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Hartley’s Hawgs Anglers Win Bassmaster Junior Championship

Mike Abbott and Braden McNamara of Hartley’s Hawgs bass club out of Ohio win the 2019 Bassmaster Junior Championship at Carroll County 1,000 Acre Recreational Lake out of Huntingdon, Tenn., with a two-day total of 20 pounds, 3 ounces.

Aug. 7, 2019

Hartley’s Hawgs Anglers Win Bassmaster Junior Championship

HUNTINGDON, Tenn. — Mike Abbott and Braden McNamara were the second-best junior team in Ohio this year, but they were unbeatable in the Bassmaster Junior Championship (BJC), which concluded here on Wednesday.

Abbott and McNamara caught a two-day total of 10 bass that weighed 20 pounds, 3 ounces on Carroll County 1,000 Acre Recreation Lake (Tenn.). That was 9 ounces more than North Carolina’s Hunter Alexander and Hayden Hammond, who had the lead after Day 1 and finished second overall with 19-10.

Abbott and McNamara both are 14 and will start high school in a few weeks. They are members of Hartley’s Hawgs, the team sponsored by longtime pro and Ohio resident Charlie Hartley.

It was the third time Abbott qualified for the Junior Championship, and the second for McNamara. They hadn’t fished together at nationals previously, but they teamed-up for the Ohio B.A.S.S. Nation State Championship, where they finished in second place and earned their berth in the BJC.

“This is our last year to be able to fish Juniors,” McNamara said. “We just wanted to end on a bang.”

That they did.

Abbott and McNamara caught an 11-0 limit on Day 1, which was good enough for second place, but left them a full 3-4 behind Alexander and Hammond. The Ohio tandem remained steady with a 9-3 sack on Wednesday, and they assumed the hot seats about midway through the final weigh-in.

Alexander and Hammond were the last team to weigh on Wednesday, and they had only 5-6 in their sack, which allowed Abbott and McNamara to vault past them for the championship.

“These guys picked the spot we were going to fish when we were sitting in the garage 500 miles from here,” said Brian McNamara, Braden’s dad and the duo’s boat captain this week. “It’s the same spot we fished both days of this tournament. It was a 100-yard ditch. I have no idea how they came up with it, but it worked.”

The spot proved itself in practice when Abbott caught a 10-pounder. But after drawing boat number 52 (in a 62-boat field) to begin Day 1, the boys were concerned another team would beat them to their spot of choice.

None did, however, and Team Ohio went to work — McNamara with a Bass Pro Shops 1/4-ounce tungsten finesse jig with a YUM Christie Craw trailer, and Abbott with a similar custom jig. They caught a limit early on Day 1, with McNamara’s 4-10 anchoring the bag.

The bite was more difficult Wednesday, with Abbott and McNamara catching only seven or eight keepers. McNamara also was without the jig he used Tuesday, after the knot slipped during a cast and the lure sank to the bottom of the lake.

“That kind of hurt,” he said. “I had just tied it on and it just fell off.”

So, McNamara threw a custom jig on Wednesday instead, and Abbott chose a Strike King Bitsy Flip, also with the Christie Craw trailer. The combination worked, and they were able to catch enough to win the Championship.

“I was hoping and praying (on the way here,) thinking what this would be like,” McNamara said. “It’s amazing.” Abbott agreed.

“Having a trophy that says ‘National Champion’ is incredible,” Abbott said. “It took me three years to figure this lake out. I’m glad I finally did.”

Abbott and McNamara won a $2,000 scholarship that will be dedicated to their college education. Alexander and Hammond, both 13 and heading into the eighth grade, won a $1,000 scholarship for finishing second. They fish with the Rowan County (N.C.) junior team.

Ryder Krueger and Carson Yero of the Myakka City Junior Bassmasters (Fla.)  finished third with 17-14 over two days. The 13-year-old eighth graders also weighed the heaviest bass of the tournament – a 9-0 lunker that sent parents and fans at Wednesday’s weigh-in scrambling for their cellphones.

Krueger caught the bass on a Strike King Rage Tail Space Monkey at about 8:30 a.m. It accounted for more than half of their two-day weight.

“I cast out and it thumped (my lure) really hard. I set the hook on it and it jumped two times. I knew it was a good one.”

“Once I saw it, I knew I had to get the net,” Yero said. “We were full of excitement.”

In all, 32 states and Canada were represented at the BJC. Teams qualified for the tournament via their individual state championship events.

The Carroll County (Tenn.) Chamber of Commerce, Bethel University and the Henry County (Tenn.) Tourism Authority hosted the Bassmaster Junior Championship.

