The Walled Lake Central High School duo of Reid Oblak of West Bloomfield, Michigan, and Jarrod Willbur of Wolverine Lake, Michigan, brought a five-bass limit to the scale Saturday weighing 17 pounds, 10 ounces to win the 2018 Bass Pro Shops FLW High School Fishing River Raisin Open. The win advanced the team to the 2018 High School Fishing National Championship, held June 26-30, on Pickwick Lake in Florence, Alabama.
According to post-tournament reports, the duo caught their limit targeting rock piles and humps in 8- to 10-feet of water with drop-shot and Ned rigs.
A field of 37 teams competed in the no-entry fee tournament, which launched from Hellenberg Park in Monroe. In FLW/TBF High School Fishing competition, the top 10-percent of teams competing advance to the High School Fishing National Championship.
The top three teams on the River Raisin that advanced to the 2018 High School Fishing National Championship were:
1st: Walled Lake Central High School, Walled Lake, Mich. – Reid Oblak, West Bloomfield, Mich., and Jarrod Willbur, Wolverine Lake, Mich., five bass, 17-10
2nd: Anthony Wayne High School, Whitehouse, Ohio – Elliot Wielgopolski, Waterville, Ohio, and Caleb Dachenhaus, Whitehouse, Ohio, five bass, 16-11
3rd: Titan Fishing Club – Robert Lefere, Jackson, Mich., and Barry Kennedy, Clark Lake, Mich., five bass, 15-11
Rounding out the top 10 teams were:
4th: East Grand Rapids High School, Grand Rapids, Mich. – Tommy Pohlman, East Grand Rapids, Mich., and Mason Brown, Grand Rapids, Mich. 14-1
5th: Theodore Roosevelt High School, Wyandotte, Mich. – Brady Stuart and Nicholas McPhall, both of Wyandotte, Mich., five bass, 13-15
6th: Theodore Roosevelt High School, Wyandotte, Mich. – Nicolas Biundo and Joey Deichelbohrer, both of Wyandotte, Mich., five bass, 13-13
7th: Blissfield High School, Blissfield, Mich. – Waylon Rickard, Deerfield, Mich., and Cade Hayford, Blissfield, Mich., five bass, 12-15
8th: Titan Fishing Club – Cade Nelson, Jackson, Mich., and Branden Barton, Clark Lake, Mich., five bass, 12-5
9th: Burlington Catholic Central High School, Burlington, Wis. – Jacob Bigelow, Cecil, Wis., and Bailey Bleser, Burlington, Wis., five bass, 12-4.
10th: Grand Ledge High School, Grand Ledge, Mich. – Evan Woyke, Grand Ledge, Mich., and Hunter Williams, Charlotte, Mich., five bass, 11-11.
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The 2018 Bass Pro Shops FLW High School Fishing River Raisin 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.
By: Drew Aspinwall, FLW Fishing
