Granada Hills Faces Mighty Foe

Rackets and sling shots in hand, Granada Hills High is ready to take on the Goliath of City Section boys’ tennis.

The Highlanders, seeded No. 3, will play perennial champion and top-seeded Palisades in the final match of the City Championships today at noon at Meridian’s Tennis L.A. in Los Angeles.

Van Nuys, the two-time defending City 3-A Division champion, returns to another final. The No. 7-seeded Wolves (11-5) will play No. 4 Hamilton in the City Division title match at noon at Meridian’s.

Palisades (13-2) has won the last four upper-division titles and has claimed 23 boys’ championships since 1965.

“They’re Goliath, there’s no doubt about it,” Granada Hills Coach Ron Wood said. “Palisades, by and large, has been a cut above everybody else.”

The Highlanders (14-1) know that better than most teams.

Granada Hills advanced to the 4-A semifinals the last five years and lost to the Dolphins in in 1996 and 1997. The Highlanders lost to El Camino Real in the semifinals last year.

Creating double trouble for the Dolphins is probably the Highlanders’ best chance this time.

Granada Hills lost 13 of 25 sets against El Camino Real in the semifinals on Monday.

But the Highlanders edged the No. 2 Conquistadores, 15 1/2-14, by dominating in doubles, where victories are worth 1 1/2 points instead of one point, as in singles.