Indiana University wins FLW College Fishing Central Regional Championship

Indiana teammates Schultz and Vaal net $50,000 for Central Regional title

Indiana University netted the Central Regional Championship win with a total catch weight of 29 pounds, 14 ounces. Photo by Will Brantley. Anglers: Dustin Vaal, Jesse Schultz.

November 2, 2009 • MLF • Abu Garcia College Fishing

MURRAY, Ky. – The Indiana University team of Jesse Schultz and Dustin Vaal of Bloomington, Ind., came from behind to win the National Guard FLW College Fishing Central Regional Championship on Kentucky Lake Monday with six bass weighing 13 pounds, 2 ounces for a three-day total of 13 bass weighing 29-14.

For their efforts, the team won a Ranger 177TR with a 90-horsepower Evinrude or Yamaha outboard wrappedin school colors, valued at $25,000, and $25,000 for their school.

“After day one, we were going after schooling bait,” said Vaal. “At the end of day two, I told Jesse that I had this place in the back of my mind, but he was not confident about it. But I said let’s just go there and try it for a few minutes. We went in there and started stroking them. So today, we were going to hit (that spot) in the morning and see how we do and go from there. When we got in there this morning, we had a limit by nine o’clock.”

Vaal said they caught the majority of their fish on a spinnerbait. “It is what we threw today and it caught 47 of the 50 fish we landed today. It is a 3/8-ounce bait that is split down the middle with silver and gold on each side with a citrus-shad skirt. It was an awesome day.”

“It is just amazing,” said Schultz. “We just wanted to have fun out there today knowing we had already qualified for the national championship. Dustin picked up that spinnerbait and it was just one right after another. Once he had his limit, he handed the bait over to me and I started catching them. I caught my first fish, the biggest one, on a sweet beaver.

After we had our limits in the morning, we were just searching for that big kicker fish, but we never really found it. Fortunately we didn’t need it.”

The National Guard FLW College Fishing National Championship will be held at the University of Tennessee in Knoxville, Tenn., April 10-12, 2010.

Rounding out the top five teams are Eastern Kentucky University – Richard Cobb V of Richmond, Ky., and Tyler Moberly of Berea, Ky. (12 bass, 25-12, $25,000); Ohio State University – Casey Hammann and Kevin Moeller, both of Cincinnati, Ohio (eight bass, 22-11, $11,000); Southern Illinois University – Richard Dunham of Carbondale, Ill. and Travis Gould of Vandalia, Ill. (10 bass, 20-3, $8,000); and Murray State University – Steve Miller and Kalem Tippett, both of Murray, Ky., (eight bass, 17-0, $6,000).

FLW Outdoors announced the College Fishing trail in May 2008. Additional information for the Central Regional Championship can be found by visiting CollegeFishing.com along with rules, requirements and information on how to create a bass club.

Full-time students enrolled in four year colleges or universities are eligible to participate in the events. Schools can send two-person teams to each of the four qualifying events in their division, with each event limited to a maximum of 40 teams. Each team has the opportunity to win $10,000 for first and $2,000 through fifth place. Prize money is split evenly between the winning team’s club and the school they represent. The tournaments are free to enter, boats and drivers are provided and all collegiate teams receive a travel allowance. The top five teams in each qualifying event advance to one of five televised three-day National Guard FLW College Fishing Regional Championships.

The National Guard FLW College Fishing National Championship is a three-day televised event hosting the top five teams from each regional, 25 total teams. Teams will be provided shirts and wrapped Ranger boats towed by Chevy trucks for this competition.

The purse for the championship ranges from $25,000 cash and a Ranger 177TR with a 90-horsepower Evinrude or Yamaha outboard wrapped in school colors for the winning club and $50,000 for the school they represent to $15,000 for fifth, split between the club and school.

The winning team will be declared the National Guard FLW Collegiate National Champion and will qualify for the Forrest Wood Cup in 2010. The winners will also receive use of a wrapped boat and Chevy truck for the Forrest Wood Cup.

Coverage of the National Guard FLW College Fishing Central Division Regional event on Kentucky/Barkley Lake will be broadcast in high-definition (HD) on VERSUS, the network which brings anglers the best fishing programming on television featuring the most-trusted authorities on the water. The Emmy-nominated “FLW Outdoors,” will air Nov. 29 from 12:30 to 1:30 p.m. ET. “FLW Outdoors,” hosted by Jason Harper, is broadcast to approximately 500 million households worldwide, including internationally through agreements with WFN (World Fishing Network) and Matchroom Sport to such countries as Canada, Germany, China, South Africa, Australia, Malaysia, Russia, Hungary and the United Kingdom, making it the most widely distributed weekly outdoor-sports television show in the world.

FLW Outdoors, named after Forrest L. Wood, the legendary founder of Ranger Boats, is the largest fishing tournament organization in the world. FLW Outdoors also has taken fishing mainstream with FLW Fantasy Fishing, offering the largest awards possible in the history of fantasy sports. Sign up for Player’s Advantage to get your edge and win.

For more information about FLW Outdoors and its tournaments, call (270) 252-1000. For more information about FLW Fantasy Fishing and Player’s Advantage, visit FantasyFishing.com.