LAKEPORT, Calif. — Tanner Cooper and Memo Nunez are likely to hold a record for a while as the only team to win two Carhartt Bassmaster College Series regionals — in two separate regions. The teammates from New Mexico State University got to choose to compete on California’s Clear Lake for the Western Regional because their regional, the Central, was on the Ouachita River in Louisiana, more than 12 hours from home.
“We couldn’t pass up fishing on Clear Lake,” Cooper said. Both Clear Lake and Ouachita River were a 20-hour drive and are both great fisheries, but Clear Lake has the distinction of having been selected as No. 2 on the 2014 Bassmaster’s 100 Best Bass Lakes in America. But the pair did compete in the Central Regional in 2013 on Texas’ Amistad Reservoir, and they won that one.
Friday, with a total of 47 pounds, 5 ounces, they also won the Western Regional on California’s prized bass fishery.
“The Central was different,” Cooper said. “We led on the first day there. Here, we had to make up ground.”
Cooper and Nunez started Day 2 in fourth place with a 3-pound deficit. But they more than made up for it with a 25-pound, 3-ounce sack on the final day, the biggest bag of the tournament. A spot the team found in practice proved to be key.
“We found this area in Konocti Bay on the southern end of the lake with lots of fish and clear water,” Cooper said. The pair found it three days before the tournament began. They kept an eye on it and left the fish alone until the tournament started.
It was an area full of reeds, grass and tulles, and the fish were completely visible.
“But the algae bloomed over the last few days and the visibility turned to about 2 inches,” Cooper said. “We ended up just blindcasting because we knew the fish were there even if we couldn’t see them anymore.”
Cooper and Nunez knew their spot was good, but they didn’t start thinking they had a shot at the win until Friday at 8 a.m., when Cooper caught a 7-pound, 15-ounce monster.
“We knew we were in contention then,” Nunez said.
Before that catch, they were just trying to make it into the Top 10 so they could qualify for the 2014 Carhartt Bassmaster College Series National Championship, July 31-Aug. 2 on Georgia’s Chatuge Reservoir. Their lures of choice were a green pumpkin ChatterBait with a black blade using either a Skinny Dipper or a Swim Senko (green pumpkin with chartreuse tails) as a trailer; a Smallie Beaver with a Magic Craw punch skirt; and a wacky rigged Senko. Their big catch earned the Carhartt Big Bass award worth $500. The rest of their limit earned them the Bass Pro Nitro Big Bag of the tournament award, which is worth $250. And for leading on Day 2 and ultimately winning the tournament, Cooper and Nunez also won the Livingston Lures Leader Award, worth $500 in Livingston products for each of them.
Cooper and Nunez will join nine other teams from the 2014 Carhartt Bassmaster College Series Western Regional at the championship. The other schools that will represent the West will be San Jose State, Chico State, CSU Monterey Bay, Oregon State University and University of Oregon.
The Day 1 leaders, Adam McAndrews and Roberto Munoz of San Jose State, ended the tournament in second place after bringing an 18-12 sack on Day 2.
The next event for college anglers is the 2014 Carhartt Bassmaster College Series Eastern Regional, June 12-13, on Tennessee’s Watts Barr Reservoir.
Bassmaster College Series -Western
5/15/2014 - 5/16/2014
Clear Lake - Konocti Vista Casino - Clear Lake, CA
STANDINGS BOATER DAY 2
Today's Activity Accumulative
Name # Fish # Live Lbs - Oz # Fish # Live Lbs - Oz
1 Tanner Cooper - Memo Nunez New Mexico State University 5 4 25- 3 10 9 47- 5
2 Adam McAndrews - Roberto Munoz San Jose State 5 5 18-12 10 10 43-13
3 Timothy Bailey - Jesse Scarafiotti New Mexico State University 5 4 19-14 10 9 43- 5
4 Andrew Loberg - Michael Braswell Chico State 5 5 24-10 10 10 41- 8
5 Matt Diaz - Andrew Sjostrom CSU Monterey Bay 5 5 19- 5 10 10 41- 2
6 Patrick Friedman - Travis Bounds San Jose State 5 3 17-14 10 8 39-12
7 Chase Cochran - Ryan Sparks Oregon State University 5 5 24- 9 10 10 39-11
8 Alex Klein - Jeff Karnthong Chico State 5 5 20-12 10 10 39- 1
9 Kyle Schneider - Jacob Wall U. of Oregon 5 5 13-14 10 9 35- 1
10 Erik Strickler - Brandon Hua Oregon State University 5 5 15-13 10 10 34- 9
11 Stephen Johnson - Clif Gallagher Utah Valley University 5 5 15-11 10 10 34- 6
12 Jarid Gabbert - Kyle Sittman Eastern Washington University 5 5 21-13 8 8 33- 5
13 Daniel Vine - Alex Stewart Northern Arizona University 5 5 13- 4 10 10 32-12
14 Kyle Price - Savanah Wride New Mexico State University 5 5 15-12 10 10 32-11
15 Cy Floyd - Tyler Wasilewski Eastern Washington University 5 5 14-11 10 10 31- 6
16 Zach MacDonald - Zachary Martinez Oregon State University 5 5 14- 7 10 10 30-15
17 Justin Hettinga - Andrew Armijo New Mexico State University 5 5 20-11 9 9 29- 3
18 Nick Barr - Jarred Walker Eastern Washington University 5 5 20-15 8 8 29- 2
19 Nick Nikchevich - Elliott Beckstrom U. of So. California 3 3 5- 9 8 8 28-12
20 Cody Wilson - Andrew Sumi San Jose State 5 5 19-10 9 9 28- 2
21 Kevin Chen - Koulton Westbrook Chico State 4 4 15- 1 7 7 21-11
22 Kory Tams - Schafer Summers Weber State University 2 2 6- 2 7 7 20- 8
23 Alex Cox - Justin Gangel Cal State Long Beach 1 1 4- 5 6 6 20- 6
24 Nicholas DiCamillo - Jesse Wilkinson New Mexico State University 3 3 6-14 6 6 18-11
25 Maegan Birdsey - Tyler Dabling Utah Valley University 0 0 0- 0 5 5 18- 0
26 Travis Opel - Taylor Throop Eastern Washington University 0 0 0- 0 4 4 14-11
27 John Zeolla - Kyle Greenlaw Cal Poly 2 2 3- 4 5 5 13- 9
28 Alex Robbins - Humboldt State 2 2 4-10 5 5 13- 8
29 Michael Woods - Chas Brannon Chico State 1 1 2- 0 6 6 13- 2
30 Jordan Porritt - David Tonks Weber State University 3 3 9-13 4 4 11- 9
BIG BASS TOTALS
Day Name City,State Lbs-Oz
Day # Fish # Live Lbs-Oz # Limits
1 Timothy Bailey Famington, NM 6- 7
2 Tanner Cooper Las Cruces, NM 7-15 1 131 130 466- 6 20
2 116 112 415- 2 19