Rochester wins Six-man Club Team Championship on Oneida Lake August 22 & 23
ROCHESTER BASSMASTERS CLAIM VICTORY AT THE NY BASS CHAPTER FEDERATION SIX-MAN CLUB TEAM CHAMPIONSHIP ON ONEIDA LAKE AUG 22 & 23
Brewerton NY - The New York BASS Chapter Federation held its annual Rose Mary Murphy Six-Man Club Team Championship tournament on Oneida Lake launching out of Oneida Shores Park. The event drew 28 six-man teams comprised of three designated boaters and three co-anglers.
Each team's boater is paired for eight hours fishing with a co-angler from a different team. The final team standings are determined by total weight for all six anglers over the two-day event.
The anglers experienced clear sunny skies on Saturday while Sunday saw a mix of partly cloudy to overcast conditions. Water temperatures ranged from 75 on the main lake to 80 degrees in the back of some of the larger shallow bays.
Results:
The Rochester Bassmasters strategy for the event was to target shallow water bass relating to weeds, rock piles and milfoil using jigs, tubes and sweet beavers. Team Captain Lou Rizzotti reports their team worked well together sharing information and ensuring their team's co-angers knew specific areas to go to if the boater they were paired with didnÂt have enough fish of the day. Every boater on their team used a Power Pole to hold their boat in position while flipping and pitching to specific targets. Their strategy was a good one as they brought in a team weight 128.42 lbs.
Second place went to North Jersey Hog Hunters with a weight of 122.90 lbs. Port City Bassmasters secured third place honors with a team weight of 115.69 lbs. Fourth Place went to Albany Area Bassmasters with a weight of 109.24 lbs. Rounding out the top six were Erie County Bassmasters with 106.46 lbs. and Southern Tier Bassmasters with a weight of 104.78 lbs.
Individual Honors:
Jim Bianchi (Rochester) with 27.87 lbs
Michael Morrin (Barge Canal) with 26.21 lbs.
Joel Marcotte (Adirondack) with 26.14 lbs.
Lunker Award Winners
Lunker Day 1 - Guy Durant (Northern NYII) 4.59
Lunker Day 2 - Bryan Waller (Long Island) 5.53
State Team Qualifiers:
At stake during this event were two slots on the 12-man NY BASS Chapter Federation 2010 Divisional Team. The number one angler on the winning team, Jim Bianchi, earned the guaranteed boater slot; and the number one angler on the second place team, Lee Rogers, secured the guaranteed co-angler slot.
Bianchi reports the key to his success was using his power pole to really dissect the targets he was flippin. While his team focused primarily on smallmouth bass Bianchi focused his efforts on largemouth bass bringing in the big bag on Saturday with a weight of 16.12 lbs. Sunday was his numbers day as he caught twice as many fish, but his weight was a bit lighter at 11.75 lbs., but good enough to win the individual honors title.
NY BASS Chapter Federation President Mike Cusano explained, "The NYBCF hosts a Club Team Championship which allows all our affiliated chapters the opportunity to send their top 6 anglers (and 2 alternates) to compete against the other clubs across the state. I think the reason it is so popular is that the CTC is a great opportunity for the clubs to showcase their angling talent, get some bragging rights, have fun together since they travel as a team, and for the top angler from the first and second place overall teams to move one step closer to qualifying for the Bassmasters Classic. Where else can the average club angler fish and find themselves three good events from being in the Classic. Talk about living the dream!!"
The next NY BASS Chapter Federation tournament is the final tournament of the season scheduled for September 13th on Cayuga Lake. At stake here are the remaining 10 slots on the 2010 Divisional State Team and the coveted Angler of the Year title. For additional information contact Tournament Director Jeff Edgarton (315) 662-7925 or tournaments@nybassfed.com
Trail Sponsors are Pelican Point Marina, North Jersey Marine, Hummingbird, Triton Boats, Berkley, Toyota, Mercury, Minnkota, Motorguide, Keitech, Bass Pro Shops, Adirondack Reel Service, Mad-TY Custom Baits, Rapsody Fishing Rods, BMB Custom Baits, Plano Tackle, Ogdensburg Chamber of Commerce and Ticonderoga Chamber of Commerce.
