GUNTERSVILLE, Ala. — The Catawba Valley Community College bass fishing team had its best-ever finish in a Major League Fishing (MLF) event on Friday, earning valuable points in the Bass Pro Shops School of the Year standings.
Red Hawk anglers Cabe Mackey and Nathan Smith caught 24 pounds, 14 ounces of bass to finish in second place out of 219 boats during the MLF Southeastern Conference tournament on Lake Guntersville — the highest-ever finish in an MLF event in CVCC program history.
Friday's tournament finish adds to a tremendous two weeks for the Catawba Valley bass fishing team, which placed in the top 10 last week on Lake Chickamauga in Dayton, Tenn.
"We have had an amazing two weeks," said Catawba Valley head bass fishing coach Angela Mayo. "Last week, Lane Bailey and Justin Eggers had a top 10 finish at Chickamauga and now Nathan and Cabe brought 24 pounds,14 ounces to the scales for a second place finish out of 219 teams. Having a nine-pound, two-ounce fish and a six-pound, two-ounce fish in the same day is magical. I am so happy for these guys and proud of our entire Red Hawk team."
After a rough practice leading up to the tournament, Mackey and Smith made some adjustments, which ultimately helped them secure their second-place finish.
"We had a really tough practice and decided to sit in a spot that we thought had potential," Mackey said. "At the end of the day, we just went fishing and the Lord blessed us with 24 pounds of bass and my new personal best and kicker fish at nine pounds and two ounces. We went into the day just hoping to catch a keeper after the practice we had. This is unreal honestly. I still haven't been able to grasp it."
Smith said Friday's tournament finish capped what was an interesting week for himself, Mackey and the entire Catawba Valley bass fishing team.
"It was a crazy week," Smith said. "We had one of the roughest practices I've had in one of these tournaments. We only caught six fish all week so we knew we had do something on tournament day. We swung for the fences, and it's safe to say we hit a home run. We caught more fish on tournament day than we had caught all week in one spot. We fished as hard as we could for eight hours and got the right five bites. It feels good to place good in one of the first tournaments that I've fished all year. Hopefully we can keep this momentum moving forward."
Mackey and Smith's finish was one of two top-50 finishes for the Red Hawks during Friday's one-day tournament, including Carson Eckard and Hunter Keller, who finished in 49th place with 15 pounds, 11 ounces of bass.
Two other Red Hawk teams also finished among the top 150 teams competing, including Spencer Black and Caleb Lonca in 121st place with eight pounds, three ounces of bass.
After a strong finish on Lake Chickamauga, Bailey and Eggers placed in 139th on Friday with six pounds, 11 ounces of bass.
Up next for the Catawba Valley Community College bass fishing team is an appearance this Saturday, March 12 and Sunday, March 13 in the Bass Pro Shops Big Bass Bash on Kentucky Lake in Paris, Tenn.