The annual Palisadian-Post Football Contest, giving readers a chance to predict upcoming game winners, continues to week two.

“Every week, the Palisadian-Post will have a selection of NFL and college football games,” according to the contest rules. “Check the team you predict will win each game. The person with the most correct picks wins. In the event there is a tie, the tie-breaker will be used to determine the winner.”

There is an online submission process: Contestants can download or copy their entry form, fill in their picks, take a photo, and email it back to footballcontest@palipost.com by the 5 p.m. Friday deadline. This week’s deadline is Friday, November 22, at 5 p.m.

One entry per person per contest will be accepted. Winners will receive a $10 gift card from our contest sponsor, The Yogurt Shoppe, via email. Last week’s winner was Richard Olsen(+5).

The annual Palisadian-Post Football Contest, giving readers a chance to predict upcoming game winners, continues to week two.

“Every week, the Palisadian-Post will have a selection of NFL and college football games,” according to the contest rules. “Check the team you predict will win each game. The person with the most correct picks wins. In the event there is a tie, the tie-breaker will be used to determine the winner.”

There is an online submission process: Contestants can download or copy their entry form, fill in their picks, take a photo, and email it back to footballcontest@palipost.com by the 5 p.m. Friday deadline. This week’s deadline is Friday, November 15, at 5 p.m.

One entry per person per contest will be accepted. Winners will receive a $10 gift card from our contest sponsor, The Yogurt Shoppe, via email. Last week’s winner was Eamon Rowe(+7)

Anna Song Cards a 65 to Win Her Third City Golf Title and Leads Palisades to Its Fourth Straight Team Crown

By STEVE GALLUZZO | Sports Editor

Three holes into her round during last Thursday’s City Championships at Balboa Golf Course, Palisades High’s Anna Song found herself in an unusual position: trailing by three strokes. The swirling wind made it difficult to gauge what trajectory to aim for to keep the ball in the fairway. However, like all good players do, Song figured it out and once she did there was no looking back for the Stanford-bound senior, who turned in the most impressive finals performance ever and stated her case as perhaps the best girl ever to swing the stick in section history.

By the time she was through dissecting the par 72 course with near surgical precision Song was the sole  player in red numbers and 11 shots clear of her closest competitor. Her seven-under-par 65 set a new finals scoring record, bettering her six-under 67 that she achieved as a sophomore. She also became only the second player in section annals to win three individual titles, joining Van Nuys’ Tiffany Yau, who captured three straight from 2011-13.   

“I honestly didn’t know about the record,” said Song, who repeated as champion last fall with a five-under 68. “When you’re out there playing you’re not thinking about that.”

Song almost won as a freshman, shooting 1-under to finish second by one stroke to junior teammate Chloe Rahn. Her four-year total of 19 under par in finals play sets a high bar for the future and is a testament to the steely determination Palisades coach Dave Suarez has come to admire in his superstar, who last September played in Benahavis, Spain on Team USA’s Junior Solheim Cup squad, coached by 1974 Pali High graduate and LPGA Hall of Famer Amy Alcott.

“She doesn’t hit many poor shots but when she does she doesn’t let it affect her,” he said. “Her distance control is spot on and her concentration is incredible. It doesn’t hurt that she can out-drive the other girls by 30 or 40 yards, either.”

After parring the first hole, Song bogeyed the second and birdied the third to get back to even par, but Momoka Takahashi of Cleveland opened with three straiught birdies. However, Song had eight pars and seven birdies over the last 15 holes, including a run of five straight birdies from holes 8-12 that gave her an insurmountable lead. Showing she is human after all she did miss three birdie putts inside of three feet, but  on the back nine but with such a big cushion it hardly mattered. Following her sizzling start, Takahashi managed only one more birdie and finished third with a four-over-par 76. Song wound up winning by 10 shots over Mia Siegel of Los Angeles Center for Enriched Studies, the second largest margin ever behind Yau’s 11-stroke gap in 2011.    

“It took me a couple holes to get used to the wind,” said Song, who shot -9 at Balboa in league last year. “Every shot I had to take into account what the wind will do and if I’m playing with or against it. I left a few putts out there today but overall I did pretty well. Patience is key and being able to stay focused. If you give yourself opportunities that’s all you can ask. It’s great to win but this one’s sort of bittersweet because it’s my last.”

