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On Friday afternoon, Keala Kennelly watched on the tiny screen of a borrowed cellphone as her friend and competitor Paige Alms won the Peahi Womens Challenge at Jaws, Mauis famed big-wave break, and captured the inaugural World Surf League womens Big Wave Championship.A few hours earlier, in the first heat of the womens contest, Kennelly caught the opening wave. It was the first surfed by a woman in a WSL big-wave contest, and it received the highest score of the day. On her second wave, Kennelly lost her balance navigating bumpy surf and felt the lip of a 30-foot wave crash onto her back leg. An MRI fortunately revealed no torn ligaments, but she was unable to surf in the final for which she qualified.As the first woman to tow into a wave at Teahupoo, the first woman to paddle into a wave at Nelscott Reef and the first woman to win an XXL Big Wave award in a previously male-only category, Kennelly, 38, is one of the most influential and respected women in big-wave surfing. Alms, 28, is the next generation. In 2005, she became the first woman to get barreled at Jaws, her home break and a wave shes surfed since she was 14, and was called the best female big-wave surfer by Surfline.She lived up to that billing on Friday, catching more waves than any woman in the event and surfing with confidence and poise on a windy, treacherous day at Jaws.The day after competing in this historic event, espnW caught up with both women, who were already asking, What next?espnW: What was the vibe like when you all arrived at the beach Friday morning knowing youd surf in the first WSL womens big-wave contest ?Paige Alms: Everyone was so supportive. I was so happy to see that all the girls showed up and were charging.Keala Kennelly: I was more relaxed than ever for a contest. I was Zen. Ive been living in California. I was just so happy to be in Hawaii and back in warm water. I was excited to surf anything over 4 feet. I was hyped to be able to paddle out without 60 guys in the lineup.espnW: What was it like to be out at Jaws with only women, and so few people, in the lineup?PA: Even when were free surfing at Jaws, there are usually only one or two women in the lineup. The most theres ever been at once was four or five girls. To have six of us out there in a heat with no one else in the lineup, we all felt the same way: This is awesome.If there are 60 guys in the lineup, you dont catch a lot of waves. We were all glowing and proud to be out there together. Win or lose, having an empty lineup at your home break, one of the best big waves in the world -- nothing tops that.espnW: Paige, because Maui is your home break, did you feel more pressure on you to take the win?PA: The pressure comes from within. I wanted to put on a good show and make sure we represented women well. That was the pressure for me. It wasnt about winning the contest. My friends tried to put that pressure on me. But it was about having those empty lineups, choosing the waves you want with other girls. When I won, I felt like I won for everyone.espnW: What was it like to have so many women competing at a break at which you both have been such pioneering surfers?PA: Only half the 12 girls had surfed Jaws before this contest, and the other half of us were nervous for that. I know how powerful this wave is, but not knowing is almost better. Those girls showed up and sent it. I felt pride for the girls.KK: Windy Jaws is treacherous, so my hats off to all the girls who went out and took a wave.espnW: Speaking of wind, the conditions looked incredibly windy on the webcast. How bad was the wind?PA: It was very challenging. It matched the name of the contest, The Peahi Challenge. The wind was gnarlier than it looked at home. When its windy like that, it becomes really dangerous. I dont usually surf it when its windy. The risk isnt worth the reward.KK: I was excited when we left the harbor. But on the boat ride out, you can tell if the wind is going to be an issue. As the water got choppier, I could see the wind was going to be an issue, and that gets scary for me at Jaws. It becomes really dangerous because the wind gets up under the board, holds you up at the lip, doesnt let you in and releases your fins. It ups the danger so much. It was intense.espnW: Knowing that, how do you find the confidence to paddle out and make the decision that its worth the reward?PA: When the stadium is set and you know you have to go out, you go. We had a moment when I heard there would only be three of us in the final [after Kennelly, Laura Enever and Emi Erickson qualified into the final but pulled out due to injuries], and some girls asked if we should postpone the event or push it to the next stop on tour. I was like, No. We are here to surf, to do the job they invited us to do. If we didnt step to the plate, it would make womens big-wave surfing look bad.The conditions were tough, but its still the best big wave in the world, even when its windy. We are going to do it now. It was game on for all of us from that point.KK: Paige did such an amazing job and sent it. She went out there and earned her victory and carried it for the women. But Paige is a true sportswoman and she was bummed I wasnt in the final. We love and respect each other, and Paige definitely wants me out there. But she is so deserving. Paige let people know that we deserve to be there.One of the disadvantages of being backside at Jaws is you have your back to most of the wave so its difficult to see ??the oncoming section and sometimes it can creep up on you and take you out. ?????? unfortunately I didnt see the end section coming on this wave and it caught me by surprise so I had no time to brace myself for the explosion ???? and my body paid the price ??. @wsl #Peahichallenge2016 ?? by @tonyharringtonA photo posted by Keala Kennelly (@kealakennelly) onNov 12, 2016 at 11:34am PSTespnW: What do you think happens from here? Is this the first of many big-wave events for the women?PA: Thats the goal. This is the first of its kind, the first time they gave us this opportunity. This is my home break, where I grew up and learned to surf big waves, and I felt obligated to put on a show to show the world we know how to surf this wave. Thats where the pressure came from. Now that we showed that, I hope the WSL will add more events. Maybe we