BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – Indiana University’s Jesse Schultz, New Albany, Ind. and Dustin Vaal, Bloomington, Ind., pulled out a come from behind victory to become two time champions at the National Guard FLW College Fishing Central Regional Championship on Saturday with three bass that weighed 11 pounds, 4 ounces. The Hoosiers caught a total of nine bass weighing 31-7 to win a Ranger boat and outboard motor wrapped in school colors for their bass club and $25,000 for the University worth a total value of $50,000. They have also qualified for a shot at the National Guard FLW College Fishing National Championship next April.
The Hoosiers overcame a 1 pound, 12 ounce deficit to win by a commanding
7 pounds, 9 ounces over second place Truman State University – Spencer Clark,
Kirksville, Mo., and Mike McCarthy Jr., Chesterfield, Mo., who had a three day
total of 11 bass weighing 23-14 to take home $25,000.
The three day tournament took place on Lake Monroe and really challenged
top 20 college teams from around the central region. Only one six bass limit was
caught during the entire tournament and that was by Truman State University on
day two of the competition.
“We were cranking trees all week long,” said an overjoyed Vaal who is a
sophomore in Business Management. Jesse was a great net man today! This is just
amazing.
“It was our presentation that made the difference today,” added Vaal. “We
finally figured out a pattern late yesterday and we made it pay off today. We
were using deep diving Fat Free Shad in trees about 10 to 15 feet deep. We had
all our fish today by10:30 which was really lucky for us, the past two days it
was just the opposite, no morning bite with a late afternoon bite.”
Hometown does have its advantages. Schultz and Vaal knew that Lake Monroe does
not hold a lot of 2 and 3 pound bass so decided to target the big fish and it
paid off in a big way for them. Bringing three toads to the scales on Saturday
they were able to come from behind to claim victory in front of a very
supportive and frenzied IU crowd.
“This is amazing, we’re living a dream,” said Schultz, a junior in management.
“This was all about team work, Dustin and I have the same team mentality and we
were able to work together and keep encouraging each other in order to stay
positive and we pulled it off.
“We were 45 minutes away from bringing in zero on the first day, I was sick to
my stomach, but we kept talking to each other, bouncing ideas off each other on
how to catch that keeper and we were able to stay positive and bring in two fish
that were over 4 pounds each – our team work is what was key for us this week.
“I think this is the most competitive region in college fishing,” Schultz went
on to say. “To become champions two years in a row in front of our friends and
family was amazing. We can’t thank them enough for coming out, especially on
these past few freezing mornings, to cheer us on; it was amazing and really made
us want to fish even harder and with more determination.”
Rounding out the top five teams and also qualifying for the national
championship are:
3rd: University Wisconsin, Stout – Jeremy Anibas, Colfax, Wis., and Ryan Helke,
Menomonie, Wis., six bass, 19-15, $11,000
4th: Eastern Kentucky – Kyle Raymer, Brandenburg, Ky., and Jonas Ertel, London,
Ky., 10 bass, 16-9, $8,000
5th University Wisconsin, Whitewater – Jordan Truttschel, Kiel, Wis., and
Tyler Netzer, Lake Mills, Wis., seven bass,14-8, $6,000
A complete list of results can be found at www.CollegeFishing.com
.
The top five teams from each regional championship, 25 teams total, will advance
to the 2011 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.
Coverage of the National Guard FLW College Fishing Central Division Regional
Championship tournament on Lake Monroe will be broadcast in high-definition (HD)
on VERSUS. “FLW Outdoors”, and will air Dec. 12 from 1 – 2 p.m. ET. “FLW
Outdoors,” is hosted by Jason Harper, and is broadcast to approximately 500
million households worldwide.
ABOUT FLW OUTDOORS
FLW Outdoors, named after Forrest L. Wood, the legendary founder of Ranger
Boats, is the largest fishing tournament organization in the world offering
anglers worldwide the opportunity to compete for millions over the course of 189
tournaments in 2010. FLW Outdoors has also taken fishing mainstream with FLW
Fantasy Fishing awarding the largest prizes in the history of fantasy sports.
FLW Outdoors memberships are available featuring numerous benefits including
Player’s Advantage. For more information about FLW Outdoors and its tournaments,
visit FLWOutdoors.com or call (270) 252-1000. For
more information about FLW Fantasy Fishing, visit FantasyFishing.com
.