The Prescott High School fishing duo of Bryer Pennington and Jack Arnette, both of Prescott, Arkansas, brought a five-bass limit to the scale Saturday weighing 19 pounds, 3 ounces to win the 2018 TBF/FLW High School Fishing Arkansas State Championship on Lake Dardanelle.
A field of 91 teams competed in the no-entry fee tournament, which launched from Lake Dardanelle State Park in Russellville. In FLW/TBF High School Fishing competition, the top 10-percent of teams competing advance to the High School Fishing National Championship.
The top nine teams on Lake Dardanelle that qualified for the 2018 High School Fishing National Championship were:
1st: Prescott High School, Prescott, Ark. – Bryer Pennington and Jack Arnette, both of Prescott, Ark., five bass, 19-3
2nd: Northwest Arkansas Youth Fishing Club – Gavin Webb, Farmington, Ark., and Gavin Pennington, Springdale, Ark., five bass, 15-1
3rd: Westside Anglers – Tanner Fife, Greers Ferry, Ark., and Tristen Cottrell, Prim, Ark., five bass, 14-10
4th: NEA Youth Fishing – Jay Morgan and Cade Gartman, both of Trumann, Ark., five bass 14-8
5th: Arkansas Youth Fishing Association – Johnathan Pipkens, Benton, Ark., and Malachi Thornton, Lonsdale, Ark., five bass, 14-7
6th: Cabot High School, Cabot, Ark. – Quaid Barber and Gavin Smith, both of Cabot, Ark., five bass, 12-11
7th: Greenbrier High School, Greenbrier Ark. – Cameron Fortner and Justin Watson, five bass, 11-15
8th: Highland High School, Highland Ark. – Spemncer Wiles, Hardy, Ark., and Matt Boyd, Cherokee Village, Ark., five bass, 11-12
8th: Western Arkansas High School Hawg Hunters – Noah Newell and Weston Bufkin, both of Van Buren, Ark., five bass, 11-12
Rounding out the top 10:
10th: Mena High School, Mena, Ark. – Austin Johnston and Austin Rose, both of Mena, Ark., five bass, 11-9
Complete results from the event can be found at HighSchoolFishing.org.
The 2018 TBF/FLW High School Fishing Arkansas 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 on Pickwick Lake, in Florence, Alabama, June 26-29. 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 2018 High School Fishing World Finals, held in conjunction with the National Championship on Pickwick Lake. At the 2017 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 2018 across five tournament circuits. Headquartered in Benton, Kentucky, with offices in Minneapolis, FLW and their partners conduct 286 bass-fishing tournaments annually around the world, including the United States, Canada, China, Italy, South Korea, Mexico, Portugal, South Africa and Spain. 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: Drew Aspinwall, FLW Fishing
