ADWA ACTION ALERT
Join Our Online Community Receive action alerts, tips, news and special offers via e-mail.
Murray State Claims BoatU.S. Collegiate Bass Fishing Championship Title By Narrow Margin Over University Of North Texas
» View Member Page |
06-04-09
Under near perfect weather conditions, college bass fishing's premier event concluded with Murray State University slipping past University of North Texas to claim the 2009 BoatU.S. Collegiate Bass Fishing Championship title. Murray State joins past champions North Carolina State (2006), Texas A&M University (2007) and University of Arkansas (2008) as winners of the event.
"Murray State's win is very impressive considering this is the largest field we've ever had. Over 140 teams from more than 70 schools registered this year. My hats off to them for a fine win. They're going to be great champions and ambassadors for collegiate bass fishing over the next year," stated Wade Middleton, Tournament Director.
The week long event sanctioned by the Association of Collegiate Anglers (ACA) was held at Sneaky Pete's on Lake Lewisville, Texas. Top collegiate bass anglers, sponsorsand leading industry professionals enjoyed camaraderie with one another as they participated in activities throughout the week highlighted by the competition. All of the action throughout the week as well as coverage of the 2009 ACA sanctioned regional tournaments leading up to the championship will be televised on Versus; Saturday mornings at 12:30 EST beginning in August.
After securing the day one lead with 21.66 pounds, Kalem Tippett & Vincent Campisano of Murray State University brought 14.50 pounds to the scales for a two day total of 36.16 to win the championship. The team outweighed University of North Texas, who had a two day total weight of 35.36, by less than a pound.
The same offshore ledge that yielded four of the five bass that the team weighed on day one surrendered the winning limit on day two. The first day, a Strike King Series 6 crankbait fished on Loomis Crankin Sticks generated the strikes, however, the team had to switch to Texas rigged Paca Craws to tempt the bass to bite on the final day. Vincent explained "They were relating to stumps in about 10 feet of water positioned on the sweet spot of the ledge." When asked what it meant to win the prestigious event, Kalem commented "This is a huge step toward my goal of establishing a career as a bass tournament pro. We want to thank our sponsors: Hinton Archery, Neace Lukens Insurance Co., Jet-A-Marina, Laboratory Supply Co. and Mr. C Refrigeration."
Brandon Dickenson and Austin Hollowell representing University of North Texas were picked by many as the favorites to win the event. On day one, the pair of anglers used their local knowledge to catch bass throughout the day - eventually culling up to 20.54 pounds. On day 2, they were the first team to catch a limit and seemed to be in control until Murray State made a charge late in the day. Austin Hollowell of University of North Texas stated "When the lake was off limits we practiced on other nearby lakes to get a feel for how the fish were positioned in the marinas. That helped us determine what we needed to do going into this event. We targeted poles and tire reefs near marinas fishing very slowly with wacky worms and jigs in depths ranging from 8 to 10 feet. On the final day, we were fortunate to catch what we caught." Brandon Dickerson commented "I have to admit we had some very fortunate luck in this tournament. Going into the event I thought 32 pounds for two days would be the most we could catch if everything went just right. We had two big bites the first day of the tournament that really helped. It was a fun event. Congrats to Murray State - they flat out whacked them!" Austin and Brandon continued to thank Falcon Rods, Pure Fishing, Tackle Warehouse & Excite Baits for their support.
Rounding out the top 10 teams were:
3rd place - Northwestern State University 33.02
4th place - Eastern Kentucky University 29.66
5th place - Louisiana Tech University 29.56
6th place - Virginia Tech 29.45
7th place - University of North Alabama 29.09
8th place - Louisiana Tech University #2 28.46
9th place - Texas Tech 28.25
10th place - University of Kentucky 26.83
For more information on the event, pictures and full results call 210-697-8081 or go to www.collegiatebasschampionship.com
National Supporters of BoatU.S. Collegiate Bass Fishing Championship and Association of Collegiate Anglers events include: BoatU.S, Cabela's, BoatU.S. Angler, Ranger Boats, TruckVault, Costa Del Mar, Berkley, Aviva Fishin' Buddy, Activision, Sperry Top-Sider, Sebile Lures, frogg toggs, Gemini Custom Apparel, Yamaha, Plano, Garmin, Power Pole, All Star Rod, Abu Garcia, Lago Vista Lodge, American Rodsmiths, Dodge, SureLife, City of Lewisville, Sneaky Pete's, Columbia Sportswear, The Bass Federation and Angler's Legacy.
Spikes Magazine
Get Your Free Copy of Spikes Magazine!