Canterbury takes an early home-water advantage on Day 3 at the National Scholastic Championships contested at Meatworks, Kaikoura.
A mammoth day of surfing was required to make headway into the event after a half day on Monday and complete lay day on Day 2.
The Under 18 Boys Division got in the water for the first time as did all female divisions and the longboarders.
While some participants commenced their campaigns, others ended theirs with the first requalifying rounds being contested as well as the second round of the Under 16 Boys Division. The eliminations meant the first shuffle of the team rankings giving advantage to the home team over Northland and Auckland.
The swell built throughout the day to a solid 1.0m. The northeast winds made conditions challenging at times as did the early morning full tides as the event marched through 33 heats of action.
Closing out the day was the second round of the Under 16 Boys Division and it was the only Kaikoura surfer in the event, Tyler Perry, sporting a new haircut, that looked in form advancing to the quarterfinals. Perry posted a 10.30 point heat total for the win alongside team mate Jai Oakley (Chch) finishing in second.
“So sick to have an event at home where I surf all the time, I was so stoked to hear it was going to be held here. I love surfing my local,” offered a confident Perry.
“Happy to have a good heat today too, I got some good waves and finished my turns and progressed with my team mate Jai. I hope the swell holds through the next couple of days and it gets a bit cleaner so that there are waves on the fuller tides when we have our next heats,” he added.
Perry was joined by Northland surfers Te Kauwhata Kauwhata and Izaak Hayes along with Hawke’s Bay’s Luca Rendle (HBay) as surfers to advance out of the early heats that ended the day, all four surfers advancing to the quarterfinals.
The event brought Jacob Saunders (Mnt) back into the competitive mix in the Under 18 Boys Division. After taking most of the year off, he instantly caught the eye of his opponents with a stylish display of surfing that led to a heat win.
“I always love doing the Scholastics. I love the team environment and having the support of a team and your mates behind you for a whole event,” said Saunders after scoring 14.3 points in his heat.
“I am pretty excited about the event and our chances as a team. We are just hoping to do the best we can this week,” added Saunders.
Saunders was followed closely by team mates Jack Hinton (Mnt) and Luis Southerwood (Whaka) along with Jacob Buckle (Nrth) and cousins, Sam Charlesworth (Auck) and Thomas Charlesworth (Nrth).
Auckland surfer Alice Westerkamp surprised her opponents and herself with a top performance to advance through the ‘death heat’ of the Under 16 Girls Division and advance to the semifinals.
“I am stoked with my heat, I got the right waves and it just all flowed and yeah, pretty frothing,” said the young natural footer who posted an 8.0 point ride to start the heat before staving off Natasha Gouldsbury (Tara) and Leah Wilson (Chch).
“I was like really, was that me, yeah pretty stoked on that wave,” she added in reference to her best wave.
Westerkamp is part of an Auckland team that has talent across all divisions and that bodes well for their chances to claim their first ever team title in the 32-year history of the event.
“The Auckland Team is really good this year and we all have a good bond with each other and we are looking forward to a big result,” commented Westerkamp.
Westerkamp was joined by team mate Liv Haysom (Piha) as a heat winner along with Ava Henderson (Chch) who also won her heat.
Number one seed Georgia Wederell (Mnt), Anika Ayson (Dun) and Lydia Hawes (W.C) all won their heats in the Under 18 Girls Division. Leia Millar (Auck), Ariana Schafer (Tara) and Pia Rogers (WGM) won their respective heats in the Under 14 Girls Division.
2019 finalist Nat Fitt (Auck) dominated proceedings in the Under 18 Longboard Division surfing to a 13.0 point heat total. Fitt was joined by his Auckland team mate and defending champion Ben Counsell. Gisborne’s Jay Ryan–Emere is the lone female in the longboard division and she proved her worth with a clean performance finishing second behind Counsell in her heat. Ryan-Emere was joined by team mate Geordie Sawyer advancing to the semifinals.
Day 4 of the event is expected to see similar sized conditions with the chance of southerly cross-shore winds which may impact conditions. The event will be surfed through to the semifinals of all divisions.
The Championships run from Monday to Friday, October 5-9 with the finals being streamed live on Sky Sport Next on the final day.
The National Scholastic Championships comprises seven age group divisions for males and females across both shortboard and longboard disciplines. 110 surfers are participating in the event after having qualified to represent their twelve-person teams via a series of regional events held over winter.
