The Games Must Go On

By STEVE GALLUZZO | Sports Editor

Pali Strong! That is the rallying cry around Palisades High School in the aftermath of the fire that broke out Januatry 7 and ultimately damaged or destroyed approximately 40 percent of all campus facilities, according to Principal Pam Magee.  

“We have a unique opportunity to show the strength and resilience of our community in the face of adversity,” Magee said in a statement. “By coming together, we can ensure that our students can stay in their learning environment, with their friends and mentors, at a time when they need it most. The fires have taken a heavy toll on our school community, displacing many of our families and students who have lost their homes and their belongings. However, our students have shown remarkable resilience and the teachers and staff are committed to ensuring they continue receiving the education and emotional support they need.”

Following Dr. Magee’s lead, the athletic department has been tasked with keeping the Dolphins’ sports programs on schedule and finding alternate sites for practices and games because the campus is closed indefinitely. The girls and boys basketball teams played their first contests since the fire last Wednesday and Thursday, respectively. Soccer and girls water polo resumed this week.

“I credit Dr. Magee for putting the press on to get our winter sports teams playing as soon as possible,” Athletic Director Rocky Montz said. “As of right now the plan is to do online learning for at least the next few weeks. I’m not allowed onto campus but from pictures I’ve seen the gym, pool, football and baseball fields look to be in pretty decent shape. We’ve been dealt a bad hand but we’ll handle it the best we can. For league games we’ll play some doubleheaders (meaning boys and girls back-to-back) and others will be separate depending on what alternative locations we can secure. For soccer and basketball, if we have to play league games on the road, we will.  As far as water polo we’re looking at Loyola Marymount, Samo High and SMC or possibly the YMCA pool over by Uni High. Regarding the spring sports, which start their seasons in a couple of weeks, both Cheviot Hills Pony Baseball and Venice Little League have offered to let us use their fields but we’re considering all options.” 

Adam Licea, Pali High Assistant Principal in Charge of Athletics, echoed that getting athletics up and running as quickly as possible was a high priority.

“Definitely—it was important to keep teams playing,” he said.

Girls varsity basketball coach Adam Levine revealed that he has been flooded with phone calls and texts from coaches offering donations, equipment and gym time.

“Every parent I talked to said this is the best news of the week when they found out we’d be playing,” Levine said. “We had Winter Break so we only got in one practice for Fairfax (a 33-point win). Brentwood School was generous enough to let us use their gym for practice since ours is off limits. The girls couldn’t wait to play!”

Boys pilot Jeff Bryant, who  took the reins from interim coach (and girls assistant LeBre Merritt) in May, is faced with a challenge he did not anticipate, but the culture of accountability he instilled from the start has given players resolve amidst a touch situation.

“The fire was a game changer for so many families… at first I stayed away fron talking basketball,” said Bryant, whose team has been practicing at Westside Neighborhood School in Los Angeles. “I hopped on Zoom with our guys and told them you need to be ready for changes on the fly.

One day were supposed to practice at 5:30 but we had to change it to 2 and all 16 guys showed up on time.”

Baseball coach Mike Voelkel said his program is in revival mode after several players lost their homes.

“First, we’re making sure everyone is safe and sound,” Voelkel said. “Second, we want to calculate the damage. An administrator went to the field, did a walk through and found that the field itself is in good shape so we’re optimistic about recovering in a speedier fashion. I’m not sure if the lights work yet but I want to thank the first responders for saving a lot of the surrounding structures at the field and on campus.”

City Section Commissioner Vicky Lagos has announced that due to the circumstances over the last several weeks the winter regular season will be extended one additional week for basketball and soccer. Schools will have the opportunity to make up games that were cancelled due to poor air quality as a result of the wildfires.

Games may be made up the week of February 10-16 as well as on Sundays.

Even the wrestling team has found a place to practice, a Brazilian jiu jitsu studio in West LA.

“How soon we’ll be back on campus I don’t know, but we need a home to come back to,” Montz added.