HOT SPRINGS, Ark. (May 30, 2025) – Boater Matteo Turano of Puryear, Tennessee, caught 19 pounds, 13 ounces on Day 2 to move up from second place and take the lead in the 2025 Bass Fishing League (BFL) All-American tournament on Lake Hamilton . After weighing 19-10 on Day 1, Turano is up to 39-7 with one day left, and he has a 3-7 lead over his roommate this week, Clint Knight of Russellville, Kentucky, who is in second with an even 36 pounds.
Behind the two LBL Division sticks, Appling, Georgia’s Tanner Hadden is in third with 33-4, and Cody Ross of Livingston, Texas, cracked 18-3 on Day 2 to move up to fourth with a 31-2 total. Dropping to fifth after leading on Day 1, Dahlonega, Georgia’s Buddy Benson only managed 10-14 on Day 2.
The final 10 boaters and co-anglers are now set, and competition will resume tomorrow morning on Championship Saturday. The three-day All-American showcases the nation’s best weekend grassroots anglers, and awards the winning boater a top prize of up to $120,000 – and an automatic qualification into REDCREST 2026, MLF’s most prestigious event – and the winning co-angler a top prize of $50,000.
A recent transplant to Tennessee to chase bass, Turano is one of several remarkable young anglers who grew up in Illinois. Now rigging boats for A.C.S. Marine and catching fish up and down the Tennessee River like it’s his job, Turano is on the cusp of the sort of achievement than can define a fishing career. On Day 2, he really only needed an hour or so in the morning to put himself in the driver’s seat.
“I just started on an area where I was seeing a lot of fish yesterday,” said Turano. “I had no idea that there were any real big fish there, but I just wanted to get a limit early. And getting a limit early turned into catching an 8- to 9-pounder on my second fish. After that fish, I was just able to fish super clean the rest of the day and do what I wanted to do, and I just had no stress.”
At weigh-in, the kicker rang in at 7-15, and it was one of a number of big fish that have been caught. So far, nobody has managed to catch two giants in a day, but if someone can do it tomorrow, they might be able to charge from anywhere in the Top 10 for the win. Turano saw some more big ones today, and he’s hoping to take another crack at them tomorrow.
“I think there's some left tomorrow,” he said. “It's going to be really hard to get a big one, but I’ve got a couple that I just couldn't get to eat, and I'm starting on one of them.”
Since the morning, Turano has started to think about what a win could mean.
“I've been fishing since I was 2 years old,” said Turano. “My mom's taken me to little kids’ fishing derbies ever since I was 4 or 5, and it's just something I've always loved. I fished my first bass tournament in high school. I think we got third place, and after that, I've just been hooked.
“I've been thinking about it all day,” he said. “This is probably the longest tournament day I've ever had to fish, just because I caught that big one so early. And, man, my mind has been racing all day, but I just had to stay in it and remember it's not over, and we still got one more day of fishing.”
The Top 10 boaters advancing to the final day of the 2025 All-American tournament on Lake Hamilton are:
1st: Matteo Turano, Puryear, Tenn., 10 bass, 39-7