Today, Song will play for her first SoCal regional title at Los Serranos in Chino Hills, where she was eighth last fall. She would like to cap off her prep career by winning state next week. She finished second by three shots last fall in Pebble Beach.

Her sister Lauren is following in her footsteps. She seeks to set her own records and keep the Dolphins’ dynasty going next fall.              

“She’s ready,” Anna said. “There are no expectations. She’s her own person and she’s on her own path.” 

Song helped Palisades capture its fourth team title in a row, becoming onlyt the second school to win at least four consecutive titles. Granada Hills holds the record, having won six straight from 2001-06 and again from 2011-16. Since the turn of the century the Highlanders have won 14 team titles. Palisades is next with four and Van Nuys and Cleveland each have two.

“The scores reflect how tough the condtions were,” said Suarez, whose team beat runner-up Granada Hills by 63 shots with a score of 426.

Tenth Edition of Local 5/10K Run Set for Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving Day in the Palisades will once again begin with what is fast becoming a proud community tradition. The 10th annual Pacific Palisades Turkey Trot takes place at Palisades Charter High School on November 28. The holiday 5K and 10K will start promptly at 8 a.m. and is anticipated to draw 2,200 participants and 2,500 spectators. The local event has grown in popularity and participation since debuting in 2013.

 This year’s race will feature the same 5K course route through the El Medio Bluffs but the 10K course, which was added in 2015, will no longer include Temescal Canyon Road, instead simply traversing the 5K route twice, ending with a full lap around the track  before finishing at the 50-yard line at Stadium by the Sea. This year also introduces a kids’ race for children ages 5-10. All runners will receive a complimentary swag bag containing an event t-shirt, a chip-timed bib and other gift items. Results will be posted shortly after the race at www.paliturkeytrot.com/results.

Registration is underway on the race website (paliturkeytrot.com). Cost is $69.90 for the 5K, $80.50 for the 10K and 445.52 for the kids’ race. Prices will increase after Nov. 15. Packet pick-up will be in the concierge area of the Swarthmore Room at Palisades Village from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday, Nov. 25 through Wednesday, Nov.27.

Event organizers strongly urge runners to come to Palisades Village one of those days to pick up their gear early to avoid lines on Thanksgiving morning. Street closures will be in place from 5:30 to 11 a.m. on race day. Charities are Day of Giving, Fire Stations 69 and 23 and Desit.org.

Almost 1,500 runners woke up early last Thanksgiving to participate in the ninth annual race. The 5K field included 1,262 runners (604 male, 658 female) with an average time of 40:49. An additional 200 runners (105 male, 95 female) registered for the 10K with an average time of 58:20.

Lifelong Palisadian Sam Laganà was the emcee and the 2023 Beach Volleyball Hall of Fame inductee and LA Rams stadium announcer fired up the runners and the spectators in the bleachers with his trademark flair and enthusiasm. Race founder David Houston wore his customary turkey outfit and rode ahead of the pack on his scooter to show the way to rookie runners unfamiliar with the route.

Luke Zanuck, a sophomore on the track team at Williams College in Massachusetts, shattered the 5K record, completing the 3.1-mile course through the El Medio Bluffs in 15:36. Brentwood resident Will Sheehy had set the previous mark of 16:27 the previous year, three seconds faster than the 16:30 run by Ramin Razavi in 2016 and tied three years later by defending champion Thomas Fitzpatrick. David Olds won the inaugural race in 2013 with a time of 16:48 in a field of about 850 runners.

Brentwood School 10th-grader Amelia Sarkisian won the Gold Coast League cross country championship November 5, running the three-mile course on campus in a personal-best 17:01.40, over two minutes faster than runner-up Zooey Jeong of Viewpoint. The Eagles got second in team scoring, 17 points behind Viewpoint.   

 Sarkisian, who resides in  the Alphabet Streets and grew up playing basketball at the Palisades Recreation Center, won the league crown as a freshman as well and went on to sweep the 800, 1600 and 3200-meter races at league track finals last spring.

Sarkisian is enjoying a stellar sophomore campaign, having run 17:17.4 to win the White Varsity Girls A Division at the Woodbridge Classic on Sept. 21  in Irvine and taking first in the Small Schools Division in a time of 18:46.5 at the Bellarmine/Sacred Heart Invitational in Griffith Park on Sept. 28. She was fourth in the D3,4&5 Individual Sweepstakes Red race at the Mt. SAC Invitational in 18:02.   

Palisades High’s boys water polo team got all it could handle from Birmingham last Friday night but scored three times in less than one minute late in the fourth quarter en route to a 13-10 playoff victory at Maggie Gilbert Aquatic Center.

Charlie Speiser led the way with four goals for the No. 1-seeded Dolphins (12-16), including a 5-meter shot with 2:37 left. Benjamin  Mokhtar put the game out of reach on a bending shot just inside the far post one minute later. Hudson Mirzadeh and Jake Gallagher each scored three goals.

Palisades advanced to yesterday’s LA City Open Division final at Valley College against No. 2 Cleveland (16-9), which routed San Pedro 17-2 in the other semifinal.

The Dolphins entered Wednesday’s championship encounter as defending champions, having not lost in the playoffs since 2011. They won the inaugural Open Division title last fall while Cleveland took  the Division I crown.

Penalty Prone Dolphins Outscore South East 35-32 in First Round of City Division I Playoffs

By STEVE GALLUZZO | Sports Editor

Having received the No. 5 seed in the City Section Division I playoffs the Palisades High football team hosted No. 12 South East in the first round last Friday night at Stadium by the Sea and the schools’ first postseason meeting was rightly one for the books.

Junior Jack Thomas completed 14 of 26 passes for 227 yards and four touchdowns—three of them to Max Hejazi—and Nico Townsley returned the opening kickoff 65 yards for another score as the Dolphins lived to swim another day with a 35-32 triumph. At times, Palisades was its own worst enemy, racking up nearly 200 yards in penalties, but every time a stop was needed the defense came through,  led by linebackers Jake Treibatch (nine tackles) and Cash Allen (seven) and cornerback Connor Petoyan (six).

After Townsley’s runback and Jack Malloy’s point-after made it 7-0 only 12 seconds into the contest the Jaguars showed they would not   go down without a fight, marching 66 yards in five plays capped by Edward Rivera’s five-yard run. His subsequent two-point run gave the visitors the lead, but not for long.

On the fifth play of its next drive Palisades re-took the lead on a 55-yard strike from Thomas to wideout LeHenry Solomon with 3:58 left in the first quarter.

Eddie Bryant Jr. returned the ensuing kickoff 60 yards to Palisades’ 5, setting up a 25-yard field goal by Bradley Villada that pulled South East within 14-11 late in the first quarter. Early in the second quarter, Hejazi caught his first touchdown pass on a 27-yard toss from Thomas, but the Jaguars (6-4) responded with another touchdown run by Rivera and Palisades led 21-18 at halftime. After the Jaguars turned irover on downs to begin the second half the Dolphins embarked on their best drive of the night, moving 75 yards in 13 plays and scoring on Hejazi’s juggling catch over the middle from 19 yards out to take a 10-point lead with 2:15 left in the third quarter.

Rivera’s third touchdown run cut South East’s deficit to 28-25 early in the fourth quarter but three and a half minutes later Thomas hooked up with Hejazi for the third time, this one from 14 yards out to makr it a 10-point margin. Rivera’s five-yard run with 3:25 left made it 32-25 but Augie Evans recovered the onside kick and a pass interference call on fourth down with 31 seconds left moved the chains and allowed Palisades (9-2) to run out the clock.

Harrison Carter carried the ball  23 times for 101 yards and caught five passes for 60 yards. Ricardo Martin had a 19-yard reception and Hejazi finished with seven grabs for 93 yards.         

Thomas was picked off late in the first half, only his third interception all season, and Carter was stopped  on the 1-yard line on the final play of the first half, keeping the Jaguars within one score. Through 11 games, Thomas has thrown for 34 touchdowns and rushed for eight.

The victory moved Palisades into the quarterfinals and the Dolphins will travel to fourth-seeded North Hollywood on Friday. Kickoff is at 7 p.m. The Valley Mission League champions (11-0) outscored Granada Hills 36-30 for the first Division I playoff win in program history. Nate Arlauskas threw for a pair of touchdowns and Daylan Garcia ran for 144 yards and two scores.

