Murray State Team Seals Victory In Bassmaster College Series Midwestern Regional

Chandler Christian (left) and Lance Freeman of Murray State University win the Carhartt Bassmaster College Series Midwestern Regional presented by Bass Pro Shops on Clinton Lake out of Clinton, Ill., with a three-day total weight of 57 pounds, 5 ounces.

June 4, 2016

Murray State Team Seals Victory In Bassmaster College Series Midwestern Regional

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CLINTON, Ill. — Lance Freeman and Chandler Christian of Murray State University surprised even themselves by bringing in a huge limit on the final day to win the Carhartt Bassmaster College Series Midwestern Regional presented by Bass Pro Shops on Clinton Lake Saturday.

What they thought would be their toughest day of the three-day tournament was actually their best as they brought in a limit of five bass weighing 20 pounds, 4 ounces, their biggest catch of the week. The haul gave them a total of 57-5 and a nearly 6-pound margin over their nearest competitor, the McKendree University team.

Clinton Lake suited the Murray State duo as they fished the way they do back home on Kentucky and Barkley lakes. Fishing offshore was the key. Their prime fishing area on the main lake produced all three days of the tournament, despite intense fishing pressure from the 93-boat field.

“I started to second guess this area today with the rain and clouds,” Freeman said. “As soon as I started doubting, I caught a 3-pounder. Then Chandler caught a 5-13, and we knew it was going to (pay off) slowly, but surely.”

As on the previous two days, the pair landed four keeper bass before 8:30 a.m., but they went on a three-hour dry spell had to calm their nerves before finishing their limit.

“We sat on four fish for a long time today,” Freeman said. “We ran around quite a bit and then came back. We settled our nerves, and then Chandler pulled out a finesse tactic and put the fifth fish in the boat. We culled a couple times real fast after that.”

The baits that vaulted them to victory were “old school” lures that have caught bass in deep water for years, and Freeman and Christian were comfortable fishing them. They relied on a 10-inch Zoom Ol’ Monster Worm in the plum color and a 7/16 to 1/2-ounce green pumpkin colored jig.

Along with the win, Freeman and Christian took home the Livingston Lures Leader Award worth $250 for each angler.

McKendree University’s Austin Chapman and Curtis Lilly brought the Bass Pro Shops Nitro Big Bag of the tournament to the scales on Championship Saturday and vaulted into second place. Their final day weight of 22-4 helped them earn the award and also surpassed the second biggest bag of the event by 2 pounds.

After stumbling Friday and only weighing three fish, Chapman and Lilly altered their game plan and capitalized on the weather change to catch the biggest limit of their lives. Local knowledge played a big part for the team as Chapman lives less than an hour from Clinton Lake.

“We were able to watch most of our areas in practice to see how many people fished them,” Chapman said. “We concentrated on three different areas, and knowing the lake was a big help when it came to managing spots.”

Like the winners, they too, used slow-moving bottom baits like jigs and shaky heads to catch the majority of their weight.

St. Cloud State University’s 7-7 largemouth from Day 1 of the event held up for the Carhartt Big Bass and Joachim Speldrich and Marcus Welk cashed in on the $500 big fish prize.

The Top 14 teams in the regional qualified for the Carhartt Bassmaster College Series National Championship on Green River Lake in Campbellsville, Ky., July 28-30.

