NSSA - National Scholastic Surfing Association

The National Scholastic Surfing Association (NSSA) is a nonprofit organization whose mission is to encourage and assist its members in their interest to learn and develop the fundamentals and skills of surfing competition while competing in structured and quality events. The NSSA promotes the qualities of discipline and competitive excellence while supporting the merits of academic achievement to young surfers. The NSSA strives to provide a fun surfing experience for all of its members.

The NSSA is one of the few national youth sports organizations that require its participants to maintain academic standards in order to compete. Since 1978, the NSSA program philosophy has been that athletics and scholastics go hand in hand. More than 80 NSSA events are run nationwide that culminate with the annual National Championships which is regarded as the highest profile youth surfing event in America.


2015 NSSA EAST COAST CHAMPIONSHIP RESULTS!

2015 NSSA EAST COAST CHAMPIONSHIP RESULTS!

Monday, April 7, 2014 | Written by Janice Aragon

2015 NSSA EAST COAST CHAMPIONSHIPS

NEW SMYRNA BEACH, FLORIDA

APRIL 9-12

CONDITIONS: FUN AND CONSISTENT SCATTERED 2-3 FOOT PEAKS

THE 2015 NSSA EAST COAST CHAMPIONS!                          photo: Aragon

HIGHLIGHTS OF THE 2015 EAST COAST CHAMPIONSHIPS!

*A thrilling historical finals day at the East Coast Championships saw the Marks siblings Luke and Caroline claim the NSSA’s most prestigious titles in Open Mens and Open Womens becoming the first brother/sister duo to accomplish the feat.

*Luke Marks' victory in the premier Open Mens was the highest achievement thus far of his youth career. This was the third career Regional title for the Melbourne Beach 16-year-old.

*13-year-old Caroline Marks, who is the current National Open Womens Champion, stole the show in the female divisions at the East Coast Championships winning Open Womens, Open Girls, Explorer Womens and Explorer Girls. This marks the first time for a female to take four titles in a major championship event. (Corey Howell accomplished a 4-title triumph in the 2012 East Coast Championships) In The four victories brings Caroline’s career Regional Title count to five. To add to her accolades, Marks was earned two Performer of the Day honors on the second and fourth day of the event.

*South Carolina’s Luke Gordon continued his solid surfing at New Smyrna Beach adding two more Regional titles to his growing resume. He claimed the Open Juniors and Explorer Mens titles bringing his Regional Title count up to six.

*2-time National Champion Tommy Coleman was on fire at New Smyrna successfully defending his Open Boys and Explorer Menehuene titles while also making an impressive fourth place finals showing in the hotly contested Open Juniors final. Coleman’s double triumphs bring his career Regional Title count up to seven.

*The Open Mini Grom division saw William Hedleston take his first major NSSA title. Hedleston, from Cocoa Beach also placed third in the Explorer Super Grom division. Winner of the Super Groms was Ryan Huckabee from nearby Flagler Beach who surfed impressively en route to his first Regional Title. Huckabee also placed runner-up in the Open Mini Groms.

*Stevie Pittman was one of the top standouts of the event delivering an amazing display of surfing throughout the contest and earning the only perfect 10 of the event. He finished with a first place in the Explorer Boys for his seventh career Regional Title victory. The talented 14-year-old from Newport, NC placed runner-up in the Open Juniors, third place in the premier Open Mens divisions and earned Performer of the Day honors on the third day of competition. Also of note, Pittman has titled in six consecutive East Coast Championship events.

*Surfers from Barbados made an impressive showing at this year’s East Coast Championships. Josh Burke secured an impressive second place finish in the premier Open Mens division and also earned Performer of the Day honors on the first day of competition. Dane Mackie put on a crowd-pleasing aerial display collecting his second straight Regional Airshow title while also making finals in Explorer Mens and Juniors. Mackie now owns three career Regional Titles. Che Allan was one of the top in-form surfers of the championships sealing his second Regional Title in the Explorer Juniors while also placing third in the Open Juniors final.

*In Longboard competition, Austin Hollingshead claimed his first Regional Title in the Open division while Parker Sawyer took the Explorer title. Sawyer won the Open Longboard division at the 2014 championships. Lily Whatley secured her first Regional Title winning the Explorer Women’s Longboard division while also displaying her surfing versatility with a fourth place finals showing in the premier Open Womens division.

*In the non-student categories, New Smyrna Beach local Charley Hajek clinched his sixth Regional Title taking out the Super Seniors while the Mid Atlantic’s Blue Spivey collected his fourth and fifth career titles winning the Masters and Seniors. Lawrence Holmes collected his third consecutive win in the Duke final.

