After the Palisades fire left Pali’s sports teams without practice facilities and equipment, teams, coaches and players from professional golf, basketball, football and baseball supported student-athletes at numerous events and meetings.
Senior Luke Schultz, captain of the boys varsity golf team, attended the Genesis Invitational from Feb. 13-16 at the Torrey Pines Golf Course in San Diego.
The four-day event, which had to be moved from Riviera Country Club in Pacific Palisades because of the wildfires, is a professional golf tournament hosted by Tiger Woods in Southern California as part of the Professional Golf Association (PGA) tour.
“As an amateur of any sport, it’s always a privilege to watch the pros play,” Schultz said. “It’s a dream getting the opportunity to be inside the ropes, especially at a beautiful course like Torrey Pines.”
Throughout the tournament, Schultz said that he followed professional golfers Maverick McNealy and Collin Morikawa.
Schultz highlighted his conversation with Morikawa, stating that “he has empathy for what we are going through as he watched all his childhood memories fade away on TV as a Pasadena native.”
The Eaton fire ignited on Jan. 7 and destroyed numerous homes and businesses in Altadena and Pasadena.
Senior Ian Sullivan, first baseman and pitcher for Pali’s Varsity Baseball team, also shared his excitement meeting with Los Angeles Dodgers manager Dave Roberts, who attended a Pali baseball practice a few weeks after the Palisades wildfire.
“I’ve always loved him as a player and coach, and it was exciting to hear him talk, especially with all that is going on,” Sullivan said. “He was super genuine and it truly seemed like he cared.”
Roberts visited the team on Jan. 29 at the Cheviot Hills Recreation Center in Rancho Park, where he donated lightly used baseballs and uniforms and encouraged players to “take it day-by-day, winning that day and staying hungry no matter what.”
Former New York Yankees manager Joe Torre and actor-comedian Billy Crystal visited the baseball team on Feb. 20 to share words of encouragement.
“[Torre and Crystal] talked about how tough the situation was and how baseball was a great outlet for us,” Sullivan added.
Additionally, the boys varsity basketball team was invited to the Golden State Warriors game against the Los Angeles Lakers on Feb. 6 at the Crypto.com Arena.
Junior Nikos Vasilevski, center and forward for the Boys Varsity Basketball team, described his experience attending the game.
“We went in through the courtside entrance where the players actually come out,” Vasilevski said. “We also got to go behind the scenes of the stadium which was awesome.”
In addition to exclusive access to the game, the team met with Lakers coach J.J. Redick, a Palisades resident, and Warriors coach Steve Kerr, a Pali alumni whose childhood home was destroyed in the wildfire. After the game, both players spoke to the team offering advice and motivation. Additionally, each player was gifted a pair of Kobe basketball shoes by the Warriors.
Vasilevski explained how the experience brought the team together.
“[It was great] spending time with my team and getting to do that together after we’ve been through all this stuff,” he said. “It was really fun just to be together with everyone.”
Moreover, the boys football team was invited to the Los Angeles Chargers training facility and participated in a workout where they also received Los Angeles Chargers merch.
Junior Skyler Walters, the Boys Varsity Football safety, described what took place at the event, and how they received a $50,000 grant from the Chargers, which will be used to replace the lost equipment.
“They took us into the gym, and there we met their strength coach, [Ben Herbert],” Walters said. “He gave us a speech about the importance of being active [and] being consistent in the gym, especially for football.”
The visit allowed the team to gain motivation and excitement as they experienced an insight into football on a professional level.
“It feels more real, we’re not only seeing them on TV, we’re working out where they work out and we’re talking to people who they talk to,” Walters said. “It makes it seem more doable if you want to go from playing in high school to playing on a professional level.”
Similar to other Pali sports, this experience has helped bring the team closer together.
“People are busy right now,” Walters said. “Many people have been relocated [and] some people are doing other sports, but everyone came out. It was great to see the entire team there, and it was great to just work out with them again.”
