Shorecliffs Middle School surf team takes big win Feb. 21 in Oceanside
Hagan Johnson of Shorecliffs Middle School was the Boys Shortboard division winner at the Feb. 21 SSS contest in Oceanside. The Shorecliffs team also came out on top. Photo: Sheri Crummer
By Andrea Swayne
With cool temperatures and an overcast sky lingering for most of the day, Orange County middle school surfers met on Feb. 21 at the Oceanside Pier for event No. 3 of the Scholastic Surf Series. Waves were in the 2- to 3-foot range. Although a south wind came up in the morning, the waves were never blown out and remained contestable throughout the event.
Originally scheduled as event No. 4, the cancellation of the January San Clemente Pier event made this stop the third of the SSS season.
Shorecliffs Middle School was the big winner of the day, topping runner-up Thurston Middle School, 265 to 201 in team competition.
Dominating in Boys Shortboard, they took five of the six available finalist spots, as well as wins, in both Division 1 and Division 2 competition. Hagan Johnson was the Division 1 winner and Deisel Rathgeber won Division 2. Other Division 1 winners were Ethan Mudge in Boys Longboard and Kirra Pinkerton in Girls Shortboard. Dylan Clemens was the Division 2 Boys Longboard winner and, also in Division 2, Malia Mauch took top honors in both Girls Shortboard and Girls Longboard.
“The talent pool is very deep among OC middle school teams and they’re amazing to watch,” said Carolyn Krammer, competition director. “Consistent surfing with aggressive maneuvers showed that these kids have really grasped the criteria and are surfing up to it. Even though the conditions weren’t perfect the surfers really rose to the challenge.”
Niguel Hills, Vista Del Mar, Bernice Ayer, Marco Forster and Don Juan Avila teams came in third through seventh, respectively.
Event No. 4—the makeup for the January San Clemente contest—is set for Saturday, Feb. 28 in Huntington Beach at Goldenwest Street.
RESULTS
Scholastic Surf Series, Orange County Middle School Division 1 and 2, Event No. 3, Feb. 21, Oceanside, Pier
DIVISION 1
TEAM:
- Shorecliffs 265
- Thurston 201
- Niguel Hills 104
- Vista Del Mar 90
- Bernice Ayer 84
- Marco Forster 81
- Don Juan Avila 49
BOYS:
- Hagan Johnson, Shorecliffs
- Kade Matson, Shorecliffs
- Ryan Martin, Shorecliffs
- Kai McPhillips, Shorecliffs
- Taj Lindblad, Shorecliffs
- Jonah Clark, Thurston
BOYS LONGBOARD:
- Ethan Mudge, Shorecliffs
- Jameson Roller, Thurston
- Ben Kappes, Niguel Hills
- Bryce Mattox, Niguel Hills
- Kai McPhillips, Shorecliffs
- Barrett Miller, Shorecliffs
GIRLS:
- Kirra Pinkerton, Shorecliffs
- Kayla Coscino, Thurston
- Kelly Smith, Thurston
- Claire Kelly, Thurston
- Lexi Alston, Bernice Ayer
- Alexis Morgan, Shorecliffs
GIRLS LONGBOARD:
- Liv Stokes, Thurston
- Alexa Ross, Vista Del Mar
- Kirra Pinkerton, Shorecliffs
- Rachel Hall, Marco Forster
- Kendal Osorio, Marco Forster
- Lola Fisher, Thurston
COED BODYBOARD
- Hayden Stein, Niguel Hills
- Cole Fink, Thurston
- Anthony Smetona, Shorecliffs
- Nolan Tobias, Shorecliffs
- Liam Gillon, Marco Forster
- Olaf Trevilla, Bernice Ayer
DIVISION 2
TEAM:
- Shorecliffs 129
- Thurston 95
- Dana Point 41
- Bernice Ayer 34
- Marco Forster 33
- Don Juan Avila 7
BOYS:
- Diesel Rathgeber, Shorecliffs
- Noah Brown, Shorecliffs
- Raiki Nishida, Shorecliffs
- Liam Mateer, Shorecliffs
- Jett North, Thurston
- Eli Crane, Shorecliffs
BOYS LONGBOARD:
- Dylan Clemens, Shorecliffs
- Matt Blunk, Thurston
- Hunter Stovesand, Dana Point
- Brandon Davis, Marco Forster
- Trenton Coleman, Shorecliffs
- Alex Wick, Thurston
GIRLS:
- Malia Mauch, Shorecliffs
- Grace Fink, Thurston
- Destiny Thompson, Thurston
- Coral Nordheim, Dana Point
- Lauren O’Neill, Shorecliffs
- Grace Winter, Bernice Ayer
GIRLS LONGBOARD:
- Malia Mauch, Shorecliffs
- Cici Stewart, Thurston
- Avery Acquanita, Dana Point
- Hannah Pierce, Bernice Ayer
- Camille Hardgrave, Marco Forster