Late waves lift Banto, LaTurner to Surfbash titles
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Matias Banto had less than a minute to find the winning wave. Ione LaTurner had less than two. Both delivered in the closing moments of their finals at the 37th annual Hi-Tech / Vissla / Lopez Surfbash on Saturday and Sunday at Hookipa Beach Park.
Banto, a 15-year-old from Lahaina, was trailing Eric Roberson in the open men’s final when he paddled into an overhead close-out, went vertical up the face and landed a re-entry. The judges awarded him 4.77 points, enough to edge Roberson by 0.61 of a point.
With wind and waves making it difficult to hear what score he needed in the final, Banto knew he had to make his last ride count.
“It was hard to hear with all the wind and the waves, but I know I needed a 4 something,” Banto said. “I knew I just needed to complete it.”
The victory capped a long day for Banto, who surfed seven 20-minute heats in windy, close-out conditions. The open men’s division was the competition’s largest with 32 surfers.
“It was sick, but it was a long day, so I was pretty tired, but glad I put it together,” Banto said after his victory.
Before competing in the open men, Banto surfed three heats in the boys 16-17 division, where he finished second to Kahlil Pineres-Schooley.
Kahlil Pineres-Schooley hits the lip during the open men’s final. Pineres-Schooley won the boys 16-17 division. Photo courtesy Dayanidhi
Pineres-Schooley, a junior at Seabury Hall, was the Hawaii High School Athletic Association state champion at the inaugural state meet at Hookipa last May. Banto, surfing for Lahainaluna, finished fourth at the HHSAA contest.
The open women’s final also came down to a late wave.
With less than two minutes remaining, LaTurner negotiated a challenging lineup, caught a wave and made a solid turn to edge Kalli Sprenger by 0.37 of a point.
“It was good, a set wave, thinking it was going to land on my head, then I saw it sort of stay back a little,” LaTurner said.
“The waves were a little tricky,” LaTurner added. “I just tried to stay a little calm, knew a wave was going to come for me and it did. Super shallow, really low tide, it was sort of big, it’s a bad combination for here. It was like most of them closing out, hard to pick the right one.”
Ione LaTurner throws spray off a frontside turn on her way to winning the open women’s division at the Surfbash. Photo courtesy Dayanidhi
Sprenger, another Lahaina surfer, also had a busy weekend. The Maui Prep seventh-grader won the girls 12-13 division Saturday, then returned Sunday to surf two heats in open longboard, finishing third, before placing second in the open women.
“It was real windy, and a little choppy, but the waves overall were pretty fun,” Sprenger said. “I did start to get a little tired, but I have a lot of energy. I just surf a lot, so I just get used to it.”
Kalli Sprenger makes a smooth backhand carve on her way to winning the girls 12-13 division at the Surfbash. Photo courtesy Dayanidhi
Another standout performance came from 11-year-old Axel Goya of Paia, who won the boys 12-and-under division, the second-largest field with 20 competitors.
Goya posted two scores in the excellent range of 8.0 to 10.0 during his four heats, a notable accomplishment on a weekend when scores above 8.0 were rare.
“It was pretty fun, feels good,” Goya said. “I don’t really know my scores, too conscious on my heat whether I’m going to win or not.”
The Surfbash is part of the Hawaii Surfing Association-Maui series. The next HSA event will be the Minit Medical Urgent Care contest at Kahului Harbor, with a holding period of Dec. 5-23.
Guide Udell won the youngest division, the mixed boys and girls under-10, at the 37th annual Hi-Tech / Lopez / Vissla Surfbash at Hookipa Beach Park. Photo courtesy Dayanidhi
Hi-Tech / Lopez / Vissla Surfbash
Nov. 7-8, 2026
At Hookipa Beach Park
Results
Boys
12U (priority) -- 1. Axel Goya, 13.66; 2. Greyson DaProza, 9.50; 3. Jack Grier, 7.50; 4. Rocco Swift 5.77.
12-13 (priority) -- 1. Bryce Martins, 15.00; 2. Elan Bar, 10.97; 3. Julian Libitsky, 6.00; 4. Kameron Kimmel, 5.17.
14-15 (priority) -- 1. Asher McClenahan, 14.67; 2. Archer Oliver, 11.17; 3. Ryder Prouty, 10.00; 4. Kai McCluskey, 9.93.
16-17 (priority) -- 1. Kahlil Pineres-Schooley, 13.50; 2. Matias Banto, 13.00; 3. Bode Davis, 11.60; 4. Seth Jucker, 10.20.
Open Men -- 1. Matias Banto, 12.87; 2. Eric Roberson, 12.26; 3. Zolten Poulsen, 11.80; 4. Seth Jucker, 11.00; 5. Nahuel Messera, 10.96; 6. Kahlil Pineres-Schooley, 4.3.
Girls
U12 -- 1. Coco Bitoun, 10.00; 2. Alice Grier, 7.37; 3. Harbor Haas, 5.44; 4. Kajarine Edelhertz, 5.00; 5. Maya Andrade, 4.20.
12-13 (priority) -- 1. Kalli Sprenger, 11.66; 2. Sayler Udell, 7.90; 3. Brynn Payne, 6.16; 4. Tiare Sloan, 6.00.
14-15 (priority) -- 1. Ocean Lipstein, 11.16; 2. Mayli Hack, 7.23; 3. Baylee Brown, 7.04.
16-17 (priority) -- 1. Mikaia Barnes, 12.50; 2. Kaja Przeciechowska, 11.17; 3. Ayla Daian, 8.33
Open Women -- 1. Ione LaTurner, 11.60; 2. Kalli Sprenger, 11.23; 3. Mikaia Barnes, 10.40; 4. Ocean Lipstein, 8.93; 5. Mayli Hack, 5.67; 6. Alice Grier, 5.20.
Mixed Boys and Girls
U10 -- 1. Guide Udell, 10.44; 2. Felix Swift, 8.50; 3. Bandit Udell, 6.67; 4. Jeremiah Skousen, 5.24; 5. Gordon Grier, 5.00; 6. Elijah Ching, 3.73.
Open Longboard -- 1. Aiden Haas, 12.77; 2. Lila Sloan, 11.67; 3. Kalli Sprenger, 9.67; 4. Peata Lee-Hubin, 8.60; 5. Ocean Lipstein, 8.50; 6. Tiare Sloan, 6.17.
Para -- 1. Scott Davis, 17.67; 2. Scott "Scooter" Metcalfe 15.83.
Coco Bitoun sets up for a backside turn on her way to winning the girls under-12 division. Photo courtesy Dayanidhi
Aiden Haas hangs five on his way to winning the open longboard division at the Surfbash. Photo courtesy Dayanidhi
Axel Goya goes airborne during the boys under-12 final at the Surfbash, where he claimed first place. Photo courtesy Dayanidhi
Mikaia Barnes cuts back into the whitewater during the open women’s final. Barnes also won the girls 16-17 division. Photo courtesy Dayanidhi