Matt Stasiak of Pittsburgh, PA, caught 15 keepers culling to a five-bass limit of 19 pounds, 13 ounces, on Saturday April 25 2016 to win the first FLW Bass Fishing League (BFL) Northeast Division tournament of 2016 on the Potomac River. For his victory, Stasiak took home $7,498.
Stasiak said he spent his day focusing on a spawning area in Piscataway Creek. He said the bass were actively feeding on perch, which ended up being a crucial part of his pattern.
“I started out throwing a green-pumpkin Zoom Brush Hog,” said Stasiak, who earned his first win in FLW competition. “I was fan casting and dragging it. In tidal waters, sometimes you can’t see the beds, so dragging is the best option.”
Around midday, Stasiak said he switched to using a green-pumpkin and orange-colored Z-Man ChatterBait.
“When the tide was moving, the bass were active and really wanted the ChatterBait,” said Stasiak. “At high-tide, I ran it slow over the top of grass. If it got caught, I’d pop it, let it fall, then keep reeling. At low tide, I kept my rod tip up as there was only about a foot of water where I was throwing.”
Stasiak went on to say that he was able to catch 15 keepers throughout the event.
“A lot of people were throwing white Chatterbaits out there, but I don’t think they were dialed in on the shad,” said Stasiak. “I had a lot of perch bites up near my boat which made me choose the green-pumpkin and orange. That’s what got me the better bites.”
The top 10 boaters finished the tournament in:
1st: Matt Stasiak, Pittsburgh, Pa., five bass, 19-13, $5,498 + $2,000 Ranger Cup Bonus
2nd: Al Fiorille, Mount Airy, Md., five bass, 19-6, $2,249
3rd: Ryan Ingalls, Fairfax, Va., five bass, 18-7, $1,498
4th: Michael Durbak, Woodbourne, N.Y., five bass, 18-0, $975
4th: Ernie Freeman, Broad Run, Va., five bass, 18-0, $975
6th: Grae Buck, Harleysville, Pa., five bass, 17-15, $825
7th: Joseph Thompson, Coatesville, Pa., five bass, 17-14, $750
8th: Mark Schafer, Williamstown, N.J., five bass, 17-11, $675
9th: Bruce Ring, Front Royal, Va., five bass, 17-10, $600
10th: Anthony Ebel, Davidsonville, Md., five bass, 17-7, $525
Complete results can be found at FLWFishing.com.
Brian Christy of Media, Pennsylvania, caught a 6-pound, 9-ounce bass – the biggest of the tournament in the pro division – and earned the day’s Boater Big Bass award of $645.
Ken Maurer of Herndon, Pennsylvania, weighed in five bass totaling 19 pounds, 7 ounces, Saturday to win the co-angler division and earn $2,249.
Maurer wins co-angler title and the top 10 co-anglers were:
1st: Ken Maurer, Herndon, Pa., five bass, 19-7, $2,249
2nd: Griffen Hurt, Bound Brook, N.J., five bass, 18-1, $1,125
3rd: Kenneth Henderson, Fredericksburg, Va., five bass, 17-11, $752
4th: Robert Parmer Jr., Linden, Pa., five bass, 17-9, $525
5th: Dennis Jones, La Plata, Md., five bass, 16-13, $450
6th: Brandon Esterly, Fleetwood, Pa., five bass, 16-11, $412
7th: Richard Pace, Frederick, Md., five bass, 16-3, $375
8th: Bill Naron, Beaverdam, Va., five bass, 15-13, $318
8th: Wyatt Morris, Little Falls, N.Y., five bass, 15-13, $318
10th: Damon Reid, Bowie, Md., five bass, 15-7, $262
Ron Terlop of Cleveland, Ohio, caught the biggest bass of the tournament in the co-angler division, a fish weighing 6 pounds, 2 ounces and earned the day’s Co-angler Big Bass award of $322.
The top 50 boaters and 50 co-anglers based on point standings will qualify for the Oct. 6-8 Regional Championship on Kerr Lake in Henderson, North Carolina. Boaters will compete for a top award of a Ranger Z518C with a 200-horsepower Evinrude or Mercury outboard and $20,000, while co-anglers will fish for a new Ranger Z518C with a 200-horsepower Evinrude or Mercury outboard.
The BFL is a 24-division circuit devoted to weekend anglers, with 120 tournaments throughout the season, five in each division. The top 50 boaters and co-anglers from each division qualify for a regional tournament and are competing to finish in the top six, which then qualifies them for one of the longest-running championships in all of competitive bass fishing – the BFL All-American. Top winners in the BFL can move up to the Costa FLW Series or even the Walmart FLW Tour.
For regular updates, photos, tournament news and more, follow the BFL on Facebook at Facebook.com/FLWFishing and on Twitter at Twitter.com/FLWFishing.
About FLW
FLW is the world’s largest tournament-fishing organization, providing anglers of all skill levels the opportunity to compete for millions in prize money in 2016 across five tournament circuits. Headquartered in Benton, Kentucky, with offices in Minneapolis, FLW conducts more than 235 bass-fishing tournaments annually across the United States and sanctions tournaments in Canada, China, Mexico and South Korea. FLW tournament fishing can be seen on the Emmy-nominated “FLW” television show, broadcast to more than 564 million households worldwide, while FLW Bass Fishing magazine delivers cutting-edge tips from top pros. For more information visit FLWFishing.com and follow FLW at Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube and Periscope: @FLWFishing.