The 2020 National Scholastic Surfing Championships is sanctioned by Surfing New Zealand, the Secondary School Sport NZ and supported by the New Zealand Sports Collective, Sky Sport Next and Pub Charity.
WATCH: DAY 3 GALLERY
Results Day 3, 2020 National Scholastic Surfing Championships
Under 18 Boys Round 1
Heat 1
Luis Southwood (Whaka), 9.16, 1, Taine Forsyth (W.C), 4.76, 2, Cade O’Dae (W.C), 4.3, 3
Heat 2
Jacob Buckle (Whangrei), 11.85, 1, James Millar (Cant), 9.75, 2, Alfie Walker – Burben (Wgtn), 6.45, 3, Tane Gonzales (Wgtn), 4.25, 4
Heat 3
Sam Charlesworth (Auck), 12.65, 1, Cameron Broad (HBay), 7.3, 2, Kail Mackenzie (Hbay), 4.3, 3
Heat 4
Tom Robinson (Whngrei), 10.85, 1, Trae Cooney (WGM), 5.75, 2, Ben Wharton (Coro), 5.05, 3
Heat 5
Jacob Saunders (BOP), 14.25, 1, Jackson Peak (Auck), 10.5, 2, Jacob Fitzgerald (W.C), 4.55, 3
Heat 6
Thomas Charlesworth (Auck), 10.4, 1, Billy Gilbert (Whangarei), 3.25, 2, Flynn Healy (Wgtn), 7.15, 3
Heat 7
Max de Groot (HBay), 8.05, 1, Max Hahn (Wgtn), 5.9, 2, Isaac Klein – Ovink (Auck), 5.6, 3, Carson Burns (Wgtn), 4.5, 4
Heat 8
Jack Hinton (Mnt), 12.4, 1, Josh Sheridan (W.C), 7.3, 2, Alan Paterson (W.C), 4.5, 3
Under 18 Girls Round 1
Heat 1
Georgia Wederell (Mnt), 9.9, 1, Georgia Ballentyne (Wgtn), 5.6, 2, Jessie Roche (W.C), 4.5, 3
Heat 2
Anika Ayson (Dun), 8.6, 1, Jaya Reardon (Dun), 4.1, 2, Catlin Harris (W.C), 3.1, 3
Heat 3
Lydia Hawes (W.C), 8.9, 1, Amelie Wink (Chch), 6, 2, Alyssa Backtop (W.C), 0.75, 3
Under 16 Girls Round 1
Heat 1
Alice Westerkamp (Auck), 13.75, 1, Natasha Gouldsbury (Tara), 12.35, 2, Leah Wilson (Chch), 6.8, 3
Heat 2
Ava Henderson (Chch), 12.75, 1, Anna Brock (Mnt), 10.85, 2, Stella O’Dae (W.C), 1.2, 3
Heat 3
Liv Haysom (Piha), 8.35, 1, Asia Braithwaite (Gis), 4.5, 2, Sky Gundry (Nrth), 2.6, 3, Taya Morrison (Dun), 2, 4
Under 14 Girls Round 1
Heat 1
Leia Millar (Piha), 6, 1, Sophia Brock (Mnt), 5.35, 2, Misha Peyroux (Dun), 5.15, 3
Heat 2
Ariana Schafer (Tara), 6.6, 1, Skylar McFetridge (Tara), 5.45, 2, Amanda Gouldsbury (Tara), 5, 3, Mikayla Rose Graham (Nrth), 4.25, 4
Heat 3
Pia Rogers (WGM), 4.8, 1, Isabella Milne (WGM), 4.4, 2, Olive Entwisle (Chch), 4, 3
Under 18 Longboard Round 1
Heat 1
Ben Counsell (Auck), 7.05, 1, Jay Ryan – Emere (Gis), 5.9, 2, Archie Whitaker (Cant), 3.95, 3
Heat 2
Natt Fitt (Auck), 13, 1, Sonny Eades (BOP), 7.25, 2, Noah Corlett (Wgtn), 3.9, 3
Heat 3
Billy Whelan (Nrth), 9.25, 1, Geordie Sawyer (Gis), 8.65, 2, Luke Burns (Wgtn), 3.85, 3
Team Points
1, Canterbury, 16560
2, Northland, 15450
3, Auckland, 15300
4, Bay of Plenty, 14940
5, West Coast, 14295
6, Otago, 12525
7, Coromandel, 12225
8, Taranaki, 10770
9, Wellington, 9855
10, Hawke’s Bay, 9840
11, Gisborne, 4290