National Guard FLW College Fishing circuit heads to Kerr Lake
June 16 event represents 2012 season opener for Northern Conference
HENDERSON, N.C. – National Guard FLW College Fishing is headed to Kerr Lake June 16 for the first of four stops in the Northern Conference. Forty college teams will be competing for a top award of $5,000 and a berth in the Northern Conference Championship tournament.
“Anglers are going to have to be willing to adapt to conditions for this one,” said FLW Tour pro David Wolak of Wake Forest, N.C. “The TVA regulates the water levels and depending on where they need power will determine how much water they will be releasing. This is the craziest lake I have ever seen with fluctuations in water levels. You are really going to have to stay on top of the water movement.
“Look for the topwater bite on flats to be a winning pattern,” Wolak continued. “Shallow and mid-depth cranking post-spawn areas should produce as well. Twelve- to 14-pound bags are pretty typical right now on Kerr Lake; I would guess that 14 or 15 pounds will win it.
Anglers will take off from Nutbush Park located at 115 Jack Wade Farm Road in Henderson, N.C., at 6:30 a.m. Saturday. Weigh-in will be at the marina beginning at 1 p.m. Takeoff and weigh-in are free and open to the public.
Schools competing in the Kerr Lake tournament, which is being hosted by the Vance County Tourism Department, include:
Bowling Green State University – Kane Godfrey, Marysville, Ohio, and Graham Best, Beaver Creek, Ohio
Carnegie Mellon University – Michael Terrick, Munhall, Pa., and Paul Kimball, Jr., Glastonbury, Conn.
Castleton State College – Daniel Infurna and Patrick Infurna, both of Fair Haven, Vt.
Central Michigan – Cody Wilkerson and Matt Zenz, both of Farwell, Mich.
Christopher Newport – Charlie Hill, Ashburn, Va., and Derek Berhalter, Farnham, Va.
College Misericordia – Willliam Hazlett and Matt Garnjost, both of Allentown, Pa.
Fairmont State University – Ryan Radcliff, Parkersburg, W. Va., and Wil Dieffenbauch, Hundred, W. Va.
Glenville State College – Brandon Abbott, Gandeeville, W. Va., and Matt Brohard, Spencer, W. Va.
Hampden-Sydney College – Allen Luck, Richmond, Va., and Charles Parrish, Hampden Sydney, Va.
Kent State University – Josh Schlifer, Freedom, Pa., and Derek Crooks, Medina, Ohio
La Roche College – Jonathan Coholich, Allison Park, Pa., and Richard Smith, Cheswick, Pa.
Liberty University – Chris Parent, Hermon, Maine, and Aaron Guimond, Lynchburg, Va.
Longwood University – Jeffrey Wiggins, Williamsburg, Va., and Greg Ewing, Bristow, Va.
Messiah College – David Dippold, Royersford, Pa., and Heather Hulstein, Grantham, Pa.
Michigan State University – Thomas Rumpf, Jr., Perrysburg, Ohio, and Ben Cummings, Flint, Mich.
Morrisville State College – Scott Morris, Elizabethtown, N.Y., and Zachary Cappon, Willamson, N.Y.
Northwood University – Benjamin Nowak, Midland, Mich., and Erik McKenna, Lansing, Mich.
Ohio State – Jeff Moorman, Bloomingdale, Ohio, and Joe Shaw, Brunswick, Ohio
Ohio University – Dan Burtenshaw, Athens, Ohio, and Victor Colella, West Middlesex, Pa.
Penn State – Jessica Moldofsky, Worcester, Pa., and Grae Buck, Perkiomenville, Pa.
Radford University – Ryan McCarthy, Chantilly, Va., and Steven Jarrells, Radford, Va.
Ramapo College – Bob Rieder, West Milford, N.J., and Jeffrey Voss, Secaucus, N.J.
Rensselaer – Jonathan Cummings, Middlefield, Mass., and Mike Ahrens, Toledo, Ohio
Rochester Institute of Technology – Jordan Davis, De Kalb Junction, N.Y., and Gustav Wiinberg, Rochester, N.Y.
Roanoke College – Reid Mizelle, Chesapeake, Va., and Ryan Anderson, Salem, Va.
Shippensburg University of Pennsylvania – Jonathan Miller, Keedysville, Md., and Kevin Hollasch, Marriottsville, Md.
Slippery Rock University – Benjamin Tawney, Stoystown, Pa., and Tyler Branca, Hermitage, Pa.
Springfield College – Daniel Patane, Canastota, N.Y., and Tyler Reid, Dighton, Mass.
State University of New York-Plattsburgh – Nathaniel Lewis, Middletown Springs, Vt., and Mark Rexford, Waterbury, Vt.
State University of New York-Buffalo – Matt Smith, Williamsville, N.Y., and Keith Fields, Buffalo, N.Y.
University of Akron – Cary Wade, Uniontown, Ohio, and Christian Combs, Clinton, Ohio
University of Connecticut – Matthew Chouinard, Grafton, Mass., and Grant Cunningham, Unionville, Conn.
Vermont Technical College – Ben Cayer, Bethel, Vt., and Justin Brouillard, Rochester, Vt.
Virginia Tech – Preston Chrisman, Radford, Va., and Michael Freas, Blacksburg, Va.
Vermont Military Institute – Frederick Vilushis, Phenix, Va., and Ryan Dick, Manassas, Va.
Wayne State University – Grant Quinn, Saint Clair Shores, Mich., and Andrew Smith, Harrison Township, Mich.
West Point – Cadet Justin Hunter and Nick Koop, both of West Point, N.Y.
West Virginia University – Corey Straight, Barrackville, W. Va., and Benjamin Ray, Morgantown, W. Va.
Western Michigan – Tyler Seratt and Nathan Scharrer, both of Kalamazoo, Mich.
Xavier University – Ty Styons and Ian Goddard, both of Fairfield, Ohio
Four regular-season qualifying events are held in each conference – Central, Northern, Southeastern, Southern and Western. The top five teams from each qualifying tournament will advance to one of five televised three-day National Guard FLW College Fishing Conference Championships, where the first-place team wins a Ranger 177TR bass boat with a 90-horsepower Evinrude or Mercury outboard. The top five teams from each conference championship advance to the national championship.
College Fishing is free to enter and FLW provides boats and drivers for each competing team along with travel allowances. 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.
For regular updates, photos, tournament news and more, follow College Fishing on Facebook at Facebook.com/FLWFishing and on Twitter at Twitter.com/FLWFishing. Visit CollegeFishing.com to sign up or to start a club at your school.
About FLW
FLW is the industry’s premier tournament-fishing organization, providing unparalleled fishing resources and entertainment to our sponsors, fans and host communities. FLW is offering anglers of all skill levels the opportunity to compete for millions in prize money nationwide in 2012 over the course of 191 tournaments across five tournament circuits, each providing an avenue to the sport’s richest payday and most coveted championship trophy – the Forrest Wood Cup. FLW is committed to providing a lifestyle experience that is the “Best in Fishing, On and Off the Water,” through a variety of platforms including tournaments, outdoor expos and the world’s richest fantasy sports game – FLW Fantasy Fishing. For more information about FLW and FLW Fantasy Fishing, visit FLWOutdoors.com or FantasyFishing.com and look for FLW on Twitter and Facebook.