LACONIA, N.H.- Matthew Desimone of East Berlin, Conn., and his state team claimed the top two honors of the BASS Federation Nation Eastern Divisional bass tournament today at Lake Winnipesaukee.
After moving up to second place yesterday with one of the heaviest limits of the day, Desimone added another limit today to his three-day catch to finish as the Eastern Divisional overall champion with 15 bass weighing 34 pounds, 3 ounces.
By winning this final divisional of the year and leading his team, Desimone and seven other anglers who finished atop their state or provincial teams advance to the BASS Federation Nation Championship, the world championship of amateur bass fishing set for Nov. 6-8 on Kansas' Milford Lake.
Joining Desimone at the Federation Nation Championship will be the following state and provincial winners: Glen Bruce, Maine; Eric Femiak, Massachusetts; Joe Matt, New York; Scott Parker, New Hampshire; Mike Desforges, Ontario, Canada; Leo Bevelaqua, Rhode Island; and Skip Sjobeck, Vermont. The 55 contenders who advanced will be vying for six spots to the Classic set for Feb. 20-22, 2009 at the Red River in Louisiana.
Competing in his first divisional, Desimone caught a five-bass limit each day to climb from 19th place Wednesday, the first day of competition, to the top spot Friday. Multi-day tournaments on Lake Winnipesaukee are usually won with limits of smallmouth so Desimone targeted brown bass every day of practice and during the competition.
"I didn't catch a single largemouth in 10 days of fishing up here," he said.
Relying on a green Lunker City Rascal finesse worm and a watermelon/gold flaked Yamamoto Cut Tail, Desimone worked the lures on drop shot rigs in deep water. The 35-year-old gas company worker used a 1/4-ounce weight tied on 10-pound Power Pro line with a 6-pound fluorocarbon leader. He worked his drop shot rig with a 7-foot Quantum Super Lite spinning rod and Shimano spinning reel.
The weather changed daily as wind and a cold front passed through the area the last two days, but Desimone noticed his fish in deeper water were unaffected by the changing conditions. The Silver City Bassmasters member took all of his fish from depths of 30 to 35 feet.
"I caught most of my fish in areas with rocks and pretty sheer drops," said Desimone.
His most productive area each day was a rocky point that narrowed into a rock pile on one end.
"On the south side of it there were rocks that dumped into 35 to 40 feet of water," said Desimone. "Those fish were on the drop right on the bottom."
Desimone anchored the Connecticut team, which won its second straight divisional. The 12-angler squad accumulated 286 pounds, 7 ounces to take home the top prize-a $30,000 Skeeter bass boat/Yamaha outboard rig.
The $1,000 Purolator Big Bass award went to New Hampshire angler Scott Parker who caught a 6-pound, 4-ounce largemouth at 11 a.m. the first day. Parker was flipping a watermelon/red-flaked 1/2-ounce Arky spider jig along dock about 10 feet deep on the main lake when the big fish bit.