*The University of North Florida claimed their first East Coast Championship Collegiate Title snapping UNCW's six championship win streak. 

THE SCOREBOARD

FINAL RESULTS

SCORES BASED ON TOP TWO WAVES

EAST COAST OPEN CHAMPIONSHIPS

OPEN MENS

1. Luke Marks-Melbourne Beach, FL

2. Josh Burke-Long Beach, Barbados 12.43

3. Stevie Pittman-Newport, NC 12.36

4. Cobie Gittner-Ponce Inlet 11.50

OPEN JUNIORS

1. Luke Gordon-Pawleys Island, SC 15.50

2. Stevie Pittman-Newport, NC 13.80

3. Che Allan-St James, Barbardos 10.03

4. Tommy Coleman-Vero Beach, FL 10.00

OPEN BOYS

1. Tommy Coleman-Vero Beach, FL 14.77

2. Blake Speir-Melbourne Beach, FL 10.00

3. Noah Dovin-Merritt Island, FL 9.50

4. Kyle Tester-N. Cape May, NJ 7.74

 

OPEN MINI GROMS

1. William Hedleston-Cocoa Beach, FL 13.70

2. Ryan Huckabee-Palm Coast, FL 10.33

3. Robbie Goodwin-Palm Coast, FL 9.60

4. Owen Moss-Wrightsville Beach, NC 6.67

OPEN WOMENS

1. Caroline Marks-Melbourne Beach, FL 15.63

2. Maddie Peterson-Wildwood Crest, NJ 12.93

3. Rachel Presti-Melbourne Beach, FL 8.40

4. Lily Whatley-New Smyrna Beach, FL 8.00

OPEN GIRLS

1. Caroline Marks-Melbourne Beach, FL 15.50

2. Avery Aydelotte-Jensen Beach, FL 11.30

3. Rachel Presti-Melbourne Beach, FL 8.50

4. Hannah Blevins-Palm Coast, FL 6.97

OPEN LONGBOARD

1. Austin Hollingshead-Melbourne, FL 14.00

2. Evan Micele-Virginia Beach, VA 12.06

3. Lily Whatley-New Smyrna Beach, FL 11.33

4. Spencer Bridges-Summit, NJ 10.07

EAST COAST EXPLORER CHAMPIONSHIPS

EXPLORER MENS

1. Luke Gordon-Pawleys Island, SC 14.66

2. Josh Burke-Long Beach, Barbardos 14.30

3. Luke Marks-Melborne Beach, FL 12.77

4. Cobie Gittner-Ponce Inlet, FL 9.37

5. Evan Brownell-St Augustine, FL 7.77

6. Dane Mackie-St. George, Barbardos 6.97

EXPLORER JUNIORS

1. Che Allan-St. James, Barbados 13.77

2. Dane Mackie-St. George, Barbados 12.14

3. Chauncey Robinson-Melbourne Beach, FL 11.37

4. Luke Marks-Melbourne Beach, FL 10.07

5. Luke Gordon-Pawleys Island, SC 9.20

6. Gabriel Morvil-Wilmington, NC 6.83

EXPLORER BOYS

1. Stevie Pittman-Newport, NC 16.33

2. Bo Raynor-Wilmington, NC 12.86

3. Micha Cantor-Surfside, SC 11.77

4. Chase Elmore-Daytona, FL 8.87

5. Christian Daniels-Holmes Beach, FL 7.93

6. Noah Dovin-Merritt Island, FL 7.13

EXPLORER MENEHUENE

1. Tommy Coleman-Vero Beach, FL 17.00

2. Noah Dovin-Merritt Island, FL 12.67

3. Blake Speir-Melbourne Beach, FL 9.84

4. Kaleb Kirshenbaum-Jacksonville Beach, FL 7.33

5. Kyle Tester-N Cape May, NJ 7.07

6. Laird Myers-Virginia Beach, VA 5.07

EXPLORER SUPER GROMS

1. Ryan Huckabee-Flagler Beach, FL 15.66

2. Robbie Goodwin-Palm Coast, FL 13.94

3. William Hedelston-Cocoa Beach, FL 12.70

4. Jack Marks-Melbourne Beach, FL 8.80

5. Ava McGowan-New Smyrna Beach, FL 5.27

6. Braden Kopec-Palm Coast, FL 4.40

EXPLORER WOMENS

1. Caroline Marks-Melbourne Beach, FL 17.00

2. Maddie Peterson-Wildwood Crest, NJ 13.74

3. Sophie Falzone-Atlantic Beach, FL 11.57

4. Rachel Presti-Melbourne Beach, FL 11.50

5. Eva Woodland-Melbourne, FL 7.53

6. Avery Aydelotte-Jensen Beach, FL 7.30

EXPLORER GIRLS

1. Caroline Marks-Melbourne Beach, FL 13.73

2. Avery Aydelotte-Jensen Beach, FL 9.90

3. Ava McGowan-New Smyrna Beach, FL 8.43

4. Rachel Presti-Melbourne Beach, FL 8.20

