Spring Hill High School wins FLW High School Fishing Arkansas Open at Lake Hamilton
HOT SPRINGS, Ark. – The Spring Hill High School duo of Brady Gentry and Kory England, both of Hope, Arkansas, brought a five-bass limit to the scale Saturday weighing 16 pounds, 5 ounces, to win the 2017 FLW High School Fishing Arkansas Open tournament on Lake Hamilton in Hot Springs, Arkansas. The win advanced the team to the 2017 High School Fishing National championship, held June 27-July 1 at Pickwick Lake in Florence, Alabama.
A field of 40 teams competed in the no-entry fee tournament, which launched from the Hulsey State Hatchery in Hot Springs. In FLW/TBF High School Fishing competition, the top 10-percent of teams competing advance to the High School Fishing National Championship.
According to tournament reports, the team caught their limit fishing main-lake points with a Zoom Trick Worm on a shaky-head rig.
The top four teams on Lake Hamilton that advanced to the 2017 High School Fishing National Championship were:
1st: Spring Hill High School, Hope, Ark. – Brady Gentry and Kory England, both of Hope, Ark., (five bass, 16-5)
2nd: Fountain Lake High School, Hot Springs, Ark. – Jonathan Pipkins, Benton, Ark., and Eligah Luna, Cabot, Ark., (five bass, 13-5)
3rd: Fountain Lake High School, Hot Springs, Ark. – Hunter Bryant, Hot Springs, Ark., and Jordan Mungle, Jessieville, Ark., (five bass, 13-2)
4th: Trumann High School, Trumann, Ark. – Jay Morgan and Cade Gartman, both of Trumann, Ark., (five bass, 13-0)
Rounding out the top 10 teams were:
5th: West Side High School, Greers Ferry, Ark. – Maci Parks, Edgmont, Ark., and Andrew Turner, Greers Ferry, Ark., (five bass, 12-1)
6th: Lake Hamilton High School, Pearcy, Ark. – Karson Hamilton, Hot Springs, Ark., and Fisher Bissell, Mount Ida, Ark., (five bass, 11-3)
7th: Prescott High School, Prescott, Ark. – Tyler Rucker and Bryer Pennington, both of Prescott, Ark., (five bass, 10-15)
8th: Lake Hamilton High School, Pearcy, Ark. – Eli Vaughn and Tristan Leach, both of Royal, Ark., (five bass, 9-14)
9th: Bryant High School, Bryant, Ark. – Lyndsay Moore and Brandon Davis, both of Alexander, Ark., (five bass, 9-13)
10th: Hot Springs High School, Hot Springs, Ark. – Sebastian Love and McCoy Vereen, both of Hot Springs, Ark., (five bass, 8-14)
Complete results and photos from the event can be found at FLWFishing.com.
The 2017 FLW High School Fishing Arkansas Open was a two-person (team) event for students in grades 7-12, open to any Student Angler Federation (SAF) affiliated high school club in the United States. The top 10 percent of each Challenge, Open, and state championship field will advance to the High School Fishing National Championship. The High School Fishing national champions will each receive a $5,000 college scholarship to the school of their choice.
In addition to the High School Fishing National Championship, all High School Fishing anglers nationwide automatically qualify for the world’s largest high school bass tournament, the 2017 High School Fishing World Finals, held in conjunction with the National Championship. At the 2016 World Finals more than $60,000 in scholarships and prizes were awarded.
Full schedules and the latest announcements are available at HighSchoolFishing.org and FLWFishing.com.
About FLW
FLW is the world’s largest tournament-fishing organization, providing anglers of all skill levels the opportunity to compete for millions in prize money in 2017 across five tournament circuits. Headquartered in Benton, Kentucky, with offices in Minneapolis, FLW conducts more than 274 bass-fishing tournaments annually across the United States and sanctions tournaments in Canada, China, Mexico, South Africa and South Korea. FLW tournament fishing can be seen on the Emmy-nominated “FLW" television show, broadcast to more than 564 million households worldwide, while FLW Bass Fishing magazine delivers cutting-edge tips from top pros. For more information visit FLWFishing.com and follow FLW at Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube and Snapchat.
About The Bass Federation
The Bass Federation Inc., (TBF) is a member of the Freshwater Fishing Hall of Fame. TBF is owned by those we serve and dedicated to the sport of fishing. The Federation is the largest and oldest, organized grassroots fishing, youth and conservation organization there is. TBF, our affiliated state federations and their member clubs conduct more than 20,000 events each year and have provided a foundation for the entire bass fishing industry for more than 45 years. TBF founded the Student Angler Federation and the National High School Fishing program in 2008 to promote clean family fun and education through fishing. Visit bassfederation.com or highschoolfishing.org and “LIKE US” on Facebook.
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