2008 BASS Federation Nation Eastern Divisional(BOATER) Standings Day 3 Angler Hometown No./lbs-oz Total $$$ 1. Matthew Desimone E Berlin, Conn. (CT) 15 34-03 2. Joe Matt Syracuse, N.Y. (NY) 15 33-13 3. Eric Femiak Taunton, Mass. (MA) 15 33-07 4. Scott Parker Londonderry, N.H. (NH) 15 32-10 $1,000.00 5. Mike Desforges Burlington, Canada (ON) 15 32-09 6. Glen Bruce Saco, Maine (ME) 15 32-07 7. Skip Sjobeck Randolph Ctr, Vt. (VT) 15 31-12 7. Mike Frissora Westminster, Mass. (MA) 15 31-12 9. Al Gambardella North Haven, Conn. (CT) 15 31-10 10. Brad Brodnicki Amherst, N.Y. (NY) 15 31-08 11. Randy Phillips Oxford, Mass. (MA) 15 31-07 12. Leo Bevelaqua Wyoming, R.I. (RI) 14 30-01 13. Frank Giner Danbury, Conn. (NY) 15 29-05 14. John Fortier Sanbornton, N.H. (NH) 14 28-13 15. Justin Mesick Farmington, Conn. (CT) 15 28-10 16. Scott Green Waterbury Ctr, Vt. (VT) 14 28-01 17. Christopher Boldu Amherst, N.H. (NH) 14 27-07 18. Robert Williamson Gorham, Maine (ME) 13 27-05 19. Daryl Biron South Windsor, Conn. (CT) 14 26-15 20. Joel St. Germain Cumberland, R.I. (RI) 15 26-10 21. David Barnes Weeks Mills, Maine (ME) 15 26-08 22. Chris Simons Cromwell, Conn. (CT) 15 26-01 23. Paul Mueller Southbury, Conn. (CT) 15 25-11 24. Mark Haverly N Kingstown, R.I. (RI) 14 24-07 25. Noel Good Pavilion, N.Y. (NY) 14 24-06 26. Sean Alvarez Rutland, Vt. (VT) 15 24-02 27. Michael Holt Townsend, Mass. (MA) 10 23-13 28. Dave Rochette Bracebridge, Canada (ON) 11 23-09 29. Al Sorg Columbia, N.J. (NY) 11 23-06 30. Michael Rezendes Ledyard, Conn. (CT) 15 23-02 30. Ron Matthews Athol, Mass. (MA) 13 23-02 30. Jay Menard South Burlington, Vt. (VT) 10 23-02 33. Frank McCormick Warwick, R.I. (RI) 13 22-11 34. Tyson Alvanos Merrimack, N.H. (NH) 11 22-08 35. Bruce Nethercott Brester, N.Y. (NY) 12 21-15 36. Steven Conde Chepachet, R.I. (RI) 13 21-07 36. David Debelis Milford, N.H. (NH) 12 21-07 38. James Morris Milford, Conn. (CT) 13 21-05 39. Timothy Carignan Tyngsboro, N.H. (NH) 12 21-02 39. Paul Kroisenbrunner Kitchener, United States Of Ameri11 21-02 41. Greg Lownds Dunbury, Conn. (CT) 10 21-00 42. John Huntley Hancock, N.H. (NH) 12 20-11 43. David Dziob Meriden, Conn. (CT) 12 20-08 44. Jim Jeffries Rouses Point, N.Y. (VT) 12 20-04 45. Edward Forbes Saco, Maine (ME) 10 20-00 46. Joe Wood Portmouth, Mass. (MA) 13 19-15 47. John Friedrichs Bloomingburg, N.Y. (NY) 11 19-10 48. Brett Milliken Pennellville, N.Y. (NY) 10 19-07 49. Wil Wegman Bradford, Canada (ON) 10 19-04 50. Tim Morrison Albany, N.Y. (NY) 11 19-03 51. Paul Garland New Dorham, N.H. (NH) 8 18-15 52. Brian Curry Whitby, Canada (ON) 10 18-13 53. Shawn White Whitefield, N.H. (NH) 13 18-12 54. Rusty Buss Manchester, Maine (ME) 9 17-08 55. Eric Kuehne Lyman, Maine (ME) 9 17-04 56. Sherman Davis Callander, Canada (ON) 10 16-14 57. Paul Carter Coventry, Conn. (CT) 10 16-13 58. Kevin Clark Westport, Mass. (RI) 6 16-11 59. Don Collins Poultney, Vt. (VT) 9 16-07 60. Stephen Ledoux Hudson, N.H. (NH) 10 16-06 61. Frank Ramsay Hammond, Canada (ON) 8 15-13 61. Michael Martin Foster, R.I. (RI) 7 15-13 63. Anthony Vacchelli Warren, R.I. (RI) 9 15-12 64. David Fontone Belmont, N.H. (NH) 9 15-09 64. Mark Cavanaugh Port Perry, Canada (ON) 7 15-09 66. Dave Richards Oshawa, Canada (ON) 7 14-07 67. Bob Marelli Uxbridge, Mass. (RI) 