OCEANSIDE — Sage Erickson, 21, of Ventura, Calif. won the Association of Surfing Professionals (ASP) 6-Star Paul Mitchell Supergirl Pro over New Zealand’s Paige Hareb 22, in peaky two-to-four foot waves at Oceanside Pier.
Erickson started strong in the final and led the bout after the heat’s opening exchange with powerful backhand turns on the lefts running in to the pier. Erickson went on to hold on to the lead for the remainder of the heat. The win marks the first major ASP victory of her young career.
“I’ve haven’t had a big victory yet and winning feels so amazing,” Erickson said. “Coming in to this event, I really wanted to win. I was so inspired by Bianca (Buitendag) in Peru and Lakey’s (Peterson) win at the U.S. Open and I came up against some really tough matches and after I got through that heat with Courtney (Conlogue) I just said, ‘today’s my day.’”
The Oceanside victory marks a shift in momentum for Erickson after her impressive Quarterfinals finish at the US Open of Surfing and has added incentive to put together a standout year on the women’s ASP WCT for 2013.