5. Hannah Blevins-Palm Coast, FL 7.30

6. Braidyn Cunningham-Ponte Vedra Beach, FL 7.14

EXPLORER MASTERS

1. Blue Spivey-Charleston, SC 11.50

2. Scott Seggermann-Winter Park, FL 7.37

EXPLORER SENIORS

1. Blue Spivey-Charleston, SC 16.17

2. Scott Seggermann-Winter Park, FL 8.90

EXPLORER SUPER SENIORS

1. Charley Hajek-New Smyrna Beach, FL 10.10

2. Larry Holmes-Cape Canaveral 4.16

EXPLORER DUKE

1. Larry Holmes-Cape Canaveral, FL

EXPLORER LONGBOARD

1. Parker Sawyer-Virginia Beach, VA 14.67

2. Zach Raffin-New York City, NY 11.80

3. Spencer Bridges-Summit, NJ 11.57

4. Austin Hollingshead-Melborne, FL 9.63

5. Caelan Burford-Rockledge, FL 8.27

6. Sean Brennan-Wrightsville Beach, NC

EXPLORER WOMENS LONGBOARD

1. Lily Whatley-New Smyrna Beach, FL 15.66

3. Georgia Cook-Franklin, TN 10.96

3. Maddy Malizia-Stuart, FL 8.17

4. Kat Neff-Carolina Beach, NC 7.03

5. Julia Eckel-Wrightsville Beach, NC 6.67

6. Carley Carter-Wrightsville Beach, NC 6.04

EAST COAST AIRSHOW CHAMPION

1. Dane Mackie-St. George, Barbados

UNIVERSITY OF NORTH FLORIDA - THE 2015 EAST COAST CHAMPIONS!   photo: Aragon

EAST COAST COLLEGE CHAMPIONSHIPS

COLLEGE TEAM

1-University of North Florida 128

2. UNC-Wilmington 94

3. University of Central Florida “A” 49

4. Daytona State College 45

5. University of Central Florida “B” 22

6. Florida Institute of Technology 19

7. College of Charleston 17

COLLEGE MENS

1. Corey Howell-UNF 13.67

2. Hunter Roland-UNF 12.90

3. Shane Burn-UNCW 12.23

4. Cobi Christiansen-UNCW 10.37

5. Chris Igou-UNF 9.54

6. Jacob Kotchpowell-Daytona State 8.53

COLLEGE WOMENS

1. Emily Ruppert-UNF 15.73

2. Kayla Durden-UNF 14.00

3. Airlie Pickett-UNCW 9.53

4. Amanda Buemi-Daytona State 9.47

5. Roxy Sullivan-UCF “A” 5.10

6. Christina Coffee-UCF “A” 3.76

COLLEGE LONGBOARD

1. Patrick Nichols-UNF 16.10

2. Alek Rockrise-UNCW 11.77

3. Adam Fricke-UCF “A” 7.96

4. Tyler Crawford-FIT 3.52

5. Ryan Hoge-UCF “A” 3.52

2015 NSSA EAST COAST CHAMPIONSHIPS PERFORMERS OF THE DAY PRESENTED BY GROM SOCIAL

April 9 – Josh Burke

April 10 – Caroline Marks

April 11 – Stevie Pittman

April 12 – Caroline Marks

The NSSA East Coast Championships is proud to have support from Body Glove, Surfing Magazine, Sex Wax and Grom Social. Many thanks to New Smyrna Beach, the lifeguards and the NSSA staff for assisting us in staging a fantastic East Coast Championships!

ABOUT NSSA

The National Scholastic Surfing Association (NSSA) is a nonprofit organization whose mission is to encourage and assist its members in their interest to learn and develop the fundamentals and skills of surfing competition while competing in structured and quality events. The NSSA promotes the qualities of discipline and competitive excellence while supporting the merits of academic achievement to young surfers. The NSSA strives to provide a fun surfing experience for all of its members.

The NSSA is one of the few national youth sports organizations that require its participants to maintain academic standards in order to compete. Since 1978, the NSSA program philosophy has been that athletics and scholastics go hand in hand. More than 80 NSSA events are run nationwide that culminate with the annual National Championships which is regarded as the highest profile youth surfing event in America.