Anglers vying for points title as well as cash the next two days
NATCHITOCHES, La. – It’s day three on the Red River. The top 20 pros and co-anglers hit the water Friday morning for the semifinal round of EverStart Series Central Division competition.
The pro leader after the opening round, Craig Powers of Rockwood, Tenn., squeezed in some early casts along a bank not far from the takeoff point at Morgan’s Landing.
“The river’s falling, and that’s not helping any,” Powers said. “I’d be really surprised if the weights go up Friday.”
In addition to gunning for his first EverStart title, Powers is locked in a points battle with fellow semifinalist Jackie Davis of Willard, Mo., for the Central Division standings title. Troy Eakins of Nixa, Mo., led in points coming into the tourney, but fell out of contention by finishing in 64th place Thursday. Currently, Davis leads Powers by 10 points in the standings.
On the co-angler side, Larry Regina of South Bend, Ind., holds the lead in the standings, but stands to lose his top spot after finishing the week in 70th place. Mark Guin of Crossett, Ark., who made the semifinals and is sixth in the standings, appears to have the best shot at catching the leader, but he’ll have to finish better than 14th place in the next two days.
Friday’s weigh-in begins at 3 p.m. at the Wal-Mart store located at 925 Keyser Ave. in Natchitoches. The semifinalists started the day with zero weight. The top 10 anglers in each division following today’s action will advance to Saturday’s final round where they will again restart with zero weight.
Friday’s conditions
Sunrise: 6:09 a.m.
Temperature at takeoff: 71 degrees
Expected high temperature: 86 degrees
Water temperature at the ramp: 87 degrees
Wind: from the north at 9 mph
Relative humidity: 88 percent
Day’s outlook: partly cloudy
Day-three links: