HENDERSON, N.C. (May 5, 2025) – Boater Tyler Trent of Nathalie, Virginia, caught a five-bass limit weighing 17 pounds, 8 ounces, Saturday to win the MLF Bass Fishing League (BFL) tournament on Kerr Lake The tournament was the fourth event of the season for the BFL North Carolina Division. Trent earned $8,205, including the lucrative $5,000 Phoenix MLF Contingency Bonus, for his victory.
Tournament morning started out on a pretty sour note for Trent, when a mechanical issue left him unable to use the big motor just 10 minutes after takeoff. It could’ve been an insurmountable hurdle, but Trent didn’t let it stand in the way of getting his sixth career BFL win and his second this season. Trent also won the March 8 Piedmont Division event on Kerr Lake.
“Luckily, I didn’t make it too far, so I could fish on the trolling motor and still make it back to weigh-in on time,” he said. “That’s basically how my day went. I just fished everything that was in front of me.”
Trent used a shaky head and a jig. While there was no pattern, he found plenty of rocky areas and laydowns to target en route to an impressive showing given the circumstances.
“I probably caught 30-some keepers,” Trent said. “I mean, it’s basically my home lake, so I know every end of it.
“It feels great, honestly,” he added. “This is my sixth BFL now I’ve won, but the other five, I was pretty much on ’em and knew it was going to happen. This one, when I broke down I thought I had no chance, and it just turned out to be one of those days you hear about.”
The top 10 boaters finished the tournament:
1st: Tyler Trent, Nathalie, Va., five bass, 17-8, $8,205 (includes $5,000 Phoenix MLF Contingency Bonus)
2nd: Ryan Harrell, Roanoke Rapids, N.C., five bass, 17-5, $1,603
3rd: Lucas Murphy, West Columbia, S.C., five bass, 16-2, $1,168
4th: Winston Husband, Gilbert, S.C., five bass, 15-0, $748
5th: Kevin Chandler, New London, N.C., five bass, 14-12, $1,026
6th: A.J. Lester, Huddleston, Va., five bass, 14-10, $838
7th: John Wiese, Charlotte, N.C., five bass, 13-10, $534
8th: Chris Baumgardner, Gastonia, N.C., five bass, 13-1, $481
9th: Austin Wike, Salisbury, N.C., five bass, 13-0, $427
10th: Wesley Cashwell, Roanoke Rapids, N.C., five bass, 12-15, $374
Kevin Chandler of New London, North Carolina, caught a bass that weighed 5 pounds, 2 ounces, and earned the Big Bass Boater award of $385. Steve Cannon of Wilkesboro, North Carolina, won the co-angler division and $2,003 Saturday, after bringing three bass to the scale that totaled 8 pounds, 12 ounces.
The top 10 co-anglers finished:
1st: Steve Cannon, Wilkesboro, N.C., three bass, 8-12, $2,003
2nd: Travis Ruff, Connelly Springs, N.C., three bass, 8-9, $801
3rd: Bobby Henderson, Charlotte, N.C., three bass, 8-7, $533
4th: Cameron Deese, Kershaw, S.C., three bass, 7-14, $374
5th: Wayne Smelser, Wytheville, Va., three bass, 7-12, $321
6th: Sean Tobatto, Greensboro, N.C., three bass, 7-10, $294
7th: Jason Hinger, Timberlake, N.C., three bass, 7-9, $317
8th: Robert Green, Sedalia, N.C., three bass, 7-4, $240
9th: Jay Huffstickler, Stanley, N.C., three bass, 7-2, $214
10th: Trevor Lewis, Wake Forest, N.C., three bass, 6-14, $187
Braxton Spurlin of Ellenboro, North Carolina, earned the Berkley Big Bass co-angler award of $192, catching a bass that weighed in at 4 pounds, 4 ounces – the largest co-angler catch of the day.
After four events, Kaden Buchmann of Troutman, North Carolina, now leads the Fishing Clash North Carolina Division Angler of the Year (AOY) race with 969 points, while Travis Ruff of Connelly Springs, North Carolina, leads the Fishing Clash North Carolina Division Co-Angler of the Year race with 977 points.
The next event for BFL North Carolina Division anglers will be held Sept. 13-14, at Lake Norman in Huntersville, North Carolina.
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