National Guard FLW College Fishing Central Conference headed to Table Rock Lake
KIMBERLING CITY, Mo. – National Guard FLW College Fishing is headed to Table Rock Lake March 3 for the first of four stops in the Central Conference. Forty college teams will be competing for a top award of $5,000 and a berth in the Central Regional Championship tournament.
“Fishing is real good,” said Chevy pro Dion Hibdon of Sunrise Beach, Mo. “They are catching some big weights on Table Rock right now. I think it is going to take in the mid-20 pound range to win.
“The bass are going to be suspended for the most part,” Hibdon went on to say. “I would target channel swings and bluff ends using jerkbaits and swimming a grub. You’re going to see some pretty awesome weights at this tournament.”
According to Hibdon the mild winter and warm temperatures have the fish biting, “real good!”
Anglers will take off from Port of Kimberling Marina located at 72 Marina Way in Kimberling City, Mo., at 7 a.m. Saturday. Weigh-in will also be at the marina beginning at 1 p.m. Takeoff and weigh-in are free and open to the public.
Schools competing in the Table Rock Lake tournament, which is hosted by the Port of Kimberling Marina, include:
Eastern Illinois University – Chase Sanford, Charleston, Ill., and Lee Buehnerkemper, Teutopolis, Ill.
Eastern Kentucky – Tyler Moberly, Berea, Ky., and Ethan Snyder, Vine Grove, Ky.
Georgetown College – Mike Huff, Corbin, Ky., and Nick Huff, Georgetown, Ky.
Grace College – Christopher Valentine, Warsaw, Ind., and Mike Depositar, Winona Lake, Ind.
Illinois State University – Dave Haag, Oswego, Ill., and Spencer Richardson, Danville, Ill.
Indiana University – Dustin Vaal, Bloomington, Ind., and Steven Bressler, Fremont, Ind.
Kansas State University – Ryan Patterson, Goddard, Kan., and Nathen Kozlowski, Junction City, Kan.
Marian University – Justin McDonald, Noblesville, Ind., and Joel Bone, Decatur, Ind.
Midamerica Nazarene University – Jacob Johnson, Lenexa, Kan., and Ryan Rockwell, Des Moines, Iowa
Missouri State University – Brennan Halbersma, Springfield, Mo., and Joe McBride, Olathe, Kan.
Missouri University of Science and Technology – Scott Kuhl and William Kleine, both of Rolla, Mo.
Missouri Valley College – Paul Thomas, Marshall, Mo., and Kalen Brady, Rolla, Mo.
Morehaed State University – James Martin, Carlisle, Ohio, and Brandon Johnson, Salt Lick, Ky.
Milwaukee School of Engineering – Scott Watry, Milwaukee, Wis., and Steven Digrazia, Mokena, Ill.
Murray State University – Justin Graben, Murray, Ky., and Ethan Hoggard, Almo, Ky.
Northern Illinois University – Jason Penuel and Steve McClone, both of Dekalb, Ill.
Northwest Missouri State University – Andrew Nordbye, St. Joseph, Mo., and Carter Gillespie, New Hampton, Mo.
Northwestern University – Jimmy Morrow, Arlington Heights, Ill., and Matthew Kestufskie, Evanston, Ill.
Purdue University – Ryan Spicer, Arcola, Ind., and Chris Kaiser, Carmel, Ind.
Saint Cloud State University – Nick Minell, Coon Rapids, Minn., and Anthony Skoglund, St. Cloud, Minn.
Southern Illinois University – Ryan Dunn, Harrisburg, Ill., and Brandon Ringer, Carbondale, Ill.
Southern Illinois-Edwardsville – Justin Skinner, Taylorville, Ill., and Brad Lemasters, Edwardsville, Ill.
Southeast Missouri State – Tim Randell, and Adam Zielinski, both of St. Charles, Mo.
St. Ambrose University – Joe Bailey, Davenport, Iowa, and Tyler Boyle, Montgomery, Ill.
University of Dubuque – Marcus Prull, Monticello, Iowa, and Brian Swalley, Dubuque, Iowa
University of Illinois – Kyle Ekstrom, Poplar Grove, Ill., and Conrad Keefe, Villa Park, Ill.
University of Iowa – James Steffen, Iowa City, Iowa, and John Mercer, Burlington, Iowa
University of Minnesota – Joe Ponessa, Shoreview, Minn., and Mark Shirley, Saint Cloud, Minn.
University of Missouri – Duron Netsell and Chad Beck, both of Columbia, Mo.
University of Nebraska – Sean Mulholland, Deerfield, Ill., and William McCabe, Lincoln, Neb.
University of Nebraska-Omaha – Ben Milliken, Bennington, Neb., and Ryan Nieto, Fort Calhoun, Neb.
University of Saint Thomas – Andrew Heitzman, Andover, Minn., and Dan Reichert, St. Paul, Minn.
University of Wisconsin – Levi Warner, Shiocton, Wis., and Kevin Yeska, Madison, Wis.
University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh – Jordan Mortenson, Iola, Wis., and Chad Janke, Oshkosh, Wis.
University of Wisconsin-Platteville – Jacob Clisch, Reedsburg, Wis., and Alex Hansen, Plover, Wis.
University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point – Noah Kruzitski, Stevens Point, Wis., and Adam Kolbeck, Plover, Wis.
University of Wisconsin-Stout – Ryan Helke, Menomonie, Wis., and Jeremy Anibas, Colfax, Wis.
University of Wisconsin-Whitewater – Andrew Norton, Elkhorn, Wis., and Chunou Xiong, Milwaukee, Wis.
Winona State University – Cade Laufenberg, Stoddard, Wis., and Sam Schollmeier, Rochester, Minn.
Western Kentucky University – Cody Napier, Lewisburg, Ky., and Ryan Coleman, Utica, Ky.
FLW College Fishing teams compete in four qualifying events in one of five conferences – Central, Northern, Southern, Southeastern and Western. The top five teams from each regular-season tournament will qualify for one of five regional championships. The top five teams from each regional championship will advance to the national championship.
College Fishing is free to enter and 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.
For regular updates, photos, tournament news and more, follow College Fishing on Facebook at Facebook.com/FLWFishing and on Twitter at Twitter.com/FLWFishing. Visit CollegeFishing.com to sign up or to start a club at your school.
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FLW is the industry’s premier tournament-fishing organization, providing unparalleled fishing resources and entertainment to our sponsors, fans and host communities. FLW is offering anglers of all skill levels the opportunity to compete for millions in prize money nationwide in 2012 over the course of 191 tournaments across five tournament circuits, each providing an avenue to the sport’s richest payday and most coveted championship trophy – the Forrest Wood Cup. FLW is committed to providing a lifestyle experience that is the “Best in Fishing, On and Off the Water,” through a variety of platforms including tournaments, outdoor expos and the world’s richest fantasy sports game – FLW Fantasy Fishing. For more information about FLW and FLW Fantasy Fishing, visit FLWOutdoors.com or FantasyFishing.com and look for FLW on Twitter and Facebook.