The 2025 North American Cup Series (NACS) kicked off this past weekend in Greenville, South Carolina. NACS allows for athletes from the Americas to compete at an elite level outside of the World Cup circuit. Nearly 150 athletes traveled to BlocHaven for the series opener, which featured the Boulder discipline.

It was also the first time that athletes under 17 were able to compete in their own U17 category at a North American Cup.

Costanza Finishes 1st in Every Round

Melina Costanza had an impressive Gold performance with three tops during the Qualification round, four during Semi-Finals, and two more during her Finals round. From one dynamic coordination move to a paddle dyno, Costanza was the first and only athlete to stick the zone move of W4 as well as being the only athlete to top it.

When interviewed, Costanza said the next generation of climbing is already here, giving some encouraging words to the athletes in the U17 category, “The opportunities are endless, the sport is growing, and the community is really cool,” Costanza said.

Taking Silver, Jojo Chi topped W3 with 40 seconds left, almost parallel to Waller’s performance in the Men’s category. Overall, Chi had one top, with Costanza being the only athlete to top more than one climb. Finally, Evangelina Briggs had no tops, but still took Bronze with two zones.

Women’s Boulder Podium (Adult):
Melina Costanza (USA)
Jojo Chi (USA)
Evangelina Briggs (CAN)

Countryman Finishes 1st in Every Round

Dillon Countryman also had an impressive Gold performance with four tops during the Qualification round, three during Semi-Finals, and three more during Finals.

To encourage young climbers stepping onto the competition scene, Countryman said, “Have fun, stay psyched, and never stop climbing!”

In Silver, Matthew Rodriguez had the quickest ascent of M3 in only 40 seconds, and was also the only athlete to top M1. In Bronze, Zander Waller finished with two close calls, including a top on M3 with 40 seconds left and a top on M4 with 4 seconds left. On M1, Waller fell on the last hold after attempting to finish with an inverted toe hook.

Men’s Boulder Podium (Adult):
Dillon Countryman (USA)
Matthew Rodriguez (CAN)
Zander Waller (USA)

Haddad Takes Gold at first U17 North American Cup Finals

Maika Ruiz Haddad, Kailyn Leong, Lauren Williams and Abigail Schlotterback all flashed W1 in Finals. However, Haddad secured Gold, pushing Charley Planegger into Silver by one attempt. Notably, Haddad topped W3 with 3 seconds left on the clock. Other than W1, Planegger had the exact same score as Haddad.

Another comeback from the Qualification round, Planegger originally barely made Finals in 8th place, proving herself in Finals. In Bronze, Kailyn Leong was the only athlete to top W2.

Women’s Boulder Podium (U17):
Maika Ruiz Haddad (USA)
Charley Planegger (USA)
Kailyn Leong (USA)

Cobbs Takes Gold as the Only Men’s U17 Athlete to Top

Kai Cobbs was the only male athlete to both flash and top any of the U17 Finals climbs. Cobbs also made a surprising comeback from the Qualification round after originally placing fifth.

The Men’s U17 Finals climbs were particularly difficult for every athlete to make progress on, especially climbs M1 and M3, which no athletes were able to zone or top. Impressively, Owen Pham won Silver with a zone on M2. Finally, Vincent Schmidt won Bronze with his zone on M4, which no other athlete was able to accomplish.

Men’s Boulder Podium (U17):
Kai Cobbs (USA)
Owen Pham (USA)
Vincent Schmidt (USA)

You can rewatch the Semi-Final and Final rounds of the 2025 NACS Greenville at any time on the USA Climbing YouTube Channel. The next NACS competition will be hosted by Climb-Murfreesboro from April 12-13 in Murfreesboro, Tennessee.

Follow @usaclimbing on social media for future updates and behind-the-scenes action.