2nd: Clint Knight, Russellville, Ky., 10 bass, 36-0
3rd: Tanner Hadden, Appling, Ga., 10 bass, 33-4
4th: Cody Ross, Livingston, Texas, 10 bass, 31-2
5th: Buddy Benson, Dahlonega, Ga., 10 bass, 31-1
6th: Caz Anderson, Haysville, N.C., 10 bass, 30-1
7th: Harbor Lovin, New Concord, Ky., 10 bass, 29-4
8th: Jake Lawrence, Paris, Tenn., 10 bass, 29-1
9th: Dillon Falardeau, Hixson, Tenn., 10 bass, 28-15
10th: Zack Fogle, Longview, Texas, 10 bass, 28-9
Finishing in 11th through 49th are:
11th: Bradley Sullivan, Shawnee, Okla., 10 bass, 27-11, $3,000
12th: Jeremy York, Conyers, Ga., 10 bass, 26-13, $3,000
13th: Logan Anderson, Sherrills Ford, N.C., 10 bass, 26-6, $3,000
14th: Mike Bruggen, La Crosse, Wis., 10 bass, 25-2, $3,000
15th: Brad Stalnaker, Eatonton, Ga., 10 bass, 25-1, $3,000
16th: Chad Sykes, Killen, Ala., 10 bass, 24-11, $3,000
17th: Gavin Clevenger, Knoxville, Tenn., 10 bass, 24-1, $3,000
18th: Jeremy West, Hamilton, Miss., nine bass, 22-14, $3,000
19th: Yeej Moua, Renton, Wash., 10 bass, 22-6, $3,000
20th: Jonathan Lang, Joppa, Md., 10 bass, 22-5, $3,000
21st: Tyler Campbell, Martin, Ga., 10 bass, 22-0, $2,000
22nd: Nathan Reynolds, Nashville, Tenn., 10 bass, 21-12, $2,000
23rd: Scott Wiley Jr., Bay Minette, Ala., 10 bass, 21-9, $2,000
24th: Chris Baldwin, Lexington, N.C., 10 bass, 21-7, $2,000
25th: Dillon Roberts, Oologah, Okla., 10 bass, 21-5, $2,000
26th: Cody Kelley, Plainwell, Mich., 10 bass, 21-0, $2,000
27th: Matt Thoin, Bolton, Mass., 10 bass, 20-13, $2,000
28th: Grant Neubauer, Medford, Wis., 10 bass, 20-0, $2,000
29th: Brandon Pritchett, Goode, Va., 10 bass, 19-12, $2,000
30th: Kevin Powers, Unicoi, Tenn., 10 bass, 19-12, $2,000
31st: Matt O’Connell, Brooks, Ga., 10 bass, 19-12, $1,500
32nd: Brandon Morton, San Tan Valley, Ariz., 10 bass, 19-10, $1,500
33rd: Trent Suratt, Lawrenceburg, Tenn., 10 bass, 19-8, $1,500
34th: Andrew George, Poplar Branch, N.C., 10 bass, 19-4, $1,500
35th: Jamie Fountain, East Dublin, Ga., 10 bass, 19-4, $1,500
36th: Jake Monti, Mooresville, N.C., 10 bass, 18-14, $1,500
37th: Adam Crigger, Le Claire, Iowa, 10 bass, 18-14, $1,500
38th: Parker Batts, Dandridge, Tenn., 10 bass, 18-10, $1,500
39th: Wade Grooms, Bonneau, S.C., 10 bass, 18-10, $1,500
40th: Colby Schrumpf, Highland, Ill., 10 bass, 18-1, $1,500
41st: Chad Poteat, Mount Airy, N.C., 10 bass, 17-14, $1,500
42nd: Glen Bingham, Texarkana, Texas, 10 bass, 17-7, $1,500
43rd: Vernelle Quinnie, Duncanville, Ala., 10 bass, 17-4, $1,500
44th: Billy Shelton III, La Crosse, Wis., 10 bass, 16-15, $1,500
45th: Mel Kennedy, Hiawassee, Ga., seven bass, 16-9, $1,500
46th: Travis Boley, Weldon, Ill., 10 bass, 16-1, $1,500
47th: Dustin Dyer, Johnson City, Tenn., nine bass, 14-10, $1,500
48th: Mike Puterbaugh, Montello, Wis., six bass, 11-7, $1,500
49th: Doug Rochelle, Texarkana, Texas, nine bass, 10-11, $1,500
Overall, there were 238 bass weighing 569 pounds, 14 ounces caught by the 49 boaters on Friday. The catch included 47 five-bass limits.
Co-angler Scott Standafer of Milford, Ohio, crossed the stage with a three-bass limit weighing 9 pounds even to lead the co-angler division at Lake Hamilton after Day 2, with a two-day total of six bass for 21-6. Michael Lowe of Clinton, Tennessee, sits in second place with 18-10, and Richard Williams of Sutherland, Virginia, ended the day in third with 17-0.
