Marcia, Marcia, Marcia

Team Marcia-D tops 35 pounds, leads FLW Kingfish in Morehead City

MOREHEAD CITY, N.C. – Battered, wet and a little beleaguered, Wal-Mart FLW Kingfish Tour anglers came in yet again with stories of rough water and even tougher fishing after the first day of competition in the regular-season final qualifier. Emerging from the maelstrom in the Atlantic Monday was Team Marcia-D, who led all challengers by catching the day’s only kingfish to break the 30-pound barrier.

Pouring rain and deviously shifting winds blasted competitors for much of the morning as they scoured the offshore waters for kings. Anglers who ventured farther out reported swells topping 7 feet, which made simple boat handling tough, much less the fishing.

Still, what would the 2005 FLW Kingfish Tour be if it didn’t end with a bang? Anglers fishing this circuit have been hounded by adverse weather at virtually every tournament this year. If nothing else, some teams, like North Carolina’s Marcia-D, felt right at home in the high seas.

The team, captained by Perry Johnston of Oak Island, N.C., capitalized on an early bite when the weather was in a relative lull. Fishing pogies near the surface at a spot southeast of Dead Tree Hole, they caught a 35-pound, 4-ounce king at 10:30 a.m. Then they decided it was best to come back in to the protection offered by the shoals.

“It was the only king we caught. We lost two others and also caught a shark,” crew member Don Wilsey said. “The swells weren’t that bad at first, but when that front came in, they got up to 5 feet. The wind was at least 40 knots. That’s why we came in here; this is great.”

Indeed, the weather did settle down around weigh-in time at 3 p.m., and many boats stayed out as long as they could Monday to try to catch the last-minute bite. Still, no other teams came close to Marcia-D’s mark, which topped all competitors by almost 8 pounds.

No Doubt second

Team No Doubt, captained by Trae Ross of Oxford, Ga., was one of those working the late bite. They earned the second spot with a 27-pound, 7-ounce fish.

“We ran about 35 miles to the east, then came back in really close and caught this fish at the last minute. It was probably still breathing when we got it to the dock,” crew member W.D. Rodeffer said. “We ran about 110 miles in terrible seas. We got pretty beat up today.”

Still, No Doubt seemed happy with the results. They caught their second-place fish on a single pogy at mid-depth, but said it was crucial to change their presentation throughout the day.

“We carry a lot of combinations, and we moved some things around today,” Rodeffer said. “I think that was key, changing our spread a few times. I feel pretty good about it.”

Miss Behavin’ third

Also finding success with pogies was Team Miss Behavin’, which captured third place with a 26-pound kingfish.

They also battled high seas outside the shoals, but said that just comes with the territory.

“They say you’re not a fisherman until you fish Morehead City. This area right here brings out the best in a fisherman,” said Capt. Danny Duncan of Catawba, S.C. “It was so rough out there, but we knew there were decent fish out there.”

Snickers stays home, grabs fourth

Team Snickers caught two fish by noon and took the fourth-place slot when the bigger one weighed in at 25 pounds even.

Unlike some of the other top boats, Team Snickers didn’t venture too far east and tried to stay shy of the heavy seas.

“We were about even with the shoals,” said Capt. Alex Leva of Tampa, Fla. “We didn’t, as they say, `jump the shoals.’ We had an attack of sanity and did not do that. It was tough like crazy out there. The wind was coming from every possible direction, and the waves were taller than the T-top of the boat. We spent a lot of time driving the boat just to battle the waves instead of fishing.”

The Reel Won fifth

Team The Reel Won captured the fifth slot with a kingfish weighing 24 pounds, 2 ounces.

“My game plan was to get a points fish, then jump the shoals and go hog hunting,” said Capt. Robert Woithe of Placida, Fla. “I didn’t realize it would be so hard just to get a points fish.”

Rest of the best

Rounding out the top 10 teams on day one at the Morehead City FLW Kingfish event:

6th: Rebecca Ann, Capt. Frank Strickland of Valdosta, Ga., 23-15

7th: Team Young Guns, Capt. Harvey Way Jr. of Bunnell, Fla., 22-14

8th: Talkin Trash, Capt. Mike Edwards of Wilmington, N.C., 22-6

9th: Logan’s Run, Capt. D. Logan of Wilmington, N.C., 21-11

10th: Crawgator, Capt. Bill Butler of Venice, La., 21-9

The second half of FLW Kingfish qualifying-round action at Morehead City begins Tuesday as the full field takes off at 7 a.m. The winning team will be determined by the single heaviest fish caught over two days.