9 14-06 68. Scott Leppanen Byfield, Mass. (NH) 7 14-03 69. Richard Warhurst Canterbury, Conn. (RI) 9 14-01 70. Ralph Stevens Arundel, Maine (ME) 8 13-09 71. Chris Adams Rutland, Vt. (VT) 10 13-07 71. Dan Goulette St Albans, Vt. (VT) 8 13-07 71. Jim Lynch Bomoseen, Vt. (VT) 7 13-07 74. Kenneth Tuttle Westbrook, Maine (ME) 8 13-04 75. Andre Caron Saco, Maine (ME) 9 12-06 76. Joshua Dinklage West Wareham, Mass. (MA) 7 12-04 77. Ronald Larivee Chepachet, R.I. (RI) 7 12-01 78. Matthew Breach Douglas, Mass. (MA) 6 11-11 79. Michael Donovan Bridgewater, Mass. (RI) 7 11-08 80. Dale Brown Alburg, Vt. (VT) 7 10-13 81. Alexander Shvartsman Bethee, Conn. (CT) 7 10-09 82. Angelo Flores Wappingers Falls, N.Y. (NY) 7 10-05 83. Jim Barcomb Glens Falls, N.Y. (NY) 6 10-00 84. Don Adams Rutland, Vt. (VT) 6 9-15 85. John Blais Waterville, Maine (ME) 6 9-14 86. Gerry Heels Barrie, Canada (ON) 5 9-11 87. Jeffrey Rafuse Belgrade, Maine (ME) 6 9-07 88. Mike Mapes Sparta, N.J. (NY) 4 9-02 89. Stephen Goulette St Albans, Vt. (VT) 6 8-11 89. Garry Mansholt Brechin, Canada (ON) 4 8-11 91. Willard Turner Rockland, Maine (ME) 4 8-10 92. Paul Tawczynski Gt Barrington, Mass. (MA) 6 8-08 93. John Badman Syracuse, N.Y. (NY) 4 6-09 94. Trey Horton Pittsfield, Mass. (MA) 3 6-08 95. John Carmen Norfolk, Mass. (MA) 3 6-03 96. Richard Sayers Valatie, N.Y. (MA) 3 5-11 97. Ken Hamilton Mississauga, Canada (ON) 3 5-00 ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Scott Parker Londonderry, N.H. (NH) 6-04 $1,000.00 ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Totals Day #Limits #Fish Weight 1 50 366 712-02 2 36 318 610-01 3 36 308 544-01 ---------------------------------- 122 992 1866-04 TEAM STANDINGS Day 3 ---------------------------------- State Lbs-Oz 1 CONNECTICUT 286-07 2 NEW YORK 258-09 3 NEW HAMPSHIRE 258-07 4 RHODE ISLAND 225-08 5 MASSACHUSETTS 214-05 6 VERMONT 213-08 7 MAINE 208-02 8 ONTARIO 201-06 INDIVIDUAL STANDINGS Day 3 -----------------------------------------------------------------------CONNECTICUT Angler Hometown No./lbs-oz Total $$$ 1 Matthew Desimone E Berlin, Conn. 15 34-03 2 Al Gambardella North Haven, Conn. 15 31-10 3 Justin Mesick Farmington, Conn. 15 28-10 4 Daryl Biron South Windsor, Conn. 14 26-15 5 Chris Simons Cromwell, Conn. 15 26-01 6 Paul Mueller Southbury, Conn. 15 25-11 7 Michael Rezendes Ledyard, Conn. 15 23-02 8 James Morris Milford, Conn. 13 21-05 9 Greg Lownds Dunbury, Conn. 10 21-00 10 David Dziob Meriden, Conn. 12 20-08 11 Paul Carter Coventry, Conn. 10 16-13 12 Alexander Shvartsman Bethee, Conn. 7 10-09NEW YORK Angler Hometown No./lbs-oz Total $$$ 1 Joe Matt Syracuse, N.Y. 15 33-13 2 Brad Brodnicki Amherst, N.Y. 15 31-08 3 Frank Giner Danbury, Conn. 15 29-05 4 Noel Good Pavilion, N.Y. 14 24-06 5 Al Sorg Columbia, N.J. 11 23-06 6 Bruce Nethercott Brester, N.Y. 12 21-15 7 John Friedrichs Bloomingburg, N.Y. 11 19-10 8 Brett Milliken Pennellville, N.Y. 10 19-07 9 Tim Morrison Albany, N.Y. 11 19-03 10 Angelo Flores Wappingers Falls, N.Y. 7 10-05 11 Jim Barcomb Glens Falls, N.Y. 6 10-00 12 Mike Mapes Sparta, N.J. 4 9-02 13 John Badman Syracuse, N.Y. 4 6-09NEW HAMPSHIRE Angler Hometown