Palisades Rips Through Opponents' Defenses in Dominant Divisional Victory!
The Dolphins, who perservered after the devastating effects of the fire last year, score only 13 points after halftime in loss to Yuba City Faith Christian on Saturday.
Senior Ayla Teegardin of Palisades held her head high on Saturday morning. A 51-37 loss to Yuba City Faith Christian in the state Division IV girls basketball final at Golden 1 Center couldn't lessen the inspiring backstory of how she and her Dolphin teammates had already won by making it to the final despite all the trial and tribulations of the Palisades Fire that destroyed a community in January 2025. Teegardin lost her home, spent three months in a hotel and battled to regain her teenage life.
"I struggled with a lot of anxiety coming into games," she recalled. Ayla Teegardin of Palisades talks about losing her home to the Palisades fire. pic.
twitter. com/nNJoBx9Zxo — eric sondheimer (@latsondheimer) March 14, 2026 Basketball and teammates kept her focused. This season has been another challenging time with practices at night and at middle schools until the high school gym was finally re-opened at the end of January.
"That traumatic situation has brought everyone closer," first-year coach Lebre Merritt said. Palisades girls basketball coach Lebre Merritt talks about the challenges of the Palisades Fire. pic.