PONCA CITY, Okla. (March 22, 2016) – The Bass Federation (TBF), with our “Partner in Fishing” at FLW, announces the 2016 Student Angler Federation (SAF) Louisiana High School State Championship on Saturday, March 26th at the Sibley Lake Public Ramp near Natchidoches, LA.

The state championship is a two person event for students in grades 9-12. Each team can have one member in 7th or 8th grade, if needed. All teams should pre-register online for high school events at HighSchoolFishing.org to avoid onsite late fees. Each team and their “coach,” who provides the boat they compete in, will need to check in at 5:30pm-7pm CST on March 25th at the Northwestern State University. A rules briefing will immediately follow. Take off is at 7am and the weigh-in will begin at 3pm.

“TBF and our partners in fishing at FLW are the only organizations to offer a state championship in every state and Canada,” TBF National Youth Director, Mark Gintert, stated. “There’s no question our State Championship Series provides the foundation to make SAF the largest high school fishing organization in North America.”

The top 10% of each 2016 State Championship event advances to a FLW/TBF Conference Regional Championship. The top 10% from the Conference Regional events advance to the FLW/TBF High School National Championship to compete for the top team prize of a $10,000 scholarship. As an added bonus, national championship teams will compete out of new Ranger Boats provided for them, along with paid hotel accommodations and other perks. The final day weigh-in will take place on the FLW main stage in front of a live FLW Tour stop!

Go to HighSchoolFishing.org for details on the Student Angler Federation and to sign up for events. If you’re not a 2016 SAF member, annual cost is $25 year. Pay in advance or register for an event online and pay then. There are no entry fees as long as you enter your active/paid SAF membership number at the time of registration!

SAF membership includes full TBF and FLW competitor membership benefits, FLW Magazine e- Edition, online training programs and full insurance coverage for clubs, officers and student members.

In addition to State Championships, SAF National OPENs and other events held across the nation will advance the top 3 teams to their Conference Regional Championships. All SAF members automatically qualify to compete in the pinnacle of all high school events, the 2016 High School Fishing World Finals for thousands of dollars in scholarships and prizes each year. The World Finals format allows anglers to test their skills against high school anglers from across the nation at a week-long family vacation event, which will be held in Florence, Alabama on Pickwick Reservoir, June 28-July 2. This no entry fee, come one, come all mega event gives every high school team a shot at the sports top prizes and honors.

State Championship Event Details:

Sign-up: Pre-register online at HighSchoolFishing.org or a $25 late registration fee can apply to those registering onsite. The best way is to pre-register online at highschoolfishing.org. Just enter your active SAF membership number during online SAF event registration.

Mandatory Check-in: Friday, March 25th at 5:30pm-7pm at the Northwestern State University near Natchidoches, LA.

Takeoff & Weigh-in: Saturday, March 26th at Sibley Lake Public Ramp. Take-off at 7am with weigh-in at 3pm. Questions? 580-765-9031

Tournament Waters: Sibley Lake

About FLW FLW is the industry’s premier tournament-fishing organization, providing anglers of all skill levels the opportunity to compete for millions in prize money nationwide in 2015 over the course of 240 tournaments across five tournament circuits, four of which provide an avenue to the sport’s richest payday and most coveted championship trophy – the Forrest Wood Cup. FLW tournament fishing can be seen on the Emmy-nominated “FLW” television show and is broadcast to more than 564 million households worldwide, making it the most widely distributed weekly outdoors-sports television show in the world. For more information about FLW visit FLWFishing.com and look for FLW on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and YouTube.

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 2007 to promote clean family fun and education through fishing. Visit bassfederation.com or highschoolfishing.org and “LIKE US” on facebook!

Joe Beebee is no stranger to winning and catching big sacks of bass. In 2014, Beebee and his partner caught a 32lb bag, still an SAF record, to win the Texas State Championship at LBJ Reservoir. Saturday on Sam Rayburn, the only difference was his new partner Chad Mrazek.  Mrazek helped the team catch a five fish limit weighing 18lbs 5oz to claim the title of Texas State Champions with well over an 100 boat field on a very windy day at “Big Sam.”

“We caught all of our fish today punching heavy mats of what we call hay grass,” Beebee who is a junior at College Park High School, said. “We found the combination of 9 to 12ft deep water and where the heavy mat was connected to the bottom seemed to be holding more fish,” Mrazek who is a sophomore at College Park, said.  The pair used an Excite Craw jig in green pumpkin red color to catch the majority of their fish.

When asked what the key to their success was the pair answered the work of the boat captain fighting the wind and staying confident when the conditions changed from their pre-fishing pattern. The team will now lead an eleven team contingency to the Southern Conference Regional Championship in Shreveport, La., to be held in October with hopes of advancing to the SAF National Championship.

Coming in second, was the team of River Lee and Colby Vinyard from Leon High School who also had a limit that tipped in at 16lbs 3oz to claim the runner-up spot. Finishing in third was the Marble Falls High School duo of Blake Lilly and Calvin Todd who had a limit weighing 15lbs 14oz to advance.

Fourth place went to Andy Ortega and Blake Terry from Permian Odessa High School with a limit weighing 14lbs 10oz. The number five spot went to Logan Wood and Keaton Butler from Nederland High School with 14lbs 1oz. Following closely behind them was last year’s championship team of Chase Hux and Matt Nichols who worked their way through motor trouble to catch a limit that weighed 14lbs even to advance.

Will Rice and Brett Herrin from Kirbyville High School had a limit of bass weighing 13lbs 3oz to claim the seventh spot. The number eight team of Emily Hamilton and Sam Shaw from Huntington High School didn’t catch a limit of bass but, they caught a monster 9lbs 1oz beast to claim the Lew’s Big Bass award and advance on just three fish and a total weight of 13lbs 2oz.

Ninth went to the Splendora High School duo of Hunter Goodrum and Trey Kinard who had a limit weighing 12lbs 13oz, which tied them with Braden Berryman and Kenneth Pickett from Kirbyville who also had a limit of the same weight.

Claiming the final qualifying spot was the team of Tanner Moreno and Andrew Moore from Shepard High School who had a limit weighing 12lbs 12oz.

Special thanks go to the Jasper County Development Council and Mr. Brian Branum from the beautiful Umphrey Family Pavilion, as well as, Ms. Stephanie Martindale and the entire Jasper High School Fishing team who played host at the Friday Night Registration meeting.

For full results click HERE.