The University of Tennessee-Chattanooga bass fishing team of Parker Bacon (from Nashville) and Taylor Bolton (from Chattanooga) placed in the top 15 in the FLW College Fishing Southeastern Conference on Guntersville Lake Saturday. That means the UTC anglers advance to the Southeastern Conference Invitational tournament.
Fifty-three college teams took part in the FLW college event. The University of North Carolina-Charlotte team of Eric Self and Shane Lehew won with five bass weighing 23 pounds, 14 ounces. The victory earned the club $2,000.
“We caught them all on an E.R. Lures jig in Jason’s Magic Craw color pattern,” Lehew said. “We were just fishing a rocky point, and every fish that we weighed came off that same spot. The fish were at a wide range of depths. Some were right on the bank in about 3 feet of water, but others were off the drop, closer to 14 feet."
The top 15 teams that advanced to the Southeastern Conference Invitational tournament are:
—1st: University of North Carolina-Charlotte, Eric Self, Lawndale, N.C., and Shane Lehew, Charlotte, N.C. (five bass, 23-14, $2,000)
—2nd: Bethel University, Cody Ross, Jackson, Tenn., and Dewey Swims, Jackson, Tenn. (three bass, 19-0, $1,000)
—3rd: University of Alabama-Birmingham, Frank Doganiero, Gardendale, Ala., and Gregory Cain, Trafford, Ala. (five bass, 17-10, $500)
—4th: Auburn University at Montgomery, Tyler Strock, Slapout, Ala., and Dalton Darnell, Millbrook, Ala. (five bass, 16-5, $500)
—5th: Daytona State College, Thomas Oltorik and Scott Heaberlin, both of Deland, Fla. (four bass, 13-4, $500)
—6th: Birmingham-Southern University, Tim Trockenbrot, Roswell, Ga., and Matthew Oliver, Mount Olive, Ala. (three bass, 13-0)
—7th: University of North Alabama, Robb Young, Rogersville, Ala., and Andrew Nutt, Lawrenceburg, Tenn. (three bass, 11-14)
—8th: University of South Florida, Nick Ahearn, Sebring, Fla., and Matthew Reeves, Hilliard, Fla. (two bass, 11-14)
—9th: Elon University, William Gilbert, Manchester, Vt., and Nathan James, Greensboro, N.C. (three bass, 11-8)
—10th: Young Harris College, Grayson Payne, Blairsville, Ga., and Furman Thompson, Clayton, Ga. (four bass, 10-2)
—11th: University of Tennessee-Chattanooga, Parker Bacon, Nashville, Tenn., and Taylor Bolton, Chattanooga, Tenn. (three bass, 10-1)
—12th: Middle Tennessee State University, Nolen Spencer, Bell Buckle, Tenn., and Jonathon Reese, Fayetteville, Tenn. (three bass, 9-13)
—13th: Troy University – Connor Bedsole, Arab, Ala., and Bradley Norred, Morris, Ala. (two bass, 9-11)
—14th: Tennessee Tech University, Matthew Townson and Will Stansell, both of Cookeville, Tenn. (three bass, 9-1)
—15th: Southern Polytechnic State University, Zachary Dixon, Rome, Ga., and Daniel Byrd, Fairburn, Ga. (two bass, 7-12)
Complete results can be found at CollegeFishing.com.
Three regular-season qualifying events are held in each conference: Central, Northern, Southeastern, Texas and Western. The top 15 teams from each qualifying tournament will advance to one of five two-day FLW College Fishing Conference Invitational Tournaments, where the first-place team wins $4,000 for their club. The top 10 teams from each conference invitational advance to the 2014 FLW College Fishing National Championship.
College Fishing is free to enter. All participants must be registered, full-time undergraduate students at a four-year college or university and members of a fishing club recognized by their college or university.
The next FLW College Southeastern Conference qualifying tournament is scheduled for April 6 at Lake Seminole in Bainbridge, Ga., and is hosted by the Bainbridge Convention and Visitors Bureau.