Taft High Forfeits Berth in City Tennis Final

The Taft High boys’ tennis team has forfeited a berth in next week’s City Section 4-A Division final for using an ineligible player in a semifinal match.

Top-seeded Taft (14-0) defeated Palisades, 16 1/2-13, in a semifinal Monday but used a player who did not attend classes that day.

According to Taft Principal Ron Berz, student-athletes are required to attend two academic classes before participating in a weekday athletic event.

“It’s devastating,” Berz said. “It’s very, very disheartening. It’s a tough lesson to learn.”

Taft freshman Jason Weiss played in a tournament in San Diego on Monday morning and then drove to Taft’s afternoon match against Palisades, the defending City champion.

Weiss, Taft’s No. 1 singles player, won three of four sets against Palisades, which proved to be the margin of victory.

Berz said he received a phone call from the City athletics office after a newspaper story published Tuesday reported that Weiss played in the San Diego tournament before the semifinal match. After Taft verified that Weiss had not attended school, Palisades was awarded the victory.

Palisades will face University in the final Tuesday at 2 p.m. at the Racquet Centre of Universal City. Taft lost to Palisades in the final last spring.

“We’d never beaten them in all these years and now they’ll be replacing us in the final,” Berz said.