Peter Decker and Trevor Carpenter of Pine Creek High School put together a winning pattern Saturday to win the Colorado Student Angler Federation High School State Bass Fishing Championship.
The winning team who are both seniors this year had a five fish limit that weighed 7 lbs and 13 oz. to claim the second annual event. “I am just ecstatic,” said Peter Decker after the win. “I put a lot of time and practice into this tournament and I am very happy that all of the hard work paid off. 
We were looking for the bigger spawning fish in deeper water off the main lake flats in ten to twelve feet of water commented the pair. We knew the fish were there from practice and just kept pitching our baits to them until they picked it up and then wacked them with a YUM Dinger and senko worm,” added Decker. Both anglers added that they are very excited to be advancing to the Regional/Conference Championship which coincides with the FLW Collegiate Conference Championship in a location to be determined this fall.
Finishing a very close second was the duo of Eli Zeek and Ryan Wood who caught 4 fish that weighed in at 7 lbs.
Rounding out the top three are Bailey Smith and Josh Villa who had a respectable 4 fish bag that weighed in at 6 lbs 13oz to finish third.
“Joining the SAF is an opportunity that I thought we would never have in High School,” commented Decker. “These High School events are not just about winning,” added Carpenter. “It is about building friendships and getting together with all of the other High School teams out there and experiencing the competition!”
The SAF State Championship Series continues this week with the Alabama State Championship in Florence Alabama.
All SAF members and state championship participants qualify for the largest event in high school fishing, the 2012 High School Fishing World Finals to compete for thousands of dollars in college scholarships and prizes. Each team that qualifies for a conference and/or national championship will receive a travel allowance to help offset expenses. The National Champions will also each receive a $5,000 scholarship to use at the university of their choice.
TBF would like to thank the Colorado Bass Federation, Sam Heckman, Colorado Youth Director and all the volunteers who helped make this event happen.
For information on how to join the new and exciting sport of high school bass fishing, visit www.HighSchoolFishing.org. Find us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/hsfishing or follow us on Twitter @hs_fishing.