Top-seeded Eagle Rock survived a scare against No. 16 Crenshaw, 8-7, while No. 3 Venice was upset by 14th-seeded Franklin, 28-7.

By STEVE GALLUZZO | Sports Editor

More than 150 people signed up for Paul Revere Middle School’s fourth annual Family Fun Run on Saturday morning, November 2. P.E. teacher Paul Foxson sent the enthusiastic field on its way for a three-lap route around the campus, starting and ending on the athletic field, and breaking the tape in the 5K race was 32-year-old Ripley Sellers, who clocked 19:24.

“Under 20 [minutes] was my goal,” said Sellers, a Los Feliz resident who runs daily and was encouraged to enter by his girfriend Esmeralda, whose little brother Matteo is a sixth-grader at Revere. “I got a little tour of the school and got to see some normal folks on their morning runs and walks. What do I get? Coffee and a donut would be great!”     

Greeting Sellers at the finish line was his 9-year-old boxer/chihuahua mix Ziggy. Sellers grew up playing AYSO in Burbank and grduated in 2010 from Campbell Hall in North Hollywood, where he ran cross country and played on the soccer team. “I like the mixed terrain with the gravel, rock, grass and pavement,” he said. “I know the Palisades… I have friends who live here.”

Sellers went to Vassar College in New York and is the associate editor of A Blog to Watch, a podcast that reviews and discusses wrist watches.      

The first Revere student across the finish line was Alessandro Prilusky, who was third overall in 20:47—six minutes faster than his debut time last year. Shortly after, fellow eighth-grader Mikael Khani finished fifth in 21:08. It was his first time participating in the Fun Run, which he described as “confusing but fun.”    

Prizes were awarded to the top four runners and the best individual costume and best family costume. Val Ward won for his head-to-toe Hot Dog outfit; Alyssa Scott Webster and Laura Scott ran as a Troll & Mom; Lilou Kahle donned a Cookie Monster suit and Maxine Fields dressed up as a clown.

Ward, who turned 15 three days before, was fourth in 20:50. “I ran it last year as a student here,” he said. The school recordholder in the 100 meters (11.44), Ward is now a freshman at Pali High, where he plans  to run the 100, 4×100 relay and long jump in the spring.

Heading into its annual City Finals showdown with Granada Hills on October 30, the Palisades High girls tennis team was supremely confident it could regain the Open Division championship the Highlanders wrested away last season. After all, the Dolphins‘ lineup featured two players who were not on the team a year ago—sophomore Shaya Jovanovic and freshman EJ Martin, who are friends and highly-ranked junior players. They combined to win five of seven singles sets but that was not quite enough to keep Granada Hills from repeating with a 17 to 12.5 victory in the round robin format at Balboa Sports Center in Encino.

The Highlanders’ No. 1 duo and reigning two-time City Individual doubles champions Georgia Brown and Priscilla Grinner rallied from a 4-3 deficit to beat Palisades’ No. 2 tandem of Sashi Gancheva and Penelope Mihal, 6-4, completing a sweep of their three sets (each worth one and a half points) and pushing their team past the 15-point threshold needed to clinch.      The No. 2 team of Amy Nghiem and America Fragoso also swept and Sayuri Parandian won all four of her sets at No. 1 singles for top-seeded Granada Hills, which captured its 14th section crown and second straight in the four-team Open bracket. Palisades beat El Camino Real 25.5 to 2 while the Highlanders beat Marshall 26.5 to 3 in the semifinals two days earlier.     

Parandian and Jovanovic met in the last rotation in the finals and the Granada Hills senior prevailed 8-6 in a tiebreaker. Martin was subbed out for her last set.

Ella Engel and Nicole Nguyen rounded out Palisades’ singles spots. Gancheva and Mihal beat the Highlanders’ third team as did Palisades’ top duo of Anais Israels and Anne Kelly and the No. 3 duo of Reese Trepanier and Dori Jamhedor. The Dolphins have won 29 section titles since 1973, including 21 under coach Bud King.   

Palisades and Granada Hills have faced off in 13 of the last 14 finals and the two schools have combined to capture the last 23 upper division titles.