Newcastle surfers Sarah Baum and Ryan Callinan have both advanced to the second round following heat wins at Challenger Series event the Ballito Pro in South Africa.
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Redhead-based Baum, competing in her native country, finished well clear of her opponents with a two-wave total of 10.44 on Tuesday night (AEST).
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Her best rides of 5.27 and 5.17 saw her 4.01 points clear of Japan's Rina Matsunaga (6.43) while World Surf League regular Johanne Defay (6) came third and was eliminated.
Merewether's Philippa Anderson has yet to start her campaign at the Ballito Pro.
Callinan also won his heat at Willard Beach on Tuesday, following up the second-place result recorded by Merewether clubmate Morgan Cibilic less than 24 hours earlier.
Callinan posted a two-wave total of 10.5 to edge out US surfer Cam Richards (10.07) and reach the last 48.
Cibilic bookended his 30 minutes in the water on Monday with rides of 5.5 and 5.3, seeing him finish 1.8 points behind Frenchman Timothe Bisso (12.6) and 1.7 ahead of American Cole Houshmand (9.1).
In terms of the Challenger Series rankings, both Callinan (6th, 8050 points) and Cibilic (9th, 6640) are sitting inside the promotion line.
Callinan and Cibilic are aiming to requalify for the WSL Championship Tour in 2023 after missing the mid-season cut earlier this year.
Baum (12th, 6445) and Anderson (53rd, 1400) are also hoping to make the main draw next year.
Anderson has been drawn against Challenger Series leader Caitlin Simmers in heat 13.
The event window closes on Sunday ahead of the CT Corona Open getting underway at J-Bay on July 12.
Merewether's Jackson Baker arrives ranked 21st in the world.
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Josh Callinan
My name is Josh Callinan and I'm a sports journalist at the Newcastle Herald. I started with the newspaper in 2016 after a decade at the Maitland Mercury.
My name is Josh Callinan and I'm a sports journalist at the Newcastle Herald. I started with the newspaper in 2016 after a decade at the Maitland Mercury.
