Josh Moniz, Zoe McDougall Earn First WSL Wins Since 2018

"It's so awesome to have a win at the place I literally learned how to surf and the first place I ever competed," said McDougall, who put up a 8.20 and a 7.50 in the final. "It's just a lot of first things here and it feels great to take a win at home in such amazing waves. It's been firing all week so it's just been a lot of fun. Honestly this year I've just been focusing on getting my mind right, slowing down and being smart. I took some time away from the Challenger Series and events wanting to come back feeling brand new.

"I signed with a brand new board company and sponsor," continued Zoe, who switched form riding Pyzels to Rustys. "That's always a nice feeling when you feel really confident in your equipment and just a lot of fresh starts.”

Halewia was on the WSL’s  Challenger Series as recently as 2022 but has since been relegated to the QS. There’s an argument to be made that this opens the door for more locals to compete at their home break and surf a world-class wave in a jersey. But there’s definitely another side that says Haleiwa deserves to be elevated on a bigger platform. The same goes for Sunset Beach. They both should at least be worth more than 1,000 points for the winner’s rankings. And have live webcasts at that. 

Moniz was on fire the whole event, earning five 9-point bangers. In the final against 2023 Vans Triple Crown winner Finn McGill, CT competitor Imaikalani deVault, and Haleiwa's own Shion Crawford, Moniz held firm. He scored a 9.20 and a 8.35 to seal the deal and get his first QS W since the 2018 Volcom Pipe Pro. 

"It feels great to win. It's been a while and I've had a pretty bumpy surf career competing so to have an event like this where it went smooth from start to finish is pretty cool," Moniz said. "I can kind of feel that momentum again and be able to play at that level with all the big boys. I was just fired up to be in the water with a bunch of my friends and knew I had to surf good to win. I was just trying to get on the good waves and in the end it all worked out in my favor."

Though he didn’t win the event, Crawford was a clear standout. His consecutive runner-ups at Sunset and Haleiwa have him first on the Hawaii/Tahiti Nui QS leaderboard. 

The Haleiwa event was the last on the women’s regional QS schedule. Thanks to her semifinal finish, Eweleiula Wong retained the top spot and will represent Hawaii in both the 2025 Challenger Series and World Junior Championships. She’ll be joined by Vaihitimahana Inso, the reigning ISA World Junior champ, and Keala Tomoda-Bannert. The men's 2024-25 QS season concludes in Rangiroa Pro QS 1000, Tahiti beginning March 3 through 7.