NEBO — The Catawba Valley Community College team of Hunter Keller and Wes Smith won the B.A.S.S. North Carolina State Qualifier on June 20 at Lake James.
The competition included anglers from UNC Charlotte, Lenoir-Rhyne University, Bethel University, Erskine College, N.C. State and CVCC. Keller and Smith took the tournament with a limit of 15.04 pounds. The win qualifies them to fish the B.A.S.S. College National Championship.
“Lake James is a great fishery, and that shows with every team bringing a limit to the scales,†said CVCC head bass fishing coach Angela Mayo.
“I’m really happy that Hunter and Wes were able to pull off the win. There were some really strong teams competing in this qualifier.â€
With Keller and Smith qualifying, four CVCC teams have now qualified for the B.A.S.S. College National Championship.
Previous qualifiers were Hunter Barrow and Kanton Trull, who won the Virginia State Qualifier; Garret Christy and Corban Chenevey, who qualified at Lake Chicamauga in Dayton, Tennessee, and Cabe Mackey and Jacob Webb, who qualified at the Harris Chain of Lakes in Leesburg, Florida.
The B.A.S.S. College National Championship will be held on Cherokee Lake in Jefferson City, Tennessee, July 10-12. The four Red Hawks teams will compete in the College Bracket Tournament with the winner of the tournament securing a spot in the Bassmaster Classic.
