Local juniors surfers excel at Phillip Island

FOUR local surfers have taken out their respective age group state championships at Round 3 of the Victorian Junior Surfing Titles on Phillip Island.

Jarvis Barrow Under 18 Boys, Jan Juc, Kato Mogi Belmont, Under 16 Boys, Estella Carbonelli Jan Juc, Under 14 Girls and Teddy Robertson Torquay, Under 14 Boys all came out eventual winners in the three-event series.

However, in the Round 3 event itself it was Barwon Heads surfer Jerry Kelly who came out victorious in the Under 18 Boys division.

It was a back-and-forth battle between Kelly, Jan Juc surfer Remy Filer, Fingal’s Tarvi Woods and Rye Cicero Sandy Point throughout the event final.

Momentum swung throughout the heat, however Kelly stayed within striking distance after posting a 5.50-point ride.

He then turned the heat on its head with an 8.17 ride for three critical turns on a set wave.

Filer was able to answer back with a 7.27, but Kelly put the foot on the gas to score an 8.50 to put the heat out of reach for his fellow counterparts.

 

“It was so sick today; I had the left to myself in all three of my heats! I just found the left more bowly and had better sections to hit,” Kelly said.

“It felt so good to take it out after not having a good result at Bells and an alright result at Gunna. I’m stoked.”

In the points battle across the season, consistency paid off for Jarvis Barrow (Jan Juc), who – thanks to strong results in the earlier rounds – was crowned the Under 18 Boys State Champion.

The Under 18 Girls division final was a very high scoring affair, with the competitors attacking the powerful open sections of the waves from the outset.

Sara Hickson Rye struck first, smashing out a series of backhand snaps on a left to score 7.67 points.

However, minutes later, it was Ava Holland who lit up the beach with a whopping 10-point ride, linking four big back-hand re-entries all the way to the beach.

 

Despite the perfect score, Holland remained in second until she found a clean right hander and delivered a 6.83 and then an 8.17 to put the entire field in a combination situation.

That dominant performance gave her the Round 3 victory, as well as the overall series win after also taking out Round 1.

“It was a pretty fun final with a lot of waves coming through, which meant a lot of paddling, but that’s okay,” Holland said.

“I love being able to see all my friends at these comps – they’re my best friends, so it’s great to surf with them.”

For full results, head to surfingvic.com/live