Sailors love their board games

In high school surfing, a passion for the sport is crucial.

The season is long, stretching from the fall into late March, which all but eliminates competing in other high school sports. The hours can be arduous, with competitions beginning at 6 a.m.

And with the best surfing done in the morning, working practice around classes is always a chore. Unlike facilities other sports use, the ocean is temperamental. It is not waiting there ready with a wave, like a court has an awaiting hoop or fields are prepared for their respective sports.

There is waiting before there can be practice and when the wave does come, then there is competition for the wave. Only one surfer per wave.

But these are small sacrifices for the Newport Harbor High surf team. The passion for the sport outweighs the difficulty of actually competing.

The senior foursome of Christian Morabito, Stevie Farmer, Charlie Buckingham and Regan Riley are the Sailors’ leaders and shortboarders, the most prolific of the five styles.

Junior Hailey Sandberg is the top girls’ longboarder and junior Camille Collett is the best at the shortboard for the girls. Senior Chris LoMenzo is the best longboarder and senior Matt Kretschmar is the top bodyboarder.

Freshman Kaleigh Gilchrist has limitless potential and is earning comparisons to the Sailors’ best female surfer ever — current professional Erica Hosseni.

Newport Harbor obliterated Laguna Beach, 108-60, in its first meet of the year. The Sailors won all five events in the recent South Coast League contest.

Morabito, the team’s top surfer, has been riding waves on a regular basis for six years. He puts in two hours a day, seven days a week, on average. It didn’t hurt that he first stood up on a surf board when he was 4 years old.

“I like being able to get better and better and being with friends,” Morabito said.

Shortboarding usually attracts the more skilled surfers because its maneuverability makes it more challenging than a longboard. Tricks are expected when riding a shortboard.

“It’s just a different type of surfing,” said Morabito, who has gone to Chile, Tahiti, Hawaii and up and down the California coast to surf. “I find the turns and moves more exciting. They both have their positives and their negatives. I just chose shortboarding because I like the feel of it better.”

Riley, who is sponsored by a clothing company, has always favored the shortboard.

“You can get critical on a shortboard,” Riley said.

Riley lives two minutes from 54th Street beach and was prompted to surf by his mother.

“She wanted to use me as an excuse to go to the beach,” Riley said.

Early on, Riley wasn’t too fond of the sport.

“I was stoked after I caught a sick one,” Riley said.

Now Riley goes everyday, but with school, he can be limited to the weekends and Mondays.

“I love waking up, pulling up at 54th Street, seeing the sickest peaks and ripping them,” Riley said.

Gilchrist has been taking on waves for four years.

The coaches regard her potential so highly, they had her surf in the main shortboard competition, which is primarily seen as a boys’ competition. It was her first high school event and she finished sixth before going on to win the girls’ shortboard competition.

“She’s one of the best two I’ve ever had,” Coach Scott Morlan, in his 12th year, said. “At this stage, she is the best. She has just got a knack.”

Gilchrist is among five members of the under-18 girls’ national team. She will compete in Portugal in May.

“I didn’t know what it was about at first,” Gilchrist said of when she tried out. “Then I found out and I got pretty excited.”

With all of the talent the Sailors have, the main competition remains San Clemente.

“Everyone is saying last year was [the Tritons’] year,” Riley said. “San Clemente lost a lot of good guys. I think this is the year for us. We have a lot of good guys.”

But the Sailors will not face San Clemente until tournaments in March and May. Until then, Newport Harbor will rely on its dedication to improve before the league finals, Nov. 28-29.

“It takes a lot of heart and discipline,” Morlan said. “You have to have a passion … I think you also have to be a good student. You need to study the waves. You need to study your surfing. That’s important.”