No./lbs-oz Total $$$ 1 Scott Parker Londonderry, N.H. 15 32-10 $1,000.00 2 John Fortier Sanbornton, N.H. 14 28-13 3 Christopher Boldu Amherst, N.H. 14 27-07 4 Tyson Alvanos Merrimack, N.H. 11 22-08 5 David Debelis Milford, N.H. 12 21-07 6 Timothy Carignan Tyngsboro, N.H. 12 21-02 7 John Huntley Hancock, N.H. 12 20-11 8 Paul Garland New Dorham, N.H. 8 18-15 9 Shawn White Whitefield, N.H. 13 18-12 10 Stephen Ledoux Hudson, N.H. 10 16-06 11 David Fontone Belmont, N.H. 9 15-09 12 Scott Leppanen Byfield, Mass. 7 14-03RHODE ISLAND Angler Hometown No./lbs-oz Total $$$ 1 Leo Bevelaqua Wyoming, R.I. 14 30-01 2 Joel St. Germain Cumberland, R.I. 15 26-10 3 Mark Haverly N Kingstown, R.I. 14 24-07 4 Frank McCormick Warwick, R.I. 13 22-11 5 Steven Conde Chepachet, R.I. 13 21-07 6 Kevin Clark Westport, Mass. 6 16-11 7 Michael Martin Foster, R.I. 7 15-13 8 Anthony Vacchelli Warren, R.I. 9 15-12 9 Bob Marelli Uxbridge, Mass. 9 14-06 10 Richard Warhurst Canterbury, Conn. 9 14-01 11 Ronald Larivee Chepachet, R.I. 7 12-01 12 Michael Donovan Bridgewater, Mass. 7 11-08MASSACHUSETTS Angler Hometown No./lbs-oz Total $$$ 1 Eric Femiak Taunton, Mass. 15 33-07 2 Mike Frissora Westminster, Mass. 15 31-12 3 Randy Phillips Oxford, Mass. 15 31-07 4 Michael Holt Townsend, Mass. 10 23-13 5 Ron Matthews Athol, Mass. 13 23-02 6 Joe Wood Portmouth, Mass. 13 19-15 7 Joshua Dinklage West Wareham, Mass. 7 12-04 8 Matthew Breach Douglas, Mass. 6 11-11 9 Paul Tawczynski Gt Barrington, Mass. 6 8-08 10 Trey Horton Pittsfield, Mass. 3 6-08 11 John Carmen Norfolk, Mass. 3 6-03 12 Richard Sayers Valatie, N.Y. 3 5-11VERMONT Angler Hometown No./lbs-oz Total $$$ 1 Skip Sjobeck Randolph Ctr, Vt. 15 31-12 2 Scott Green Waterbury Ctr, Vt. 14 28-01 3 Sean Alvarez Rutland, Vt. 15 24-02 4 Jay Menard South Burlington, Vt. 10 23-02 5 Jim Jeffries Rouses Point, N.Y. 12 20-04 6 Don Collins Poultney, Vt. 9 16-07 7 Chris Adams Rutland, Vt. 10 13-07 7 Dan Goulette St Albans, Vt. 8 13-07 7 Jim Lynch Bomoseen, Vt. 7 13-07 10 Dale Brown Alburg, Vt. 7 10-13 11 Don Adams Rutland, Vt. 6 9-15 12 Stephen Goulette St Albans, Vt. 6 8-11MAINE Angler Hometown No./lbs-oz Total $$$ 1 Glen Bruce Saco, Maine 15 32-07 2 Robert Williamson Gorham, Maine 13 27-05 3 David Barnes Weeks Mills, Maine 15 26-08 4 Edward Forbes Saco, Maine 10 20-00 5 Rusty Buss Manchester, Maine 9 17-08 6 Eric Kuehne Lyman, Maine 9 17-04 7 Ralph Stevens Arundel, Maine 8 13-09 8 Kenneth Tuttle Westbrook, Maine 8 13-04 9 Andre Caron Saco, Maine 9 12-06 10 John Blais Waterville, Maine 6 9-14 11 Jeffrey Rafuse Belgrade, Maine 6 9-07 12 Willard Turner Rockland, Maine 4 8-10ONTARIO Angler Hometown No./lbs-oz Total $$$ 1 Mike Desforges Burlington, Canada 15 32-09 2 Dave Rochette Bracebridge, Canada 11 23-09 3 Paul Kroisenbrunner Kitchener, United States 11 21-02 4 Wil Wegman Bradford, Canada 10 19-04 5 Brian Curry Whitby, Canada 10 18-13 6 Sherman Davis Callander, Canada 10 16-14 7 Frank Ramsay Hammond, Canada 8 15-13 8 Mark Cavanaugh Port Perry, Canada 7 15-09 9 Dave Richards Oshawa, Canada 7 14-07 10 Gerry Heels Barrie, Canada 5 9-11 11 Garry Mansholt Brechin, Canada 4 8-11 12 Ken Hamilton Mississauga, Canada 3 5-00