can talk them into having the Todos womens event. It would be rad to have an event at all the big wave stops.KK: It was an honor to compete, and I was stoked for the opportunity. Its not the way I wanted it to go down, but Im proud of the wave I rode and proud that I got the highest score. And I am excited for next year. There will be a next year.Hydro Flask Scontate . They were putting most of their energy into a record-setting offensive display. Hydro Flask Cosè . Hazard cut in from the left and scored with a swerving right-footed shot for ninth goal of the season, which proved to be enough for the victory despite Chelseas forwards again lacking a cutting edge up front. http://www.italiahydroflask.it/ .C. -- Charlotte Bobcats coach Steve Clifford said after all of these years in the NBA hes still amazed at some of the things LeBron James does. Borraccia Hydro Flask Italia . Anthony Davis had 31 points and 17 rebounds in his seventh straight game with more than 20 points, but that was only enough to keep the Pelicans competitive into the final minutes. Andrew Bogut had 10 points and 15 rebounds for Golden State, which rebounded from a loss a night earlier in Oklahoma City and snapped a two-game skid. Hydro Flask Bottiglia . Fellow centre Pavel Datsyuk remains out because of a concussion. Zetterberg has 11 goals and 19 assists for a team-high 30 points, and Datsyuk has a team-high 12 goals and 11 assists.PARADISE ISLAND, Bahamas -- Stacy Lewis brings more value to the LPGA Tour that just her golf. Along with becoming the first American in 18 years to win LPGA player of the year, and then rising to No. 1 in the world for four weeks, Lewis had a direct hand in bringing two tournaments to the LPGA Tour. One of them is this week, the Bahamas LPGA Classic, which grew out of her partnership with Ohio-based title sponsor Pure Silk. She also aced what amounted to a pop quiz by the chief executive of Marathon Oil, which now sponsors a tournament in July. Thats what led LPGA Tour Commissioner Mike Whan to jokingly say Wednesday, "Shes better at sales than me." "Your stars drive your sport," Whan said. "Your athletes generate the momentum, and your job is to turn that momentum into business." Lewis, however, is not good enough to dictate weather. A storm the locals havent seen in some 20 years pounded Paradise Island through the night, dumping about a foot of rain in an eight-hour span that flooded the Ocean Club. There was so much water on the course -- the entire 18th fairway was covered -- that the tournament was reduced to 54 holes. The first round is to start Friday with a Sunday finish, leaving some flexibility in case more showers cause problems. "Im happy I got 18 holes of practice in yesterday," Suzann Pettersen said. "Well play whenever we can." The rain wiped out the pro-am, so the LPGA Tour hastily arranged for players to meet at a restaurant at The Atlantis for a question-and-answer sessions with the amateurs. The group of players included the top three in the world ranking -- Inbee Park, Lewis and Pettersen, along with Brittany Lincicome and Natalie Gulbis. It was an example of how the LPGA players try to do a little more, and it goes back to pop quiz for Lewis. She had a marketing sponsorship with Marathon, and the company was thinking about sponsoring a tournament. Lewis was playing in a pro-am with the CEO when he turned to her and said, "Why should I sponsor an LPGA event?" "It caught me off guard," Lewis said. "I said it was a different experience than the PGA Tour and your customers will love it. I think thats more why they did. They do a big customer outing. You get your name out there, but mostly they take care of their customers. And our pro-ams are better than any out there." The LPGA stars all turned out for a pro-am party Tuesday night at The Atlantis, with its massive aquarium as the backdrop. As for the gollf? No chance.dddddddddddd The rain fell so hard and for so long that on Wednesday morning, the tip of a red hazard stake down the right side of the 18th fairway was barely visible. The entire hole was a water hazard except for the tee and the green. On the adjacent ninth hole, water covered a deep bunker on the left side of the green -- two turtles were swimming in what had been a bunker -- and it was nearly coming onto the green. Whan asked some officials from The Bahamas if they should have considered an earlier date. The advance staff had not seen much of a cloud of the last week. "They said they had never seen a storm like this, so were probably in a good spot," Whan said. Lewis is trying to get back to top spot after winning the LPGA Founders Cup in Phoenix in March to reach No. 1 in the world. Not since Beth Daniel in 1994 had an American won LPGA player of the year, and Lewis was on an upward trend by winning the HSBC Champions in Singapore and the following week in Phoenix. Park won the Kraft Nabisco Championship and replaced Lewis at No. 1. There now is a three-way battle -- and it could grow -- as the LPGA Tour heads into the heart of its major championship season, including a return to St. Andrews. Lewis is concerned with the careless mistakes leading to bogeys, though the real struggle is finding a balance with her recent star power. She is one of the more remarkable stories in womens golf, having spent most of her childhood in a back brace because of scoliosis, and then having to go through surgery after high school to install a rod and metal screws. None of that kept her from reaching the top. As for the attention? She is getting recognized more often. She gets some of the largest galleries, even when playing early in the morning. "The hardest for me is the extra stuff, being the only American up there," she said. "That adds to the media requirements, sponsor requirements, doing extra things at tournaments. Managing my schedule has been the hardest thing." In her first tournament after going to No. 1, Lewis had interviews in the morning, went to practice, another session of interviews in the afternoon, followed by a video interview, a photo shoot and the pro-am party. "It was exhausting," she said After a morning practice Tuesday this week, she headed over to Atlantis for a promotional spot -- she swam with dolphins. That was fun. And after getting out of the water, it started to rain. If nothing else, Wednesday brought a day of rest. ' ' '