Snavely, Faulkner tie on Norris Lake

Hillyer wins co-angler title in Volunteer opener

Derrick Snavely of Rogersville, Tennessee, and Jack Faulkner of Jacksboro, Tennessee, each weighed a five-bass limit totaling 16 pounds, 10 ounces, Saturday to share top honors at the FLW Bass Fishing League (BFL) Volunteer Division tournament on Norris Lake presented by Power-Pole. For their efforts, both earned $3,095, with Snavely adding another $3,000 in contingency bonuses.

Snavely says he targeted suspended smallmouth bass along the Clinch River side of the lake near specific, slate-colored rock. He said he caught 12 keepers using a shad-colored custom swimbait and ended up weighing in four smallmouth and one largemouth bass.

“This swimbait had a different kind of action that I don’t think the bass were used to seeing,” says Snavely. “I used different heads depending on how deep I wanted to go and I caught a lot of fish on it.”

Faulkner was also targeting suspended bass in the same area of the lake, but he opted for an unnamed crankbait. He says he caught six keepers throughout his day.

“I only needed a small stretch of that rock to catch my stringer,” said Faulkner. “I fished for them in water that was 8 to 10 feet deep and was able to put some good ones in the boat.”

The top 10 boaters:

1^st:          Derrick Snavely, Rogersville, Tenn., five bass, 16-10, $3,095 + $1,000 Mercury Bonus + $2,000 Ranger Cup Bonus

1^st:          Jack Faulkner, Jacksboro, Tenn., five bass, 16-10, $3,095

3^rd:          Bryant Ailor, Knoxville, Tenn., five bass, 16-1, $1,377

4^th:          Rodney Cochran, Tazewell, Tenn., five bass, 15-11, $963

5^th:          Chase Henley, Knoxville, Tenn., four bass, 14-5, $825

6^th:          Jimmy Daniels, Paintsville, Ky., five bass, 14-3, $757

7^th:          Kevin Edwards, Knoxville, Tenn., five bass, 14-1, $688

8^th:          Dale Pelfrey, Rockwood, Tenn., five bass, 14-0, $619

9^th:          Mike May, Williamson, W. Va., five bass, 13-14, $550

10^th:        Michael Cantrell, Philadelphia, Tenn., five bass, 13-7, $482

Complete results can be found here.  

Trevor Prichard of Knoxville, Tennessee, caught a 5-pound, 9-ounce bass – the biggest of the tournament in the pro division – and earned the day’s Boater Big Bass award of $575.

Hillyer wins co-angler title

Randall Hillyer of Summerville, South Carolina, weighed in five bass totaling 15 pounds, 13 ounces Saturday to earn $1,944 and win the co-angler division.

The top 10 co-anglers:

1^st:          Randall Hillyer, Summerville, S.C., five bass, 15-13, $1,944

2^nd:         Stephen  Woods, Bristol, Va., five bass, 15-12, $972

3^rd:          Elvin Helton, Maynardville, Tenn., five bass, 14-6, $649

4^th:          Jim Neece Sr., Bristol, Va., four bass, 10-13, $454

5^th:          Mathew Blalock, Maryville, Tenn., five bass, 10-2, $389

6^th:          Joseph Renfro, Kingsport, Tenn., three bass, 10-0, $356

7^th:          Brandon Harris, Spring City, Tenn., five bass, 9-12, $324

8^th:          John Coker, Knoxville, Tenn., five bass, 9-8, $292

9^th:          Jeff Boone, Mount Washington, Ky., five bass, 9-5, $259

10^th:        Richard Casey, Honaker, Va., three bass, 9-2, $227

Greg Blair of Elizabethton, Tennessee, caught the biggest bass of the tournament in the co-angler division, a fish weighing 5 pounds, 14 ounces and earned the day’s Co-angler Big Bass award of $262.

The top 50 boaters and 50 co-anglers based on point standings will qualify for the Oct. 6-8 Regional Championship on Kerr Lake in Henderson, North Carolina. Boaters will compete for a top award of a Ranger Z518C with a 200-horsepower Evinrude or Mercury outboard and $20,000, while co-anglers will fish for a new Ranger Z518C with a 200-horsepower Evinrude or Mercury outboard.