Second Verse Same As First

Turnovers and Penalties Cost Palisades High Football Team in 20-7 Loss

Coaches and players on the Palisades High varsity football team were certain the second game of the season would yield a much better result than their sloppy first game had. Instead, many of the same mistakes that plagued the Dolphins in their opener resurfaced in a 20-7 loss to Santa Monica last Friday night at Santa Monica City College. Despite moving the ball at will in between the twenties, Pali once again self-destructed in the red zone. The Dolphins were flagged eight times for 75 yards, but it was where and when the penalties occurred that hurt them most. ‘It’s frustrating to drive all the way down the field and then turn the ball over or commit a silly penalty,’ Pali coach Leo astro said. ‘That is stuff we’ve got to correct if we want to be a winning football team.’ Santa Monica capitalized on Pali’s mistakes to build a 20-0 lead, then hung on to win its first game under second-year coach Michael Burnett. ‘We don’t pretend to be the most talented team, but we felt we could compete with Palisades,’ said Burnett, who was 0-10-1 prior to Friday’s victory. ‘Until you win a game, you’re not quite sure you can. You have to learn how to win before you can make a habit of winning. We took the first step towards doing that tonight.’ Santa Monica’s gameplan was to slow down Andre Harris, who burned the Vikings for yards and a touchdown in Pali’s 16-12 victory last season at Stadium by the Sea. Harris still gained 102 yards in 17 carries and was far more effective on straight hand-offs up the middle than he was running laterally on sweeps. ‘They pursued the ball pretty well, but they were pretty easy to run against,’ said Harris, the Dolphins’ leading rusher so far this season. ‘I’m glad I got the ball a little more this game. My job is to find the holes and do what I can.’ With Harris running effectively, Dolphin quarterback Dyan Cohen completed five passes for 81 yards in the second half. He finished 8 of 21 for 121 yards and one interception. Palisades’ troubles started on the first possession of the game, when a bad snap on a punt forced Harris to pick up a loose ball and scramble for a first down. Met by a wall of defenders, Harris lateraled back to Anthony Anaebere, who was tackled in the backfield and Santa Monica took over at the Dolphins’ 32-yard line. Kevin Poindexter scored on a quarterback sneak nine plays later to give the host Vikings a lead they would never relinquish. Cohen was short on a 49-yard field goal attempt on Pali’s next drive, then the Dolphins committed another blunder to set up Santa Monica’s second score. After forcing a punt, Palisades players miscommunicated on the ensuing return and Santa Monica recovered a live ball at the Dolphins’ 21. Michael Henley scored on an 8-yard run three plays later and the host Vikings led 13-0. ‘Against Sylmar, our kick coverage cost us,’ Castro said. ‘This time it was the return that got us.’ Pali’s costliest mistake occurred on its first possession of the second half when it drove to the Vikings’ 5-yard line only to lose the ball on a fumbled exchange from Cohen to tailback Anthony Anaebere. However, three consecutive procedure penalties forced Santa Monica to punt from its own end zone, setting up Pali’s only score. Sophomore safety Robert Gillette broke through the line, blocked the kick, and recovered the bouncing ball in the end zone to keep Pali’s comeback hopes alive. Late in the game, Pali drove from its own 3 to the Vikings’ 39, but turned the ball over on downs after four straight incompletions. ‘We have the talent to score a lot of points against every team on our schedule,’ Castro said to his players after the game. ‘All we have to do is take better care of the ball.’ The schools first met in 1979 and Santa Monica leads the intersectional rivalry 11-6-2. Frosh/Soph Palisades’ frosh/soph team faced a bigger, stronger junior varsity squad but gave a good account of itself in a 20-12 loss Friday afternoon at Santa Monica High. ‘I was impressed with how well we hung with them,’ Pali head coach Calvin Parker said. ‘We had a touchdown called back in the third quarter and if that had counted it would’ve been a tie game.’ In the second quarter, quarterback Raymond Elie ran for 30 yards and 20 yards on option plays, then scored on a quarterback sneak to pull Pali within 14-6. Donovan Blount scooped up a fumble and ran 60 yards for Pali’s second touchdown in the fourth quarter.