SAU fishing team set for national tourney

MAGNOLIA, Ark.-The Southern Arkansas University bass fishing team placed seventh overall in a recent regional tournament, earning SAU's anglers their first invitation to a national tournament.

Drake Vines, a freshman from El Dorado, Ark., and Reed Barham, a sophomore from Hope, Ark., represented SAU at the event. Their showing in the Yeti FLW college fishing tournament earns the SAU team a spot in the 2019 FLW college fishing national championship, which will be the team's first national competition.

"We placed seventh with 17 pounds and 10 ounces," team president Warren Basinger said. "Ninety-two teams from Oklahoma, Texas and Louisiana competed."

Vines and Barham spent the day targeting large-mouth bass on the south end of the lake, along a 150-yard stretch of bank off Highpoint Marina.

He said he and Barham found the environment windy and cold. "It was our first time at Texoma, so we had to adapt to conditions and find the right depth of water. We ended up fishing in only one area. We fished this particular stretch 12 times and connected with a solid fish every time."

They looked for a depth of at least 12 feet with trees laid over. "We wanted water that made us comfortable," he said. "Texoma was different. It has a lot of red clay. You get to pick and choose where you like fishing best. If you like deep water, you can fish on the east end, if you like shallow water, you can fish on the west end. We wanted to find our dirty water we were used to back home."

He said he is "definitely excited" about going to Nationals next year. "I'm really interested to see how we do," Vines said. The team will find out the date and location of the national championship event later this year. "It'll be good fishing," Vines said.

The team competes on May 31-June 1 in a state qualifier event on Lake Hamilton, sponsored by the Arkansas Bass Federation and the Arkansas B.A.S.S. College Nation to qualify for the 2018 Bassmaster College National Championship.

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