1 Lance Freeman – Chandler Christian Murray State University 5 5 20- 4 15 14 57- 52 Austin Chapman – Curtis Lilly McKendree University 5 5 22- 4 13 13 51- 93 Mitch Swanson – Thor Swanson Bemidji State University 4 4 14- 9 14 13 48- 54 Andrew Mlotek – Calvin Vang U. of Wisconsin Whitewater 3 3 10- 8 13 13 47- 35 Phillip Germagliotti – Shane Campbell McKendree University 5 5 16- 5 13 11 43-116 Kyle Alsop – Taylor Bivins Kansas State University 4 4 11- 7 14 14 42- 67 Garrett Cates – Tyler Nekolny Kansas State University 4 4 10-14 13 13 41-158 Dan Scott – Dakota Lenske U. of Wisconsin Stevens Point 4 3 13- 5 12 11 37-149 Zach Clisch – Adam Neu U. of Wisconsin Platteville 5 5 15-15 11 11 37-1310 Nicholas Kirkton – Seth Becker Illinois State University 5 5 13-13 11 9 36- 511 Austin Butler – Ryan Kirkpatrick Murray State University 5 4 12-11 12 10 34- 512 Austin Niggli – Derrik Starrett McKendree University 1 1 2-13 11 11 33- 113 Charlie Sterrett – Nicholas Schneider University of Illinois 2 2 5- 7 11 11 32- 914 Steve Nebel – Jared Mataczynski U. of Wisconsin Whitewater 3 3 9- 1 11 11 30- 715 Steven Sellnow – Mitch VanErt U. of Wisconsin Whitewater 3 3 8-12 9 9 28- 716 Brian McClanahan – Braden Watt McKendree University 1 1 2- 5 9 9 27-1217 Chris Oja – Jake Huested Ferris State University 1 1 2-10 8 8 27- 018 Danny Sprague – Tyler Andrews Michigan State University 1 1 2- 4 8 8 24-1419 Taylor Umland – Carlos Thomas Illinois State University 1 1 3- 0 7 6 24- 120 Alec Garrison – Aron Pontillo U. of Wisconsin Platteville 0 0 0- 0 6 6 21- 721 Bryce Wegman – Justin Schick Illinois State University 7 7 19- 522 Joachim Speldrich – Marcus Welk St Cloud State University 4 4 19- 223 Justin Mayfield – Jake Smith Campbellsville University 5 5 18- 924 Travis Blenn – Grant Srajer Kansas State University 6 6 17- 825 Austin Sherwood – Jared Havenaar Western Michigan University 4 4 16- 026 John Neubauer – Andy Jensen Moraine Valley Community College 5 4 15- 327 Brock Wilke – Trent Robinson McKendree University 5 3 15- 028 Grant Ehlenfeldt – Brett Stanek U. of Wisconsin Platteville 5 5 15- 029 Jacob Louis – JT Russell McKendree University 5 5 14-1330 Ryan Kweisinski – Jim O’Neil Moraine Valley Community College 5 5 14-1231 Austin Brimeyer – Jake Wolfe University of Dubuque 5 5 14-1232 Sam Sobieck – Max Hellmann U. of Wisconsin Stevens Point 5 4 14- 733 Crosley Welch – Matt Fielder Missouri State University 4 4 14- 734 Sheldon Rogge – Davis Parker Kansas State University 4 2 14- 035 Almich Alex – Daniel Carlson St Cloud State University 5 5 13- 836 Brennan Critzer – Louie Dazzo U. of Wisconsin Whitewater 5 4 12-1337 Travis Hunt – Hunter Pierce Campbellsville University 3 3 12- 938 Jacob Daily – Ian Snowden Eastern Illinois University 3 3 12- 539 Jake Dorony – Logan Archibald Lake Superior State University 4 4 11-1040 Bates Enmeier – Eric Hanna Oklahoma State University 4 4 11- 041 Hunter Reifschneider – Jonathan Klaes University of Dubuque 4 4 10- 442 Colton Smith – Lindsey Wilson College 4 3 10- 343 Brody McWilliams – Nick Moretton Indiana University 3 2 10- 044 Nate Sleight – Blaine Timonera University of Oklahoma 3 3 9-1545 Hunter Adams – Adam Carman Campbellsville University 3 3 9-1146 Tyler Ellis – Kyle Doherty Missouri State University 3 3 8-1447 Tyler Robinson – Austin Mau Bemidji State University 3 3 8- 548 Taylor Schmitt – Brady Faust McKendree University 3 3 8- 249 Justin Brown – Brandon Bissell Northern Michigan University 3 3 7-1150 John Murphy – Brock Miegs McKendree University 3 3 7- 951 Kyle Wagner – Matt Stevens Southern Illinois University 2 2 7- 852 Luke Jasper – Tommy Rimbo Illinois State University 3 3 7- 552 Levi Umland – Heartland Community College 3 3 7- 554 Mason Bishop – John Gale Southern Illinois University 2 2 6- 955 Cole Atkinson – Tanner Atkinson St Ambrose University 2 2 6- 156 Jack Kons – Nick Retka Bemidji State University 2 2 6- 157 Mike Anderson – Johnny Moua U. of Wisconsin Oshkosh 2 2 5-1158 Colten Curtis – Johnna Coleman U. of Wisconsin Platteville 2 2 5- 959 Dakota Cantrell – Austin Moore Campbellsville University 2 2 5- 860 Hunter Scharphorn – Dalton Wehler Lake Superior State University 2 1 5- 261 Jake Kurtzweg – Brandon Hiltner Bemidji State University 2 1 4-1162 Jacob Gieske – Gavin Jungels St Cloud State University 2 2 4-1063 Brody Anderson – Justin Bruno Grand Valley State Univ 2 1 4- 764 Randal Argo – Dominick Schenewerk Murray State University 2 2 4- 665 Robert Riley – Jordan Wolf University of Illinois 1 1 3-1366 Nic Rand – Brandon Reith Lake Superior State University 1 1 3- 967 Blake Burd – Miles Kopplin University of Illinois 1 1 3- 268 Anthony Gilmore – CJ Hatton Schoolcraft College 1 1 3- 169 Alex Meister – Andrew Wolfe University of Wisconsin 1 1 2-1570 Marshall Sandretto – Kevin Gross Milwaukee School of Engineering 1 1 2-1371 Chad Murphy – Gabriel Dubois University of Missouri 1 1 2-1271 Nick Ratliff – Ben Riggs Campbellsville University 1 1 2-1273 Caleb Taylor – Nick Marsh Adrian College 1 1 2-1074 Jordan Ledbetter – Brad Wyss McKendree University 1 1 2- 775 Jack Hippe – Brandon Herzberg Adrian College 1 1 2- 676 Remington Stittleburg – Jordan Saladis U. of Wisconsin Platteville 1 1 2- 477 Jake Hoselton – Ryan Spencer Southern Illinois University 1 1 2- 377 Thomas Oltorik III – James Oltorik Daytona State College 1 1 2- 379 Kit Benson – Western Illinois University 0 0 0- 079 Collin Cropp – Austin Stanwick U. of Wisconsin Whitewater 0 0 0- 079 Nick Dagel – Scott Humphreys U. of Wisconsin Stevens Point 0 0 0- 079 Brandon Feldman – University of Dubuque 0 0 0- 079 Ethan Goldstein – Neal Wisinski U. of Wisconsin Stevens Point 0 0 0- 079 Andrew Guilliams – Quinton Booth Missouri State University 0 0 0- 079 Spencer Hahn – Ben Wanke University of Wisconsin 0 0 0- 079 Kason Morley – Ryan Pinkalla U. of Wisconsin Stevens Point 0 0 0- 079 Boris Moskoff – Nathan Adams Murray State University 0 0 0- 079 Mitchell Olszewski – Brennan Ramirez Western Michigan University 0 0 0- 079 Jason Richardson – Austin Fralick Adrian College 0 0 0- 079 Mason Sapp – Cameron Brooks Campbellsville University 0 0 0- 079 Ryan Tune – Blake Westhues University of Central Missouri 0 0 0- 079 Hayden Wennerdahl – Kimberly Weissinger University of Illinois 0 0 0- 079 Mike Wolthusen – St Ambose University 0 0 0- 0Name City,State Lbs-OzBIG BASSDay1 Joachim Speldrich – Marcus Paynesville, MN Welk 7- 72 Taylor Umland – Carlos Thomas Normal, IL 5-113 Austin Chapman – Curtis LillyBlue Mound, IL 6- 5Day # Live Lbs-Oz # LimitsTOTALS# Fish1 176 164 542- 7 142 152 144 494-11 103 62 60 198- 3 6Today’s Activity# Fish Lbs – OzAccumulativeName # Live # Fish # Live Lbs – Oz

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