The Union County High School duo of Cole Davis and Dillan Snow, both of Blairsville, Georgia, brought a five-bass limit to the scale Sunday weighing 18 pounds, 14 ounces to win the 2018 TBF/FLW High School Fishing Lake Hartwell Early Bird Challenge.
A field of 55 teams competed in the no-entry fee tournament, which launched from Green Pond Landing in Anderson. A total of 23 of the 55 high school teams competing weighed in a five-bass limit. In FLW/TBF High School Fishing competition, the top 10-percent of teams competing advance to the High School Fishing National Championship.
The top five teams on Lake Hartwell that advanced to the 2018 High School Fishing National Championship were:
1st: Union County High School, Blairsville, Ga. – Cole Davis and Dillan Snow, both of Blairsville, Ga., five bass, 18-14
2nd: T.L. Hanna High School, Anderson, S.C. – Patrick Murry and Mason Rametta, both of Anderson, S.C., five bass, 14-13
3rd: Georgia Student Angler Federation – Michael Landernaeu and Brett Morlane, both of Cumming, Ga., five bass, 14-10
4th: Union County High School, Blairsville, Ga. – Hunter Enlow, Union, Ga., and Ce Fowler, Jonesville, Ga., five bass, 13-12
5th: Backwoods Bass Boys – Hunter Mckee, Thomasville, N.C., and Wyatt Long, Raleigh, N.C., five bass, 13-3
Rounding out the top 10 teams were:
6th: Devildog Anglers, Travelers Rest, S.C. – Matt Harrison, Greenville, S.C. and Gantt Connor, Travelers Rest, S.C., five bass, 12-14
7th: Franklin County High School, Carnesville, Ga. – Tyler Campbell and Joe Mitchell, both of Martin, Ga., five bass, 12-11
8th: Buffalo Grove High School, Buffalo Grove, Ill. – Tyler Lubbat, Wheeling, Ill., and Tyler Christy, Bolingbrook, Ill., four bass, 12-0
9th: Georgia Student Angler Federation – Glenn Worley, Dawsonville, Ga, and Paul Marks, Cumming, Ga., five bass, 10-12
10th: Gilmer High School, Ellijay, Ga. – Isaac Bradshaw and Payton Heath Stover, both of Ellijay, Ga., five bass, 10-10
The 2018 TBF/FLW High School Fishing Early Bird Challenge on Lake Hartwell 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