2019 Bassmaster Junior Championship 8/6-8/71000 Acre Recreational lake, Huntingdon  TN.(BOATER) Standings Day 2

Angler                                       Club/School                       Pts

1.  Mike Abbott – Braden McNamara                Hartleyís Hawgs                       0Day 1: 5   11-00     Day 2: 5   09-03   Total:  10  20-032.  Hunter Alexander – Hayden Hammond            Rowan                                 0Day 1: 5   14-04     Day 2: 5   05-06   Total:  10  19-103.  Ryder Krueger – Carson Yero                  Myakka Junior Bassmasters             0Day 1: 5   06-15     Day 2: 3   10-15   Total:   8  17-144.  Keaton Bassham – Huntley York                Bass Open                             0Day 1: 5   10-05     Day 2: 5   07-06   Total:  10  17-115.  Carter Pjesky – Jake Mantovani               Off the Hook Junior Bassmasters       0Day 1: 5   07-04     Day 2: 5   10-03   Total:  10  17-076.  Scotty Hagan – Ross Kearns                   BottomLine BassMasters                0Day 1: 5   05-00     Day 2: 5   11-12   Total:  10  16-127.  Phillip Herring – Calup Williams             Greene County Youth Bassmasters       0Day 1: 5   08-05     Day 2: 5   06-12   Total:  10  15-018.  Storm Clark – Gunnar Williamson              Harris County Bass Fishing Team       0Day 1: 5   07-11     Day 2: 5   07-00   Total:  10  14-119.  Bo Hollen – Ari Clark                        Mon Valley Bassmaster’s               0Day 1: 5   09-07     Day 2: 5   05-02   Total:  10  14-0910. Grayden Scibilia – Beau McQuade              Jr. Potomac River Bassmasters         0Day 1: 5   07-13     Day 2: 5   06-03   Total:  10  14-0011. Trey McKinney – Landon Gabby                 Off the Hook                          0Day 1: 5   06-12     Day 2: 5   07-03   Total:  10  13-1512. Abigail Panak – Rhiauna Switzer              Pretty Water Junior Bass Club         0Day 1: 5   08-12     Day 2: 5   04-14   Total:  10  13-1013. Gage Adkins – Manning Brooks                 ROGERSVILLE JR BASS                   0Day 1: 5   06-14     Day 2: 5   06-00   Total:  10  12-1414. Shelby Montgomery – Sarah Jones              Lakeside Chiefs                       0Day 1: 3   03-01     Day 2: 5   09-03   Total:   8  12-0415. Dugger Tipton – Amos Mayes                   Arkansas Youth Anglers                0Day 1: 5   08-04     Day 2: 4   03-13   Total:   9  12-0116. Tanner Moulton – Alex Gross                  NH Jr Bassmasters                     0Day 1: 5   04-02     Day 2: 5   07-13   Total:  10  11-1517. Luke Rokavec – Josh Stroud                   Susquehanna Valley HS Fishing Te      0Day 1: 5   06-04     Day 2: 5   05-11   Total:  10  11-1518. Lucas Wray – Will Stephens                   Russell County Jr Bass Club           0Day 1: 5   06-03     Day 2: 5   04-11   Total:  10  10-1419. Jacob Martin – Seth Thayer                   Waupaca Jr. Bassbusters               0Day 1: 5   05-00     Day 2: 5   05-14   Total:  10  10-1420. Caden Chartier – Alexander Giannotti         Rochester Junior Bassmasters          0Day 1: 5   05-04     Day 2: 5   05-10   Total:  10  10-1421. Alex Gordon – Ty Blanchette                  BASS Lightning                        0Day 1: 5   05-11     Day 2: 5   05-00   Total:  10  10-1122. Bradlee Parish – Tyler Guin                  North Mississippi Student Angler      0Day 1: 5   04-12     Day 2: 5   05-14   Total:  10  10-1023. Cody Wilder – Dalton Williams                Conway Middle School                  0Day 1: 4   04-03     Day 2: 5   06-04   Total:   9  10-0724. Curtis Russler – Elijah Ambrose              Jr. Potomac River Bassmasters         0Day 1: 5   05-15     Day 2: 4   04-05   Total:   9  10-0425. Ashton Meland – Alex Meland                  Eastern Iowa Jr Bassmasters           0Day 1: 5   05-02     Day 2: 5   04-12   Total:  10  09-1426. Robbie Livar – Wyatt Starks                  Phoenix Junior Bassmasters            0Day 1: 5   04-05     Day 2: 5   05-07   Total:  10  09-1227. Noah Parrish – Dillon Jost                   Northern Colorado Bass Club           0Day 1: 5   04-14     Day 2: 5   04-10   Total:  10  09-0828. Beau Brent – Payton Whirley                  Anoka-Ramsey                          0Day 1: 4   04-00     Day 2: 5   05-06   Total:   9  09-0629. Lane Mead – Ryder Kahny                      Star City Jr. Angler                  0Day 1: 5   05-00     Day 2: 5   04-06   Total:  10  09-0630. Jayden Snow – Tyler Thilmany                 Rogers HS Fishing Team & White B      0Day 1: 2   01-14     Day 2: 5   07-00   Total:   7  08-1431. Carson Owen – Parker Eubanks                 Plainview Jr. Bass Club               0Day 1: 5   06-03     Day 2: 3   02-11   Total:   8  08-1432. Joey Elliott – Aiden Pihaylic                Anchor Bay Juniors                    0Day 1: 5   06-00     Day 2: 2   02-14   Total:   7  08-1433. Jayden Corr – Jase Corr                      Lone Star Jr Bassmasters              0Day 1: 5   05-02     Day 2: 3   03-11   Total:   8  08-1334. Zach Ventimiglia – Austin Coffman            Timberland JR Bass Club               0Day 1: 5   07-14     Day 2: 1   00-14   Total:   6  08-1235. Justin Weikel – Carter Loss                  Caleb’s Legacy                        0Day 1: 4   04-12     Day 2: 4   03-15   Total:   8  08-1136. Tate Jones – Fisher Whitlock                 Bassett High School                   0Day 1: 2   02-05     Day 2: 5   06-05   Total:   7  08-1037. Jaxton Collier – Reece Roberts               South side Anglers                    0Day 1: 2   02-06     Day 2: 4   06-03   Total:   6  08-0938. Oakley Howell – Cole Green                   Guntersville Youth Bass Club          0Day 1: 5   05-03     Day 2: 2   03-05   Total:   7  08-0839. Nicholas Dellaporta –                        NJ Junior Bass Nation                 0Day 1: 4   03-14     Day 2: 5   04-09   Total:   9  08-0740. Carson Kellogg – Nicholas Finley             New Lexington Panthers                0Day 1: 5   07-04     Day 2: 1   00-15   Total:   6  08-0341. Eric Stelly – Camron Jones                   Lafourche Junior Bassmasters          0Day 1: 5   05-06     Day 2: 3   02-09   Total:   8  07-1542. Logan Lopossa – Koby Sollars                 Southside Anglers                     0Day 1: 3   03-01     Day 2: 4   04-14   Total:   7  07-1543. Gavin Parrish – John Sawyer                  Batesburg Leesville                   0Day 1: 2   01-08     Day 2: 5   06-02   Total:   7  07-1044. Caden Sellers – Jackson Rogers               Jr. Southwest Bassmasters             0Day 1: 5   05-13     Day 2: 2   01-10   Total:   7  07-0745. Hunter Barrow – Will Compton                 Magna Vista Fishing Team              0Day 1: 5   04-11     Day 2: 3   02-12   Total:   8  07-0746. Austin Schmidt – Ben Smith                   Cabot Community Fishing Team          0Day 1: 2   02-08     Day 2: 5   04-11   Total:   7  07-0347. Andrew Flannery – Gavin Nicholls             Ontario Junior Bassmasters            0Day 1: 3   04-04     Day 2: 3   02-15   Total:   6  07-0348. Justin Schmadeke – Hunter Patton             Independence Bass Club                0Day 1: 5   04-06     Day 2: 2   02-03   Total:   7  06-0949. Brody Kellum – Carson Thompson               Franklin County Junior Bass           0Day 1: 5   05-04     Day 2: 1   01-00   Total:   6  06-0450. Luke McGuffin – Kaleb Butts                  CHS Anglers                           0Day 1: 1   00-12     Day 2: 5   05-00   Total:   6  05-1251. Shooter Nelson – Seth Ricketts               West Carroll                          0Day 1: 0   00-00     Day 2: 5   05-01   Total:   5  05-0152. Parker Welch – Gavin Carson                  Kickback                              0Day 1: 5   05-01     Day 2: 0   00-00   Total:   5  05-0153. Jay Walkup – Jaxon Rapp                      Highlands County Junior Anglers       0Day 1: 4   04-14     Day 2: 0   00-00   Total:   4  04-1454. Tristen Boyd – Reagan Hershman               Grundy County Jr Bass                 0Day 1: 2   02-04     Day 2: 2   02-01   Total:   4  04-0555. Zachary Morris – Carter Oconnell             LA JR bassmasters                     0Day 1: 0   00-00     Day 2: 3   03-00   Total:   3  03-0056. Peter Mcdonald – Alex Carl                   Centennial Bass Club of Northern      0Day 1: 0   00-00     Day 2: 2   02-07   Total:   2  02-0757. Jack Sergeant – Easton Hillard               Off The Hook Illinois Bassmaster      0Day 1: 1   00-11     Day 2: 1   01-12   Total:   2  02-0758. Garrett Christy – Jake Ross                  Carson High School                    0Day 1: 2   01-13     Day 2: 0   00-00   Total:   2  01-1359. Cody Mundy – Barrett Bennefield              Broaddus High School Fishing Tea      0Day 1: 2   01-13     Day 2: 0   00-00   Total:   2  01-1360. Peter Duffy – Bryce Formsma                  Northview Bass Club                   0Day 1: 1   01-02     Day 2: 0   00-00   Total:   1  01-0260. Kolton Stevens – Carson Conrad               Fair Grove                            0Day 1: 1   01-02     Day 2: 0   00-00   Total:   1  01-0262. Riley Albanese – Garrett Stotler             Berkeley Springs Junior High Sch      0Day 1: 0   00-00     Day 2: 0   00-00   Total:   0  00-00———————————————————————–TotalsDay   #Limits    #Fish      Weight1        38       239       301-082        33       222       277-01———————————-71       461       578-09

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