sarah McMahon were dominant at net. Alexa Bagnard, Quinn and Chelsie Root each had four-point serving runs. In the finals, Quinn served four aces in the first game and Bagnard served three as the Falcons overcame a 7-1 deficit in the second game. Alexis Dunne and Nora Mardirossian also contributed from the outside. Quinn had a seven-point serving run in the decisive game. St. Matthew’s girls’ tennis team also enjoyed a successful season, winning its first-ever league championship.
9. AYSO Rattlers Rack Up Victories The Rattlers, a local boys U-12 AYSO team, enjoyed one of the winningest seasons ever by a Palisades-based youth soccer team. The team posted a 51-1-4 record and won 10 tournaments. Its only loss, at the Spring Break Classic in Pasadena, came to Hacienda Heights after 44 games, an overtime and 10 penalty kicks. The Rattlers shook off that loss by winning the Armed Forces Day Invitational in Torrance and the Irvine Memorial Classic, a CYSA tournament consisting of both AYSO and club teams. Coached by Chuck Davis, Glen Grimditch and Bill Barnum, the Rattlers consisted of Jared Davis, Charlie James, Zack Piehl, Alex Pack, Patrick O’Donnell, Michael Ray, Sean Grimditch, Alex Silverman, Jackson Liguori, Grimditch, Jimmy Carter, Greg Myerson and Spencer Koo, and Etaih van Herwerden.
10. Bryant & Grubb Win Post Cup Football player Damian Bryant and soccer/volleyball player Charlotte Grubb won the Palisadian-Post Cup Award as outstanding senior athletes at Palisades High. At 5-9 and 175 pounds, Bryant was hardly an imposing figure. But set him up behind the line of scrimmage, give him a running start and it’s amazing how intimidating he became. The Dolphin tailback scored 17 touchdowns and rushed for 1,470 yards in 2002, second-most in school history, and finished his final season third in yards gained amongst running backs in the City Section. He averaged 5.64 yards per carry, scored three touchdowns in a game three times and accounted for nearly half of the Dolphins’ points. More impressive to first-year coach Jason Blatt were that Bryant never missed a practice and did not fumble once in nearly 1,100 carries. Bryant rushed for 287 yards and three touchdowns in Pali’s opener against Cleveland, but his best performance came in the season finale at Westchester. He rushed for 121 yards and two scores and his electrifying 77-yard kick-off return clinched a 24-14 victory-Pali’s first victory over the Comets since 1991. Bryant played at El Camino College this fall but sat out much of the season due to injury. , Grubb, meanwhile, was the backbone of both the soccer and volleyball programs. She was a four-year varsity player in both sports and earned the Western League most valuable player in soccer as a junior and twice made the All-League team in volleyball. In addition to Pali, Grubb played for coach Hugh Donald on the Pacific Coast Soccer Club’s U-19 Premiere team, called “The Rage.” Respected by her teammates, Grubb led more by example than through words. That trait made her a calming influence in the heat of battle. Her biggest thrill in volleyball came in November of 2001, when she and the Dolphins played Van Nuys in the City championship match at Occidental College. Her favorite year in soccer was her sophomore season because “we had a good team and we all just loved to play.” Grubb accepted an academic scholarship to George Washington University in Washington, D.C., where she hopes to graduate with a degree in international affairs and/or minor in human services. Her younger sister, Diana, also plays soccer and volleyball at Pali.