The Top 10 co-anglers advancing to the final day of competition at the 2025 All-American on Lake Hamilton are:
1st: Scott Standafer, Milford, Ohio, six bass, 21-6
2nd: D. Michael Lowe, Clinton, Tenn., six bass, 18-10
3rd: Richard Williams, Sutherland, Va., six bass, 17-0
4th: Robert Massey, Calhoun, La., six bass, 13-13
5th: Kade Wesner, Lancaster, Pa., six bass, 13-9
6th: Harold Grizzle, Gainesville, Ga., six bass, 13-4
7th: Brad Sampson, Knoxville, Tenn., six bass, 12-15
8th: William Easley, Pollok, Texas, six bass, 12-13
9th: Ernest Stephens, Orrum, N.C., six bass, 12-10
10th: Brent Jones, Okeana, Ohio, six bass, 12-9
Finishing in 11th through 49th were:
11th: Nathan Hall, Hensley, Ark., six bass, 12-8, $1,500
12th: Levi Allgeier, Bardstown, Ky., six bass, 11-15, $1,500
13th: Cy Matlock, Crump, Tenn., six bass, 11-4, $1,500
14th: Tony Stevens, Monroe, Ga., six bass, 11-2, $1,500
15th: Bill Hockaday, Nashville, Ark., six bass, 11-1, $1,500
16th: Brian Townley, Wyoming, Mich., four bass, 10-15, $1,500
17th: Luke Shrader, Monticello, Ky., six bass, 10-14, $1,500
18th: Ryan Sykes, Fairfield, Ohio, six bass, 10-14, $1,500
19th: Cedric Jackson, Sicily Island, La., six bass, 10-11, $1,500
20th: Tim Greene, Loganville, Ga., six bass, 10-10, $1,500
21st: Arthur Stahlhut, Garrett, Ind., six bass, 10-10, $1,000
22nd: Corey Smith, Hazard, Ky., six bass, 10-3, $1,000
23rd: Andrew Rogers, Johnson City, Tenn., six bass, 10-1, $1,000
24th: Jason Mordhorst, Hillsdale, N.J., six bass, 9-10, $1,000
25th: Shaquille Freeman, Farmville, Va., six bass, 9-10, $1,000
26th: Chase Johnson, Quincy, Ill., five bass, 9-10, $1,000
27th: Logan Slaughter, Lewisville, Texas, six bass, 9-6, $1,000
28th: Austin Abadie, St. Amant, La., six bass, 9-5, $1,000
29th: Jeffrey Webb, Watkinsville, Ga., six bass, 8-15, $1,000
30th: Mark Sloan, Harrison, Ark., five bass, 8-14, $1,000
31st: Cornell Badra, Clarksburg, Md., six bass, 8-11, $750
32nd: Jason Anderson, Heron, Mont., five bass, 8-10, $750
33rd: Hunter Tibbetts, Centreville, Va., five bass, 8-10, $750
34th: Chris Medlin, Dumas, Miss., four bass, 8-5, $750
35th: Andy Morita, La Jolla, Calif., five bass, 8-2, $750
36th: Gabe Montgomery, Jackson, Mo., six bass, 8-0, $750
37th: Gary Haraguchi, Murfreesboro, Tenn., five bass, 7-12, $750
38th: Dewayne Drummonds, Gray, Ky., six bass, 7-4, $750
39th: Noah Gurkin, Pelzer, S.C., five bass, 7-1, $750
40th: Shelton Yonce, Lexington, S.C., five bass, 7-1, $750
41st: Joe Yocum, Commercial Point, Ohio, four bass, 6-15, $750
42nd: Riley Smallwood, Shallotte, N.C., three bass, 6-10, $750
43rd: Daniel Arnberg, Auburn, Ala., four bass, 6-3, $750
44th: Billy French, Hamilton, Ohio, three bass, 5-9, $750
45th: Justin Lemaster, Royston, Ga., four bass, 5-3, $750
46th: Mark Folsom, Waterville, Iowa, three bass, 4-3, $750
47th: Wes Proctor, Manhattan, Kan., three bass, 3-8, $750
48th: Ross Davis, St. Elmo, Ill., one bass, 0-14, $750
49th: Barrett Washburn, Hardin, Ky., zero bass, 0-0, $750
Overall, there were 121 bass weighing 222 pounds, 15 ounces caught by 45 co-anglers on Friday. The catch included 36 three-bass limits.
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