Central Regional anglers set for dreary day two

UW-Whitewater leads field on fickle Lake Monroe

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – They got off to a bright start, but teams fishing day two of the FLW National Guard College Fishing Series Central Regional Championship on Lake Monroe will have their work cut out for them as dim, possibly rainy conditions, engulf a reservoir that wasn’t too keen on giving up big numbers a day earlier.

Overnight rain subsided and partly cloudy skies allowed anglers to launch under a warming sunrise, but within minutes of the day two launch, a gray mass had overtaken the heavens. The day’s forecast includes rain and wind, but the expected snow flurries never reached the area. Nevertheless, daytime highs will only reach the mid-40’s, so it’ll be a chilly day on a lake that gave many the cold shoulder yesterday.

Catches were slim on day one and Monroe sent four teams to the dock with empty livewells. Strong winds and the onset of cold weather had the fish in a mostly uncooperative mood. Mostly, that is, because a handful of anglers located big fish with appetites. For example, Indiana University’s Jesse Schultz and Dustin Vaal caught just two keepers on day one but they sit in second place with 8 pounds, 3 ounces. Elsewhere, Jeremy Anibas of UW-Stout caught his team’s only keeper, but the 5-pounder put him and Ryan Helke in eighth place.

UW-Whitewater’s Jordan Truttschel and Tyler Netzer lead the field with 9-7. They targeted stumps and laydowns in creeks and caught most of their day one fish on crankbaits. They’ll likely start with cranks again today, but Truttschel said he and Netzer will likely try jigs and worms as well. Truttschel also said his team will return to the same areas that produced on day one and look for another strong morning bite.

“We know we can slay them in the morning, so hopefully we can do that and get another big string again,” he said. “It really helped (yesterday) to fish the same spot where we caught all of our fish in practice, so we’re going to do that again today.”

Netzer said he and his partner will adjust as needed to the day’s conditions, but fishing in heavy jackets and layered clothing is old hat for them. “We’re from Wisconsin so we’re used to cold weather – it’s not a big deal to us.”

Jerry Jonsgaard and Zac Cassill of Winona State start today in third place with 7-15. The anglers threw 3/8-ounce Lethal Weapon jigs around wood on day one and they’ll repeat the plan again for day two. The day two weather, he said, will require consideration, but Jonsgaard doesn’t anticipate any limitations for him and Cassill.

“We’re going to hit the jigs again today – we know the fish are in there,” he said. “I don’t think the cold weather is going to affect our jig bite as much as some of these other people. Nobody’s going to sack `em today so we just need to get in there and get a couple of fish and hopefully do what we did (yesterday).

“We’ll have to adapt to what’s going on. With that cold front, the fish might actually pull up tighter to the wood.”

Clearly, those at the lower end of the standings have significant ground to make up, but Lake Monroe’s moodiness could very quickly shuffle the deck. Should any of the top teams stumble, those further down the list could take advantage of an opportunistic moment.

Notably, no team caught a limit on day one. Only Eastern Kentucky’s Kyle Raymer and Jonas Ertel came close with five fish for a fourth place position with 7-13. Bagging six keepers today will be a tough call, but a couple of big fish could be just as valuable.

University of Arkansas – Little Rock’s Brian Duckett and Trent Gephardt start day two in ninth place with 4-1. They caught just two fish on day one, but Gephardt is optimistic: “I don’t think we’ll be completely out of it. You can pull up to practically any point out here and catch a couple of 5-pounders. We just have to keep our heads down and keep grinding.”

Tournament logistics

The top five FLW College Fishing teams from each of the four regular-season Central Division tournaments gained automatic entry into the 2010 Central Regional Championship at Indiana University. During the three-day regional event, 20 two-man collegiate angling teams will compete for a top award of $50,000 to be split evenly between the school and its bass fishing club.

The top five teams from each regional championship, 25 total teams, will advance to the National Guard FLW College Fishing National Championship that will be hosted by Murray State University on Kentucky Lake, April 7-9. The National Championship is a three-day televised event. Teams will be provided jerseys and wrapped Ranger boats towed by Chevy trucks for this competition. The first-place team will win $100,000 with $50,000 of that for their school and $25,000 cash and a Ranger 177TR bass boat for their fishing club along with a berth in the 2011 Forrest Wood Cup.

FLW Outdoors 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.

Anglers will take off from Cutright Ramp located at 8012 Knightridge Road in Bloomington, Ind., at 8:30 a.m. each morning. Weigh-ins will be held at Indiana University – Memorial Stadium located at 700 E 17th Street in Bloomington beginning daily at 4 p.m. Takeoffs and weigh-ins are free and open to the public.

The University of Indiana also is hosting the College Fishing Festival throughout the three day tournament. Students and fishing fans alike will be treated to live music, the National Guard Warrior Challenge, a Ranger Boat simulator, tailgate games, a sports zone along with contests for cash and several prize give-aways. The festival will take place at Indiana University – Memorial Stadium from 2 – 4 p.m. Friday and 9 a.m. – 12 p.m. on Saturday.

A National Guard Soldier Appreciation Tournament will also be held Saturday. Takeoff will be at 8 a.m. at Cutright Ramp and weigh-in will be at 1:30 p.m. at Memorial Stadium.

Qualified teams include: College of the Ozarks; Kentucky; Eastern Kentucky; Harding University; Henderson State; Indiana University; Missouri State University; Northwestern University; Purdue University; Southeast Missouri State; Truman State University; University of Arkansas, Little Rock; University of Iowa; University of Wisconsin, Stout, University of Wisconsin, Whitewater, Winona State University; and Western Kentucky University.

Friday’s conditions

Sunrise: 8:18 a.m.

Temperature at takeoff: 34 degrees

Expected high temperature: 45 degrees

Water temperature: 67 degrees

Wind: NW at 10-15 mph

Max. humidity: 20 percent

Day’s outlook: mostly cloudy, rain possible