Forty-one youth anglers from Clayton, North Johnston, Corinth Holders, Hunt, and Orange High, along with other various schools around the area made their way to Buckhorn Lake near Wilson, NC for the second annual High School Bass Classic open tournament, hosted by Clayton High.  Met with a cool morning, the anglers seemed to struggle somewhat in the early hours of the event, but as the temperature began to rise and the wind began to increase the anglers started to find some active fish.

First Place

Targeting bass that were feeding on baitfish forage, Logan Jennings and Alden Patterson used multiple lipless crank bait lures to entice their bites throughout the event and secure the top spot in the tournament with a total weight of 17.39 lbs.  The duo were awarded matching first place trophies and product awards from the event sponsors.

Patterson helped to secure the win with a late day kicker fish that ultimately ended up being the lunker for the event at 6.30 lbs and added a $75 Cabelas gift card to their earnings.

Second Place

Finding themselves in the early lead during the afternoon weigh-in, the tandem of Mason Medlin and Ethan Howard settled into the second position overall with their catch of 15.88 lbs.  Medlin and Howard made a mid-day charge with most of their fish coming from deep diving crank baits.  The pair were rewarded with matching second place trophies and product awards from the event sponsors for their efforts.

Third Place

The defending champs of this event, Tyler Little and Chase Crocker, ended the day in the third position with their catch of 12.78 lbs.  Little and Crocker may have had a shot at earning the top spot once again, but the loss of what appeared to be a couple key large fish kept the two from repeating.  Both Little and Crocker were rewarded with product awards from the event sponsors for their catch.

Coming home in the fourth position was the team of Josh Tutt and Joseph Whittington with their catch of 9.82 lbs.  In the fifth positon was the duo of Conner Coats and Luke Farley with their catch of 5.84 lbs.  Christian Prescott and Sam Hall filled the sixth position with their catch of 5.04 lbs.  Rounding out the top seven positions was the pairing of Trey Deutsch and Ben Reichard with 4.34 lbs.

• 8th – Zachary Chamblee / Dylan Tisch – 3.73 lbs.
• 9th – Kaleb Wood – 3.57 lbs.
• 10th – Alex Tisch / Haden Myrick – 3.16 lbs.
• 11th – Austin Himmel / Tyler Parker – 2.36 lbs.
• 12th – Wyatt Long / Travis Beck – 2.09 lbs.
• 13th – Braxton Chase / Austin Morgan – 1.93 lbs.
• 14th – Brandon McCuroy / Garrett Joyner – 1.74 lbs.
• 15th – Zach Mills / Garrett Watkins – 1.49 lbs.
• 16th – Harrison Jancuska / Bennett Ragland – 1.36 lbs.
• 17th – Jesus Baldovinos / Trey Black – 0.93 lbs.
• 18th – Walter Karstens / Jacob Scott – 0.55 lbs.
• 19th – Ben May / Jordan Boland – 0.46 lbs.
• 20th – Austin Tate / Cameron Wall
• 20th – Brice Rambo / Sawyer Worrell

During the afternoon weigh-in session, a casting competition was held to allow the anglers to test their casting skills among their peers.  Luke Farley nailed a perfect score of 100 points and took home the top honor and prizes associated with the win.  Mason Medlin came home in the second position with a score of 90 points earning himself some great prizes for his efforts.

Event sponsor Outdoor Accessories Unlimited provided pizza for all the anglers and boat captains during the weigh-in period.  Many door prizes were awarded from event sponsors such as Culprit, Vicious Fishing, Buckfin, Collins Inc. – Youth Educational Series, and Cabelas of Garner, NC provided a $50 gift card to one lucky boat captain.

A special thanks goes out to the members of the Five County Bassmasters and the Collins Inc. – Youth Educational Series staff for their help in making this event a success.

Video Recap:

Random Event Photos: