USD Surf Team welcomes back the Wavehouse in style The Toreros lay claim to Mission Beach by winning the Collegiate Flow Battle at the recently reopened Wavehouse

By Edwin Blebu
ASST. SPORTS EDITOR

The Wavehouse reopening was a fun filled afternoon highlighted by a victory by USD’s very own surf team.

The Wavehouse, located in Mission Beach, recently reopened after a change in ownership prompted renovations to the venue’s facilities.

One of the major renovations is a brand new Flowbarrel for their members.

Another noteworthy aspect of the Wavehouse reopening is the fact that University of San Diego School of Business Professor Daniel Rivetti is one of the new Wavehouse owners who helped facilitate the buyout.

The newly renovated Wavehouse hosted several events on April 20, including the Pro Flowboard Contest for best tricks and the Collegiate Flow Battle which was won by the USD surf team.

The collegiate competition included teams from Cal State University San Marcos, UC San Diego and last year’s winner San Diego State University.

Of the five members on the team who won this year’s competition, four students were on the team that lost to San Diego State last year, making this victory especially sweet.

Juniors Josh Chapple, Forrest Dein and Henry Kittle and seniors Will Caldwell and Alex Thompson Mendez were the recipients of the $500 grand prize for winning the Collegiate Flow Battle.

The members of the USD surf team were pleasantly surprised at the amount of support they received from the USD community as over 50 students attended throughout the afternoon.

When asked about the best part of the afternoon, Kittle expressed his thoughts on the competition.

“My two favorite things are getting barreled and winning free stuff so it was the best day ever for me,” Kittle said. “We were psyched so many USD students showed up,.”

Having the opportunity for a rematch against the Aztecs was without a doubt the perfect way to end the competition. When asked about what changed this year, Thompson Mendez offered his view on the improvement of this year’s team.

“We’ve been training for this win for the last few years and the team chemistry finally came to 100 percent fruition,” Thompson Mendez said.

With the new ownership’s ties to USD, it is likely there will be more efforts to entice USD students to attend future events and visit the newly renovated facility. USD students should be on the lookout for deals and future promotions at the Wavehouse.