LIHU‘E — The junior events kicked things off at the 2010 U.S. Open of Surfing, which got underway in Huntington Beach, Calif., Saturday. The nine-day event began with the Men’s ASP Pro Junior whittling the field from 64 to 32
LIHU‘E — The junior events kicked things off at the 2010 U.S. Open of Surfing, which got underway in Huntington Beach, Calif., Saturday.
The nine-day event began with the Men’s ASP Pro Junior whittling the field from 64 to 32 surfers as two rounds were completed. There were 48 entrants at the beginning of the day, with just 16 surviving to make it to where the Top 16 sit in the third round.
Among those 16 who made it through the day were Kaimana Jaquias, coming off his National Scholastic Surfing Association national championship earlier this summer. He was one of two Kaua‘i boys still in the competition, as Alex Smith also made it through his two heats.
The Women’s Pro Junior started with 16 surfers, with defending champion Malia Manuel and Alana Blanchard finding themselves in the same opening heat. They each advanced to the final eight, with Malia winning the heat on a 13.03 total. Alana put up an 11.77 score for second and a spot in the semifinals.
They will again be in the same heat when action resumes, each looking for a spot in the final heat and a chance at the $2,500 first-place prize.
Joining them in the first semifinal heat will be Sage Erickson and Sarah Baum, while Hawai‘i’s Coco Ho and Carissa Moore advanced into the second semifinal heat, as all four Hawai‘i entrants made it through the day. They will paddle out with Laura Enever and Courtney Conlogue in a talented final eight with plenty of previous competition success.
Malia, who is the defending U.S. Open Junior Pro Champion and the youngest ever winner of the Women’s ASP 6-Star event at 14, started strong in her opening heat to advance through to the semifinals despite not competing in a contest for several months.
“I’m very happy to get that first heat out of the way,” she said. “I haven’t surfed a contest since the last Pro Junior in March, so it’s good to get that first one under my belt. I’m looking forward to the whole week and I’m just happy to be doing more contests.”
The Hawaiian standout has focused on her health on her down time and reverted to an older magic board to help get her settled in her first heat of the event.
“I went to Indonesia, but that’s obviously nothing like here (Huntington),” Manuel said. “I was also home for a month so that was nice, but I’ve just been focusing on staying healthy and working on boards. I stuck with my old faithful that I’ve been riding for a few months in that last heat and it worked out.”
The first heat of the Men’s Junior Pro saw Kaua‘i’s Nathan Carvalho just edged out for advancement, as his 7.70 total was barely bested by Oliver Kurtz (8.94) and Kealamakia Naihe (7.94).
Smith then took complete control of his first heat with a 14.17 that none of his competitors came close to matching, sending him into the second round.
The remaining three Kaua‘i surfers all had to wait until the round’s final group, all being placed in the 12th heat. Tyler Newton came away with the heat victory, posting a 13.50 tally. Kaimana was the lucky second, with a 12.60 combined score.
Dylan Goodale was the unlucky member of the trio, finishing third with a 9.37 score.
He and Billy Kemper were ousted in the all-Hawaiian heat.
The second round consisted of eight three-man heats, with the top two scorers moving into the Round of 32.
Smith made it through in the opening heat, which was hotly contested by all three competitors. He took second place with a 9.26 total, behind the first-place performance by Taylor Clark (10.23). Kurtz was eliminated in third (8.83).
Kaimana also moved on with a second-place score of 8.64 in the round’s seventh heat. He was outpointed by Tayler Brothers (9.10), but held off Makai MacNamara (6.74).
The day’s final heat was the last one for Newton, who was barely beaten out for advancement after his 9.50 score was edged by Victor Done (9.83).
Surfers competing on the ASP North America Pro Junior Series are out to finish within the top of their regional ratings in an attempt to qualify for the inaugural ASP World Junior Tour.
Today’s U.S. Open of Surfing action will continue with ASP Pro Junior competition beginning with the Men’s Round of 32 before concluding the day with the Women’s Semifinals.
For event information log on to http://usopenofsurfing.com.
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The Association of Surfing Professionals contributed to this report.
