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Three U.S. athletes also win titles at 22nd Junior Masters

POLK CITY, Fla. – U.S. athletes Erika Lang (Gilbert, Ariz.) and Phillip Soven (Longwood, Fla.) won titles in respective events at the 55th Masters Water Ski & Wakeboard Tournament, presented
by Nautique, May 24-25, on Robin Lake at Callaway Gardens in Pine Mountain, Ga. For the second time in the past three years, USA Water Ski and the United States Olympic Committee selected the Masters as an Operation Gold event. In addition to the cash-prize purse offered by Nautique, U.S. athletes competing in slalom, tricks, jumping and wakeboarding were awarded an additional $2,500 for first place, $2,000 for second place, $1,500 for third place and $1,000 for fourth place via the Operation Gold program.

Lang won her first career Masters’ women’s tricks title, scoring a Robin Lake course record of 9,530 points. Natallia Berdnikava (Belarus) finished second with 9,520 points (tying her previous course record). Whitney McClintock (Canada) placed third with 8,980 points and Clementine Lucine (France) was fourth with 7,420 points. In men’s tricks, Pierre Ballon (France) won his first career Masters’ title, scoring 11,590 points. Defending champion Aliaksei Zharnasek (Belarus) placed second, scoring 11,420 points, U.S. athlete Jimmy Siemers (Round Rock, Texas) was third with 9,680 points and Josh Briant (Australia) was fourth with 7,910 points.

Soven won the men’s wakeboarding title, scoring 96.67 points. Rusty Malinoski (Canada) placed second with 95.33 points, followed by Harley Clifford (Australia) with 94.00 points and Dean Smith (Australia) with 80.67 points. In women’s wakeboarding, Amber Wing (Australia) won the title, scoring 88.0 points. U.S. athlete Dallas Friday (Orlando, Fla.) placed second, scoring 84.67 points, followed by Bec Gange (Australia) with 82.33 points and U.S. athlete Meagan Ethell (Orlando, Fla.) with 71.00 points.

In women’s slalom, McClintock won her first career Masters’ slalom title with a score of 3-1/2 buoys at 39-/2 feet off, tying the course record set in the elimination round by U.S. athlete Regina Jaquess (Santa Rosa Beach, Fla.), the two-time defending champion who finished second with a score of 2-1/2 buoys at 39-1/2 feet off. U.S. athlete April Coble-Eller (Lillington, N.C.) placed third with a score of 1 buoy at 39-1/2 feet off and Nicole Arthur (Great Britain) was fourth with a score of 3 buoys at 38 feet off. In men’s slalom, Thomas Degasperi (Italy) won his first career Masters’ title with a score of 3 buoys at 41 feet off, followed by U.S. athlete Jon Travers (Groveland, Fla.) with a score of a ½-buoy at 41 feet off, Aaron Larkin (New Zealand) placed third with a score of 3-1/2 buoys at 39-1/2 feet off and defending champion Will Asher (Great Britain) was fourth with a score of 3-1/2 buoys at 39-1/2 feet off.

In men’s jumping, Ryan Dodd (Canada) won his second career Masters’ title with a distance of 223 feet/68.0 meters. U.S. athlete Freddy Krueger (Winter Garden, Fla.), the defending champion, finished second with a distance of 218 feet/66.3 meters. Bojan Schipner (Germany) placed third with a distance of 217 feet/66.0 meters and U.S. athlete Zack Worden (Deltona, Fla.) was fourth with a distance of 215 feet/65.5 meters. In women’s jumping, Jacinta Carroll (Australia) won the title for the second consecutive year with a distance of 182 feet/55.4 meters. Berdnikava placed second with a distance of 178 feet/54.3 meters, followed by Jutta Lammi (Finland) with a distance of 175 feet/53.4
meters and Marion Mathieu (France) with a distance of 169 feet/51.5 meters.

Three U.S. water ski athletes – Brooke Baldwin (Windermere, Fla.), Anna Gay (Winter Garden, Fla.) and Samantha Dumala (Wellington, Fla.) also won respective titles at the 22nd Junior Masters Water Ski Tournament, presented by Nautique, on May 23 on Robin Lake at Callaway Gardens in Pine Mountain, Ga.

Baldwin won the Junior Women’s overall title, scoring 2,845.5 points. Italy’s Alice Bagnoli finished second with 2,662.1 points and U.S. athlete Abbi Grathwohl (Martindale, Texas) placed third with 2,574.5 points. In Junior Men’s overall, Dorien Llewellyn (Austria) won the title for the second consecutive year, scoring 2,910.3 points. Gianmarco Pajni (Italy) finished second with 2,559.1 points and U.S. athlete Taylor Garcia (Winter Garden, Fla.) placed third with 2,503.3 points.

Gay won the Junior Women’s tricks title for the second consecutive year, scoring 7,330 points. Baldwin finished runner-up with 6,670 points and Bagnoli placed third with 6,310 points. In Junior Men’s tricks, Danylo Filchenko (Ukraine) won the title, scoring 8,970 points, followed by Pajni (defending champion) with 8,790 points and Robledo Santiago (Colombia) with 8,300 points.

Dumala won the Junior Women’s slalom title, scoring 2 buoys at 38 feet off. Geneva Roach (Canada) finished second with a score of 4 buoys at 35 feet off and U.S. athlete Allie Nicholson(Gallatin, Tenn.) placed third with a score of 3 buoys at 38 feet off. In Junior Men’s slalom, Brando

Caruso (Italy) won the title after two run-offs with Eamon Van Der Merwe (South Africa). After both competitors tied the Robin Lake course record for Junior Men’s slalom with scores of 2 buoys at 39-1/2 feet off in regulation and the first runoff, Caruso won the title with a score of 3 buoys at 39-1/2 feet off to Van Der Merwe’s 2 buoys at 39-1/2 feet off in the second run-off. Llewellyn placed third with a score of ½-buoy at 39-1/2 feet off.

In Junior Women’s jumping, Mara Salmina (Austria) won the title with a distance of 139 feet/42.5 meters. Grathwohl finished second with a distance of 120 feet/36.7 meters, and Chile’s Valentia Gonzalez (118 feet/36.1 meters) placed third. In Junior Men’s jumping, Llewellyn won the title for the second consecutive year with a distance of 175 feet/53.2 meters. U.S. athletes Nick Lang (Gilbert, Ariz.) and Garcia placed second and third, respectively, with distances of 173 feet/52.8 meters and 157 feet/48.0 meters.

For complete results, visit www.masterswaterski.com.
USA Water Ski was formed in 1939 as a non-profit organization promoting water skiing in the United States. USA Water Ski is affiliated with the International Waterski & Wakeboard Federation (world governing body) and is recognized by the United States Olympic Committee and Pan-American Sports Organization as the national governing body of organized water skiing in the United States.