SENECA, S.C. (March 7, 2014) – The University of Louisiana-Monroe team of Nick Ladart and Brian Eaton, both of Monroe, La., weighed four fish Friday for 8 pounds, 6 ounces to lead the second consecutive day at the FLW College Fishing National Championship on Lake Keowee. Forty-nine college teams are competing for a top award of a Ranger Z117 and entry into the 2014 Forrest Wood Cup.
“We went to our first few spots and didn’t get a bite,” Ladart said. “Then we started having trolling motor problems. Our batteries didn’t charge last night.”
Like the previous day, bites for the team were few and far between. Eaton said they had only six bites total for the day, and their first didn’t come until 11:30 a.m. or noon. The team ended the day by weighing in four spotted bass.
“The rain hurt us,” Eaton said. “As soon as it stopped we got our first bite.”
“This tournament’s going to be won in the last hour or two,” Ladart added. “After the sun comes up and it warms up the water, it really turns them on.”
The team said they are covering a lot of water and relying on reaction baits for their fish. They said they hope weighing in just four fish Friday doesn’t hurt their chances of a national championship title.
“Four fish hurts,” Ladart said. “You always want five.”
“You can’t win with just spotted bass,” Eaton added.
“We’ve got a chance,” Ladart said. “That’s all you can ask for going into the last day. We’re trying to win. We’re not trying for second or third.”
The top 10 teams that made the cut after the second day of competition are:
1. University of Louisiana-Monroe – Nick Ladart and Brian Eaton, both of Monroe, La., nine fish, 24-15
2. Slippery Rock University – Benjamin Tawney, Stoystown, Pa., and Tyler Branca, Hermitage, Pa., 10 fish, 24-5
3. University Of Minnesota – Austin Felix, Eden Prairie, Minn., and Chris Burgan, Minneapolis, Minn., 10 fish, 23-7
4. West Virginia University – Edward Rude III, Falling Waters, W. Va., and Mathew Gibson, Morgantown, W. Va., 10 fish, 23-5
5. Young Harris College – Furman (Joe) Thompson, Clayton, Ga., and Grayson Payne, Blairsville, Ga. 10 fish, 23-1
6. Auburn University – Garrett Roberts, Cullman, Ala., and Timmy Ward, Auburn, Ala., 10 fish, 22-14
7. Chico State – Nick Carrico, Oroville, Calif., and Andrew Loberg, Rocklin, Calif., 10 fish, 22-13
8. CSU-Monterey Bay – Matthew Diaz and Sebastian Resendiz, both of Castroville, Calif., 10 fish, 21-14
9. University Of Nebraska-Omaha – Ben Milliken, Bennington, Neb., and Ben Kroeger, Omaha, Neb., 10 fish, 21-4
10. Eastern Kentucky – Ethan Snyder, Vine Grove, Ky., and Billy French, Hamilton, Ohio, nine fish, 20-2
Anglers will take off from South Cove County Park located at 828 S. Cove Road in Seneca, S.C., at 7 a.m. Saturday. Weigh-in Saturday will be at 3 p.m. at the Walmart located at 1636 Sandifer Blvd. in Seneca. Takeoffs and weigh-ins are free and open to the public.