Bay's new wave claim title

Tim O'Connor was barely in boardies when Bay of Plenty last won the national scholastics surfing title.
But the Mount Maunganui College star helped erase a decade of doubt when he led the 12-strong Bay team to victory in Dunedin over the weekend.
The 16-year-old was unstoppable in the under-18 final, beating last year's national open champion Richard Christie (Gisborne), with fellow Mount surfer Jos Hadfield picking up an invaluable third.
Matt Hewitt finished third in the under-16 final, while Laura Rishworth and Alexa Halvorsen snared important points by making the finals of the under-18 and under-14 girls finals respectively.
Bodyboarder Luke Elliot picked up another Bay title, scoring 14.5 in the final to easily beat Canterbury's Liam Blanchfield into second place.
Hadfield also won the kneeboard final as Bay of Plenty snatched the crown by just 30 points from defending champions Gisborne, although the team was in the dark until all scores had been added.
"We were at prizegiving and we were just freaking out _ there were only about 30 points in it _ and when they announced the winner, they only got to `Bay' when we just started shouting!" O'Connor said. "We're just over the moon. We're all just so stoked. It's been a long decade!"
Bay of Plenty, which had not won since 1996, is one of only four regions to have won the title in the event's 18-year history.
O'Connor had a huge week _ he finished fourth in the Rip Curl International Grom Search at Bell's Beach in Australia, flew into Dunedin late on Monday night and was straight into his heat the next morning.
By the time the final came around, in perfect 1.5m surf with an offshore wind, he was in top form, although he needed every trick to beat Christie.
"It was really slow and inconsistent. I got one wave and fell, and I was freaking out a bit. As I paddled back out, I saw him get a ride and he was just going to town, and I was hoping he didn't get the score.
"But then I got an 8.25 _ a really long right-hander _ and after that we just sat out the back for ages, and no waves came through. As soon as the final finished, a big set came and he smashed one wave to pieces but it was too late."
It was also O'Connor's first scholastic title, having finished second to Paco Divers in the under-16s last year.
Divers defended that title, although Hewitt followed him into the right-handers later in the heat, scoring 6.25 on his best wave, but had to settle for third place behind Auckland's Ryan Hawker.
Mischa Davis grabbed Auckland's lone title in the under-18 girls division, with Rishworth and Paige Hareb (Taranaki) becoming wave-starved, while West Coast picked up their first ever scholastic title through a committed performance from Anna Hawes in the under-16 girls.
O'Connor, meanwhile, doesn't have much time to reflect on his success _ he's off to Brazil next week with the New Zealand junior team for the world championships.