April 11, 2017  by FLW Communications

HENDERSON, N.C. – The East Gaston High School duo of Conner Usher of Stanley, North Carolina, and Garrett Smith of Mount Holly, North Carolina, brought a five-bass limit to the scale Sunday weighing 11 pounds, 10 ounces, to win the 2017 TBF High School Fishing North Carolina State Championship tournament on Kerr Lake in Henderson, North Carolina. The win advanced the team to the 2017 High School Fishing National championship, held June 27-July 1 at Pickwick Lake in Florence, Alabama.

A field of 31 teams competed in the no-entry fee tournament, which launched from the New Nutbush Park in Henderson. In FLW/TBF High School Fishing competition, the top 10-percent of teams competing advance to the High School Fishing National Championship.

The top three teams on Kerr Lake that advanced to the 2017 High School Fishing National Championship were:

1st:        East Gaston High School – Connor Usher, Stanley, N.C., and Garrett Smith, Mount Holly, N.C., (five bass, 11-10)

2nd:      Hopewell High School – Jake Frye, Charlotte, N.C., and Blake Powers, Huntersville, N.C., (four bass, 11-4)

3rd:       North Lincoln High School – Joshua Lackey and Jeremy Dellinger, both of Denver, N.C., (five bass, 11-1)

Rounding out the top 10 teams were:

4th:       North Lincoln High School – Peyton Cook and Adam Seagle, both of Lincolnton, N.C., (four bass, 9-13)

5th:       West Wilkes High School – Ethan Call and Zachary Greene, both of Wilkesboro, N.C., (five bass, 9-1)

5th:       Orange High School – Logan Jennings, Hillsborough, N.C., and Mason Thompson, Efland, N.C., (five bass, 9-1)

5th:       YES Community Club & Backwoods Bass Boys – Wyatt Long, Raleigh, N.C., and Hunter McKee, Thomasville, N.C., (four bass, 9-1)

5th:       Cherryville High School – Preston Lingerfelt and Carlton Jackson, both of Cherryville, N.C., (four bass, 9-1)

9th:       East Rowan High School – Hunter Harwood and Paiton File, both of Salisbury, N.C., (four bass, 8-14)

10th:     West Wilkes High School – Luke Minton and Andrew Aiken, both of North Wilkesboro, N.C., (three bass, 7-12)

Complete results and photos from the event will be posted at HighSchoolFishing.org or by clicking HERE.

The 2017 TBF High School Fishing North Carolina State Championship was a two-person (team) event for students in grades 7-12, open to any Student Angler Federation (SAF) affiliated high school club in the state of Florida. The top 10 percent of each Challenge, Open, and state championship field will advance to the High School Fishing National Championship. The High School Fishing national champions will each receive a $5,000 college scholarship to the school of their choice.

In addition to the High School Fishing National Championship, all High School Fishing anglers nationwide automatically qualify for the world’s largest high school bass tournament, the 2017 High School Fishing World Finals, held in conjunction with the National Championship. At the 2016 World Finals more than $60,000 in scholarships and prizes were awarded.

Full schedules and the latest announcements are available at HighSchoolFishing.org and FLWFishing.com.

About FLW

FLW is the world’s largest tournament-fishing organization, providing anglers of all skill levels the opportunity to compete for millions in prize money in 2017 across five tournament circuits. Headquartered in Benton, Kentucky, with offices in Minneapolis, FLW conducts more than 274 bass-fishing tournaments annually across the United States and sanctions tournaments in Canada, China, Mexico, South Africa and South Korea. FLW tournament fishing can be seen on the Emmy-nominated “FLW” television show, broadcast to more than 564 million households worldwide, while FLW Bass Fishing magazine delivers cutting-edge tips from top pros. For more information visit FLWFishing.com and follow FLW at Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube and Snapchat.

 About The Bass Federation

The Bass Federation Inc., (TBF) is a member of the Freshwater Fishing Hall of Fame. TBF is owned by those we serve and dedicated to the sport of fishing. The Federation is the largest and oldest, organized grassroots fishing, youth and conservation organization there is. TBF, our affiliated state federations and their member clubs conduct more than 20,000 events each year and have provided a foundation for the entire bass fishing industry for more than 45 years. TBF founded the Student Angler Federation and the National High School Fishing program in 2008 to promote clean family fun and education through fishing. Visit bassfederation.com or highschoolfishing.org and “LIKE US” on Facebook.

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