The Waupaca Junior Bass Busters Club duo of Tyler Corey of Amherst, Wisconsin, and Casey Hoffman of New London, Wisconsin, brought a five-bass limit to the scale Saturday weighing 15 pounds, 11 ounces to win the 2018 Bass Pro Shops FLW High School Fishing Mississippi River Open. The win advanced the team to the 2018 High School Fishing National Championship, held June 26-30, on Pickwick Lake in Florence, Alabama.
A field of 45 teams competed in the no-entry fee tournament, which launched from the West Copeland & Clinton Ramp in La Crosse. In FLW/TBF High School Fishing competition, the top 10-percent of teams competing advance to the High School Fishing National Championship.
The top four teams on the Mississippi River that advanced to the 2018 High School Fishing National Championship were:
1st: Waupaca Junior Bass Busters Club – Tyler Corey, Amherst, Wis., and Casey Hoffman, New London, Wis., five-bass, 15-11
2nd: Lakeville High School, Lakeville, Minn. – Patrick McMurry and Ethan Vanden Busch, both of Lakeville, Minn., five bass, 13-4
3rd: Westby High School, Westby, Wis. – Chevy Knight and Grant Dayton, both of Westby, Wis., five bass, 13-4
4th: Prescott High School, Prescott, Wis. – Ashur Rouleau, La Crescent, Minn., and Ian Waters, Prescott, Wis., five bass, 13-2
Rounding out the top 10 teams were:
5th: Lakeville High School, Lakeville, Minn. – Benjamin Anderson and Tyler Fitzner, both of Lakeville, Minn., five bass, 12-15
6th: Northeast Wisconsin Bass Club – Trace Yeager, Shawno, Wis., and., Reece Keeney, Hortonville, Wis., five bass, 12-4
7th: Northland Pines High School, Vilas County, Wis. – Sammy Spencer, Rhinelander, Wis., and Harmon Marien, Eagle River, Wis., five bass, 11-15
8th: Burlington Catholic Central High School, Burlington, Wis. – Jacob Bigelow, Cecil, Wis., and Bailey Bleser, Burlington, Wis., five bass, 11-12
9th: Sparta High School, Sparta, Wis. – Nick Gann and James Gann, both of Sparta, Wis., five bass, 11-10
10th: Coulee Region Bass Club – Brady McCoy, La Crosse, Wis., and Max Earley, Coon Valley, Wis., five bass, 11-9
The 2018 Bass Pro Shops FLW High School Fishing Mississippi River Open 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 2018 High School Fishing World Finals, held in conjunction with the National Championship. 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. Visit bassfederation.com or highschoolfishing.org
By: Drew Aspinwall, FLW Fishing
