In
the
closest
of
finals
days
in
recent
years,
Bay
of
Plenty
have
hung
on
to
defend
their
title
at
the
2026
National
Scholastic
Championships
presented
by
Pub
Charity
by
one
placing.
The
final
day
of
the
event,
held
on
Friday
2nd
October,
took
place
at
Makorori
Beach,
Gisborne
in
the
fifth
day
of
perfect
waves
bathed
in
sunshine.
The
1.0m
swell
remained
all
day
with
offshore
winds
turning
variable
mid-morning.
The
defence
of
the
title
came
at
the
expense
of
Waikato
who
did
everything
possible
to
claim
their
first
title
in
seven
years
including
one
title
and
three
additional
podiums.
Auckland
finished
in
third
place,
also
within
a
result
or
two
of
victory
on
the
finals
day.
The
Bay
of
Plenty
clinched
their
title
courtesy
of
two
wins
via
Sol
Fritchley
in
the
Under
16
Boys
Division
and
Louis
Macquet
in
the
Under
14
Boys
Division
amongst
their
five
podium
finishes
in
total.
The
win
is
the
thirteenth
for
the
region
in
the
event’s
36
year
history
as
the
most
winningest
of
the
twelve
regions
at
the
event.
Titles
in
the
premier
divisions
went
to
the
chasing
teams
with
Poppy
Arkle
(Auckland)
taking
the
Under
18
Girls
Division
title
and
Indica
Corcoran
(Waikato)
taking
the
title
in
the
Under
18
Boys
Division.
Arkle
looked
strong
throughout
the
event
and
produced
her
best
performance
in
the
final
posting
a
14.0
point
heat
total
to
defeat
Poppy
Entwisle
(Tara)
in
second
place
with
Indi-Lee
Ruddell
(North)
in
third
and
Bonnie
Lynch
(Gis)
in
fourth.
Indica
Corcoran
sealed
his
win
with
a
buzzer
beater
in
the
Under
18
Boys
Division.
Sitting
in
third
place
with
less
than
a
minute
to
go,
Corcoran
had
one
last
shot
on
a
long-running
right
and
surfed
it
to
the
beach.
Surrounded
by
team
mates
on
the
beach,
the
score
didn’t
drop
until
after
the
final
hooter
had
sounded.
Needing
a
5.57
to
jump
to
the
lead,
Corcoran
did
it
with
ease
posting
a
7.33
point
ride,
the
highest
of
the
final.
Alexis
Owen
(Otago)
finished
in
second
in
the
Under
18
Boys
final
with
Van
Camenzind
(Waikato)
in
third
and
Jack
Higgins
(Otago)
in
fourth.
In
a
similar
fashion
to
Corcoran,
Sol
Fritchley
finished
his
winning
wave
after
the
hooter
had
sounded
to
claim
the
Under
16
Boys
Division.
In
a
two-wave
exchange,
front
runner
Zeke
Pragert
(Auckland)
could
not
better
his
15.20
heat
total
leaving
Fritchley
requiring
an
8.8
point
ride.
Fritchley
launched
into
the
best
air
of
the
event
to
sneak
past
Pragert
with
an
8.83
point
ride,
surrounded
by
his
team
hooting
and
hollering
at
the
win
before
chairing
him
up.
Pragert
finished
in
second
ahead
of
Haru
Marsden
(BOP)
in
third
and
Cade
John
Carr
(Tara)
in
fourth.
Alani
Morse
(Waikato)
surfed
a
clinical
final
to
claim
the
Under
16
Girls
Division
with
a
12.9
point
heat
total
closing
out
the
final
by
putting
pressure
on
eventual
runner
up
Lola
Groube
(Coromandel)
who
could
not
find
the
space
to
secure
the
7.03
point
ride
required.
Isla
McKay
(North)
finished
in
third
ahead
of
Ella
Rebolledo-Withers
(Auckland)
in
fourth.
Wins
in
the
Under
14
Divisions
went
to
Zara
Owen
(Otago)
in
the
girls
and
Louis
Macquet
(BOP)
in
the
boys.
Northland
claimed
two
titles
in
the
longboarding
divisions
at
the
event
with
Hawk
Edwards
winning
the
boys
division
and
Lara
Lay
winning
the
girls
division.
The
peer-voted
Adam
Clegg
Breakthrough
Performance
Award
went
to
Louis
Macquet
for
the
boys
and
Bonnie
Lynch
for
the
girls.
The
Caltex
Good
Sports
Award
went
to
Auckland
with
the
Bayleys
Real
Estate
All
Together
Better
Award
went
to
Otago
and
the
Nateva
Leadership
Award
went
to
Hawkes
Bay.
Team
Points
1.
Bay
of
Plenty,
7,788
2.
Waikato,
7,760
3.
Auckland,
7,620
4.
Northland,
7,265
5.
Taranaki,
6,885
6.
Otago,
6,595
7.
Coromandel,
6,570
8.
Gisborne,
6,438
9.
Hawkes
Bay,
3,688
10.
Wellington,
3,468
11.
Canterbury,
3,095
12.
Southland,
2,843
The
webcast
of
the
final
two
days
can
be
viewed
via
Maori+.
Full
results
can
be
viewed
via
Live
Heats.
The
National
Scholastic
Surfing
Championships
brings
together
school-aged
surfers
representing
thirteen
regions
from
Northland
to
Southland.
Bay
of
Plenty
is
the
defending
champion
following
last
year’s
event
in
Taranaki.
They
have
traded
titles
with
Auckland
since
2022.
The
Scholastic
Championships
feature
Under
14
through
to
Under
18
divisions,
along
with
boys’
and
girls’
longboard
divisions.
First
held
in
1989,
the
National
Scholastic
Surfing
Championships
have
a
long
history
of
showcasing
New
Zealand’s
emerging
surfing
talent,
with
many
former
competitors
going
on
to
represent
New
Zealand
internationally.
Event
Information
The
National
Scholastic
Championships
is
sanctioned
by
School
Sport
New
Zealand
and
proudly
supported
by
the
New
Zealand
Sports
Collective
comprising
Whakaata
Maori,
Bayleys
Real
Estate,
Caltex,
Nateva,
Apollo
Projects,
Anchor
and
Pub
Charity.
Further
Information
For
further
information
on
the
2026
Scholastic
Championships
please
contact
Surfing
New
Zealand’s
Ben
Kennings
on
021
2278732
or
email
benkennings@surfingnz.co.nz.
Imagery
High
resolution
action
images
of
the
surfing
will
be
available
to
media
free
of
charge
upon
request.
Social
Media
Keep
up
with
all
the
action
by
following
@surfingnz
on
Facebook,
Instagram
and
Twitter.
Surfing
New
Zealand
is
proudly
partnered
by:
Sport
NZ
ACC
Sun
Bum
Kiwi
Holiday
Insurance
Ends
Go to Surfing New Zealand
Author: Ben Kennings