The Seminole Junior Anglers started its season off with quality finishes from several of their teams. The teams competed in the first two B.A.S.S events of the year held on the Harris Chain of Lakes, September 23rd and 24th. The Saturday event, Florida High School B.A.S.S. Nation tournament, brought out 55 teams from throughout the state of Florida. The team of Grayson Ashley and JD Walker brought home a solid 9th place finish, weighing in 12.1 lbs. Joey Bloom, defending his Team of the Year title, with new partner Dylan Westhelle brought home a solid 15th place finish, weighing in 10.4 lbs.
On Sunday, the 24th, the weights were zeroed from the day before and anglers took part in The B.A.S.S. Florida Series event. This day brought better results for some of our teams, including the team of Joey Bloom and Dylan Westhelle with a 3rd place finish, weighing in 15.4 lbs. The teams will continue their quest to qualify for the national tournament with the next events being held on Lake Okeechobee on November 3rd and 4th.
In October our Seminole Junior Anglers volunteered for fundraising events with the Anglers for Conservation Gumbo Wars event on October 14th, followed by a rod building class on October 21st. The rod building event was co-hosted with the help of Mud Hole Custom Tackle, and was a great experience for these young anglers. Each angler gained valuable knowledge on how to construct fishing rods, and walked away with their very own MHX custom rod fitted with WINN fishing grips.
Finally, the date has been set for the 2nd Annual St. Johns River Bash Fundraising Tournament! Due to the current high-water, the event will be held February 10th at the Boat Tree Marina on Lake Monroe. Visit SeminoleJuniorAnglers.org for more information on how to register for the fishing tournament. This fun event will not only be host to a fishing tournament, but will also include awesome raffle prizes and local vendors from around the Central Florida area will have booths set up for the whole family to enjoy! All proceeds will benefit our high school anglers to pay for tournament entry fees and travel expenses for the 2017/2018 season. Thank you to our season and tournament sponsors, and Instant Insurance sponsoring this article allowing the accomplishments of this next generation of anglers to be shared with the Central Florida fishing community.
