SHREVEPORT, La. (Oct. 18, 2016) – The Barbe High School duo of Nick Nocilla and Colby Robinson from Lake Charles, Louisiana, brought a five-bass limit to the scale Saturday weighing 10 pounds, 4 ounces, to win the 2016 TBF/FLW High School Fishing Southern Conference Championship tournament on Cypress Lake in Shreveport, Louisiana. The win earned the team the title of Southern Conference champions and advanced the team to the 2017 High School Fishing National championship, held next spring at a location yet to be announced in conjunction with the TBF National Championship and a Walmart FLW Tour event.
A field of 38 teams from eight states qualified to compete in this conference championship.
“We used a black and red jig to catch most of our fish around docks and structure,” Nocilla said.
“Once we caught our limit we didn’t catch another keeper the rest of the day,” Robinson added. “We weren’t sure if we had enough to win, but as we watched the other teams weigh-in we thought maybe we had a chance.”
The pair will lead a four team contingent to the High School National Championship next spring. The top two four on Cypress Lake that advanced to the 2017 High School Fishing National Championship were:
1st: Barbe High School, Lake Charles, La. – Nick Nocilla and Colby Robinson, (five bass, 10-4)
2nd: Mabank High School, Mabank, Texas – Dakota Pfoh and Justin Shelton, (five bass, 9-11)
3rd: Mount Ida High School, Mount Ida, Ark. – Hunter Bissell and Ty Whisenhunt, (five bass, 9-2)
4th: Benton High School, Benton, Ark. – Ryan Mozisek and Josh Gray, (five bass, 9-0)
Rounding out the top 10 teams were:
5th: Loyola College Prep, Shreveport, La. – Preston Lonadier and Clayton Simmons, (five bass, 8-14)
6th: Bossier High School, Bossier City, La. – Tyler Hilton and Caleb Crawford, (five bass, 8-7)
7th: The Woodlands College Park High School, The Woodlands, Texas – Joe Beebee and Chad Mrazek, (five bass, 8-3)
8th: Lake Hamilton High School, Pearcy, Ark. – Lane Dodd and Bryce Briggs, (five bass, 7-7)
9th: Haughton High School, Haughton, La. – Joshua Dupree and Trent Hunt, (four bass, 7-3)
10th: Wagoner High School, Wagoner, Okla. – Eli Brumnett and Tate Brumnett, (five bass, 7-2)
The 2016 TBF/FLW High School Fishing Southern Conference Championship was a two-person (team) event for students in grades 7-12. The top 10 percent of each conference championship field will advance to the High School Fishing National Championship, coinciding with the TBF National Championship and an FLW Tour stop in the spring of 2017. The High School Fishing national champions will each receive a $5,000 college scholarship to the school of their choice.