WIRTZ, Va. (April 29, 2014) – Zachary Francis of Abingdon High School and Matthew Rock of John Battle High School brought a five-bass limit to the scale on Sunday, April 13 weighing 14 pounds, 5 ounces to win the 2014 Virginia State High School Fishing Championship on Smith Mountain Lake. The win qualified the team to compete in a future High School Fishing conference championship.
The top five teams on Smith Mountain Lake were:
1st: Zachary Francis, Abingdon High School, and Matthew Rock, John Battle High School, five bass, 14-5
2nd: Nathan Wood, Patrick County High School, and Landon Siggers, Tunstall High School, five bass, 13-5
3rd: George Washington High School – Junior Robert and Gabriel Pool, five bass, 11-15
4th: Pulaski County High School – Triston Waddle and Jeremy Lineberry, five bass, 11-11
5th: Franklin County High School – Jared Ward and Hunter Alice, five bass, 10-8
The 2014 Virginia State High School Fishing Championship was a two-person (team) event for students in grades 9-12. The top 10 percent from each TBF/FLW state championship field will advance to a High School Fishing conference championship along with the top 3 teams from each of the six 2014 High School Fishing Opens that coincide with the 2014 Walmart FLW Tour. The top 10 percent of each conference championship field will then advance to the High School Fishing National Championship, coinciding with the TBF National Championship and an FLW Tour stop in the spring of 2015. 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 Student Angler Federation (SAF) nationwide automatically qualify for the world’s largest high school bass tournament, the 2014 High School Fishing World Finals. At the 2013 World Finals more than $40,000 in scholarships and prizes were awarded. Visit HighSchoolFishing.org for details.
ABOUT THE BASS FEDERATION
The Bass Federation Inc., (TBF) is owned by those we serve and dedicated to the sport of fishing. TBF is the largest and oldest, organized grassroots fishing organization. TBF affiliated state federations and their member clubs conduct more than 20,000 fishing, youth and conservation events at the local level each year and have provided a foundation for the entire bass fishing industry for more than 40 years. Visit Bassfederation.com.
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 2014 over the course of 229 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 FLWOutdoors.com and look for FLW on Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest, Instagram and YouTube.
Visit the FLW Media Center at FLWOutdoors.com/mc for additional information or contact:
