The John B. Connally High School duo of Jeffrey Padavick of Austin, and Matthew McMillan of Pflugerville, brought a five-bass limit to the scale Saturday weighing 16 pounds, 10 ounces, to win the 2017 FLW/TBF High School Fishing Texas State Championship tournament on Sam Rayburn Reservoir in Jasper, Texas. The win advanced the team to the 2017 High School Fishing National championship, held June 27-July 1 at Pickwick Lake in Florence, Alabama.
A field of 77 teams competed in the no-entry fee tournament, which launched from the Umphrey Family Pavilion in Jasper. In FLW/TBF High School Fishing competition, the top 10-percent of teams competing advance to the High School Fishing National Championship.
The top seven teams on Sam Rayburn Reservoir that advanced to the 2017 High School Fishing National Championship were:
1st: John B. Connally High School – Jeffrey Padavick, Austin, Texas, and Matthew McMillan, Pflugerville, Texas, (five bass, 16-10)
2nd: Lake Travis High School – Abbi Gass, Spicewood, Texas, and Mark Lackey, Austin, Texas, (five bass, 15-2)
3rd: Huntington High School– River Johnson, Lufkin, Texas, and Brenton Peters, Huntington, Texas, (five bass, 14-8)
4th: Regents High School – Brian Arabie and Hunter Jackson, both of Austin, Texas, (four bass, 13-1)
5th: Kirbyville High School – Braden Berryman, Kirbyville, Texas, and Kenneth Pickett, Call, Texas, (five bass, 12-2)
6th: Rains High School – River Lee, Normangee, Texas, and Thomas Martin, Jewett, Texas, (five bass, 11-11)
7th: Magnolia West High School – Cameron Carter, Magnolia, Texas, and Aaron Batten, Houston, Texas, (four bass, 10-15)
Rounding out the top 10 teams were:
8th: The Woodlands College Park High School – Joe Beebee, The Woodlands, Texas, and Chad Mrazek, Conroe, Texas, (five bass, 10-6)
9th: Buna High School – Blaine Marks and Joel Sitton, both of Buna, Texas, (five bass, 10-3)
10th: Red Oak High School – Luke Stanford, Red Oak, Texas, and Jarret Ladue, Ovilla, Texas, (three bass, 9-11)
The 2017 FLW/TBF High School Fishing Texas State Championship was a two-person (team) event for students in grades 7-12, open to any Student Angler Federation (SAF) affiliated high school club in the United States. The top 10 percent of each Challenge, Open, and state championship field will advance to the High School Fishing National Championship. The High School Fishing national champions will each receive a $5,000 college scholarship to the school of their choice.
In addition to the High School Fishing National Championship, all High School Fishing anglers nationwide automatically qualify for the world’s largest high school bass tournament, the 2017 High School Fishing World Finals, held in conjunction with the National Championship. At the 2016 World Finals more than $60,000 in scholarships and prizes were awarded.
Full schedules and the latest announcements are available at HighSchoolFishing.org and FLWFishing.com.
About FLW
FLW is the world’s largest tournament-fishing organization, providing anglers of all skill levels the opportunity to compete for millions in prize money in 2017 across five tournament circuits. Headquartered in Benton, Kentucky, with offices in Minneapolis, FLW conducts more than 274 bass-fishing tournaments annually across the United States and sanctions tournaments in Canada, China, Mexico, South Africa and South Korea. FLW tournament fishing can be seen on the Emmy-nominated “FLW” television show, broadcast to more than 564 million households worldwide, while FLW Bass Fishing magazine delivers cutting-edge tips from top pros.
About The Bass Federation
The Bass Federation Inc., (TBF) is a member of the Freshwater Fishing Hall of Fame. TBF is owned by those we serve and dedicated to the sport of fishing. The Federation is the largest and oldest, organized grassroots fishing, youth and conservation organization there is. TBF, our affiliated state federations and their member clubs conduct more than 20,000 events each year and have provided a foundation for the entire bass fishing industry for more than 45 years. TBF founded the Student Angler Federation and the National High School Fishing program in 2008 to promote clean family fun and education through fishing.
By: Joe Opager, Director of Public Relations
