Karns seniors Clayton Kelley (left) and Hunter Owens.
BY DAVE LINK
Karns senior Clayton Kelley couldn’t pre-fish Cherokee Lake prior to the Tennessee BASS Nation’s Bass Pro Shops event last Saturday (Nov. 2) because he was in fall practice with the Beavers’ baseball team.
Instead, Kelley relied on his bass-fishing partner, fellow Karns senior Hunter Owens, to get the scoop on Cherokee Lake the week before the tournament.
Owens was able to pre-fish for reasons unfortunate to him.
A starting linebacker for the Karns’ football team, Owens suffered a torn ACL and sprained MCL in his knee during an Oct. 11 victory over Campbell County, the Beavers’ last win of the 2024 season.
“It was really tough that my senior year got cut short,” Owens said, “but it all happens for a reason and God has a plan.”
Owens was able to practice on Cherokee Lake for two days before the tournament – on Sunday (Oct. 27) and Friday (Nov. 1) – left with a good feeling going into the event.
“I had about 10 pounds that Sunday,” Owens said. “I really figured them out on Friday. I just got in an area that had a lot of bait fish and found some active fish.”
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The bass were still there the next day, and the Karns fishing duo capitalized, winning the first stop on the Bass Pro Shops Tour with five bass weighing 13.92 pounds, including a 3.17-pound smallmouth.
Kelley, a starting outfielder for the Beavers, gave kudos to Owens for finding the fish.
“Honestly, I put my trust in Hunter,” Kelley said. “He said he was catching them good wherever he was heading, and sure enough, we got up there and it was every cast.”
They won by more than 4 pounds.
Mac Fritts and Reid Chapman of Campbell County Fishing were second with 9.52 pounds; Landon Myers and Seth McCroskey of Alcoa Fishing were third (7.95 pounds); and Canyon Padgett and Levi Tomlinson of Temple Baptist Church Fishing were fourth (7.47 pounds).
In the juniors’ division, Levi Goins and Isaac Wilson of Campbell County Middle won with 4.92 pounds, ahead of Brody Shelley and John McCroskey of Berean Junior Eagles with 4.67 pounds and Xander Sawyer of Alcoa (fishing solo) with 4.14 pounds.
Kelley and Owens have been fishing together since their sophomore years at Karns. They won a Bass Pro Shops event as sophomores on Fort Loudon Lake, setting a tournament record at the time.
“Honestly, I just think it’s a friendship thing,” Kelley said of fishing with Owens. “We get along together pretty well. We’re good friends. I don’t think we’ve ever gotten in an argument on the water or anything out there.”
They had smooth sailing that Saturday, once the fog lifted and ended an hourlong delay for takeoff.
With Kelley’s father, Todd Kelley, serving as boat captain, they went to one of the spots Owens found during practice.
“It didn’t take very long,” Owens said. “We pulled up to our first spot and started catching.”
Owens and Kelley were using Damiki rigs and getting bite after bite. They had a five-bass limit in about 30 minutes, then started culling smaller bass from the live well.
“There was a big school of ’em,” Owens said, “so they were fighting over it. As fast as we could get our bait in the water, we were catching ’em.”
To the point it got crazy in the boat.
“We were doubling up,” Kelley said. “He caught like a 2-something, and as I was reaching down to get the net, one hit mine, so there we were, trying to fight two fish.”
Kelley said they probably caught more than 30 bass, mostly smallmouth.
Owens caught the big bass later in the day.
“It had slowed down a little bit, and I went over to a rock pile, and he came up and ate it,” Owens said.
Although they were in the last flight taking off in the morning, Kelley and Owens returned a little early for weigh-ins to avoid fish dying or any other potential problems.
“I knew we had a good shot, but you never know,” Owens said.
It was a nice surprise when they won.
“I was thinking easily 16 (pounds) probably should have won,” Kelley said, “and when we got there, I think 9 pounds was leading, so it was a little crazy.”
Jackie Hatfield (Middle) of the Alcoa Fishing Team.
HATFIELD WINS AT DALE HOLLOW
Alcoa Fishing Team anglers Jackie Hatfield and Walker LaRue made a strategic decision before the Bass Pro Shops event at Cherokee and the Tennessee BASS Nation’s Central Tour first event on Dale Hollow Lake.
With both events on Nov. 2, Hatfield competed by himself at Dale Hollow and LaRue competed solo at Cherokee so they could gain points on both the Bass Pro Tour and the Central Tour.
Hatfield won the championship at Dale Hollow Lake – which is north of Livingston, Tenn., on the Kentucky border — while LaRue finished sixth at Cherokee.
With his father, Chris Hatfield, serving as boat captain, Hatfield won with a five-bass total weighing 18.54 pounds.
“I really like the lakes and stuff in the Central (Division Tour), and I really like Dale Hollow,” Jackie Hatfield said. “Dale Hollow’s probably one of my favorite lakes in Tennessee.”
Hatfield and LaRue are in their first season as co-anglers. Last year, LaRue fished with Joe Vaulton, and Hatfield fished with Graham Willis; Vaulton and Willis were high school seniors last year.
“I think it’s going really well,” Hatfield said of teaming with LaRue. “We’ve had several good finishes this season as partners.”
Hatfield had a big-time finish at Dale Hollow, winning by almost 2 pounds.
Corbin Bernstein and Thomas James of Lipscomb Academy Fishing were second behind Hatfield with 16.71 pounds, followed by Rex Reagan and Max Moody of Pickett County in third (16.31 pounds) and Barrett Newton and Landon Krauss of Upperman in fourth (15.53 pounds).
Hatfield and Willis won a tournament on Dale Hollow Lake when they were freshmen in high school.
This time, Hatfield pre-fished Dale Hollow on the Wednesday before the tournament, and his five best fish weighed about 18 pounds.
“I kind of figured it would take quite a bit to win it,” Hatfield said.
And it did.
After a fog delay, Hatfield got to his first spot at about 9:30 a.m., and he had his limit about 15 minutes. He estimates catching “15 or 20 largemouth,” and one smallmouth, using a Damiki rig.
His big bass was a 4-pound largemouth.
“I caught it like in 45 feet of water,” Hatfield said. “They’ve kind of been lethargic and kind of slower about hitting stuff, but he hit it pretty good.”