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Kansan Brent Chapman climbs to ninth
Oklahoma’s Jeff Kriet Surges to Lead at Bassmaster Classic with Day 2’s Biggest Bag
 
February 20, 2010 - BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – A familiar trio danced around one another again at the top of the Bassmaster Classic leaderboard Saturday, but with a slight shuffle in the lineup. Jeff Kriet of Ardmore, Okla., who was in third place heading into Day 2, jumped to the top spot with the day’s biggest bag from Lay Lake: 15 pounds, 10 ounces for a two-day total of 32 pounds, 1 ounce.
 
Day 1 leader Kevin VanDam of Kalamazoo, Mich., the 2009 Toyota Tundra Bassmaster Angler of the Year, dropped to second place with 12 pounds, 7 ounces for 31-15 overall. Todd Faircloth of Jasper, Texas, second on Friday, dropped to third Saturday with 13-12 for 31-14 overall.
 
Only the top 25 contenders advanced to Day Three and will compete for the $500,000 top prize in the total Classic payout of $1.2 million. The top three anglers lead Sunday’s “Super Six,” a group that also includes 2003 Classic champ Mike Iaconelli of Pittsgrove, N.J., with 26 pounds, 12 ounces, home-state pro Russ Lane of Prattville, Ala., 25-11, and veteran Classic competitor Tommy Biffle of Wagoner, Okla., 24-9.
 
Immediately on their heels was 2004 Bassmaster Classic winner Takahiro Omori of Emory, Texas, in seventh place with 24-5 overall.
 
Pam Martin-Wells of Bainbridge, Ga., the 2009 Toyota Tundra Women’s Bassmaster Tour Angler of the Year, made history Saturday as the first woman to make the cut into the top 25. Martin-Wells is 21st with 16-12 overall.
 
“I’m extremely proud of myself if for no other reason than it’s been tough,” she said, “and I’ve been able to grind out a limit both days.”
 
Several in the field of 51 have been fishing Beeswax Creek, within eyeshot of the daily launch site, and the top three agreed that the traffic and competition has taken a toll on Lay Lake’s bass. The lake dropped 1 foot Saturday, which also contributed to Saturday’s tough conditions.
 
Kriet’s Day 2 total was nearly 2 pounds heavier than the second best total weight of the day, a 13-15 bag brought in by Matt Herren of Trussville, Ala. Herren is eighth with 23-6 overall.
 
Kriet was grateful that several competitors who wanted to fish the same water have instead let him have a stretch to himself.
 
“My fish were positioned a little different than they were yesterday, I may just have to try to move around and try to relocate them,” said Kriet, who was asked if he’d gamble on fishing somewhere other than his prime spot Sunday. “The ideal thing is to let those fish rest. If I thought I could leave and come back and nobody was there, heck yeah, I have three or four other places I’d love to hit.”
 
Faircloth added that other anglers waiting for a chance on a hot spot made it difficult to leave the most productive location he has found.
 
“There’s so many of us sharing the same water, it’s like Kriet said, if you let them rest for a little while, you can catch one or two if you go back,” he said. “But if somebody’s coming right behind, where you just went – the fish are just getting hammered. They’re not having time to settle down. It was kind of like a circus in there today.”
 
VanDam admitted that, right off the bat, the water level changed his game plan.
 
“The water falling, I think definitely hurt me,” said the two-time Classic winner, who is fishing shallower than Kriet and Faircloth. “Yesterday I culled a 15-pound limit and a couple of 13-pound limits to catch what I caught. I didn’t see any of those type of fish today, it was just a whole different world.”
 
VanDam said the lake has changed a good bit in the last few days, and that the weather conditions Sunday – warmer air temperatures, an approaching front and a forecast of afternoon rain – are going to make for a completely different kind of fishing day.
 
“When you have conditions like that, the fish are going to be more active,” he said “They’re going to chase baits better. High bright skies and no wind is not easy fishing – it’s part of the reason, I’m sure, it was tough today.”
 
Iaconelli is one of the few in the top 10 who hasn’t been fishing near the launch site. He’s in 3 to 10 feet of water and spending most of his time midlake, fishing hard spots in front of grass, a pattern he found in practice with a jig and a crankbait.
 
The 2006 AOY said he’s fishing a finesse bait – an old finesse bait that has largely been forgotten. It’s a bait he said he carries in his “panic box.” He added, however, that his strategy for Sunday will likely be different than anything he has tried through Days 1 and 2.
 
“I’m going to have fun, try to fish a perfect day,” Iaconelli said. “I’m going to start in a couple areas where I had success; I’m not going to die on it, though. Within an hour or two, if I don’t feel it, I’m gone. Most of my fish are coming pretty shallow. That surprises a lot of people – you’re finessing wintertime fish and you’re still in shallow water.
 
“I’ve got to keep the faith that there are 20-pound bags to be had out here. That’s what I need tomorrow to win, and it’s not out of the question.”
 
Other notable results on Day 2: 2008 Classic champ Alton Jones of Waco, Texas, had the big bass of the day at 5 pounds, 1 ounce, and finished just outside the cut at 27th with 14-1 overall. The defending Classic champ, Skeet Reese of Auburn, Calif., finished the Classic in 43rd with 5-0. Boyd Duckett of Demopolis, Ala., the home-state favorite and 2007 Classic winner at Lay Lake, finished 49th after two disappointing days that included engine failure on Day 1.
 
Sponsors of the 2010 Bassmaster Classic: Toyota Trucks, Berkley, Evan Williams Bourbon, Mercury, Humminbird, Minn Kota, Skeeter Boats, Yamaha Marine.
 
2010 Bassmaster Classic 02/19-02/21
Lay Lake, Birmingham  Ala.
(PRO Division) Standings Day 2
 
   Angler                   Hometown              No./lbs-oz  Pts   Total $$$
 
1.  Jeff Kriet             Ardmore, Okla.         10  32-01  300
  Day 1: 5   16-07    Day 2: 5   15-10  
2.  Kevin VanDam           Kalamazoo, Mich.       10  31-15  295
  Day 1: 5   19-08    Day 2: 5   12-07  
3.  Todd Faircloth         Jasper, Texas          10  31-14  290
  Day 1: 5   18-02    Day 2: 5   13-12  
4.  Michael Iaconelli      Pitts Grove, N.J.       9  26-12  285
  Day 1: 5   14-09    Day 2: 4   12-03  
5.  Russ Lane              Prattville, Ala.        9  25-11  280
  Day 1: 5   14-01    Day 2: 4   11-10  
6.  Tommy Biffle           Wagoner, Okla.         10  24-09  276
  Day 1: 5   14-03    Day 2: 5   10-06  
7.  Takahiro Omori         Emory, Texas            9  24-05  272
  Day 1: 5   15-07    Day 2: 4    8-14  
8.  Matt Herren            Trussville, Ala.       10  23-06  268
  Day 1: 5    9-07    Day 2: 5   13-15  
9.  Brent Chapman          Lake Quivira, Kan.     10  21-02  264
  Day 1: 5   13-00    Day 2: 5    8-02  
10. James Niggemeyer       Van, Texas             10  20-07  260
  Day 1: 5   13-03    Day 2: 5    7-04  
11. Bobby Lane             Lakeland, Fla.         10  20-06  257
  Day 1: 5    7-13    Day 2: 5   12-09  
12. Cliff Crochet          Pierre Part, La.       10  20-00  254
  Day 1: 5    9-05    Day 2: 5   10-11  
13. Billy McCaghren        Mayflower, Ark.         8  19-15  251
  Day 1: 5   15-04    Day 2: 3    4-11  
14. Kevin Wirth            Crestwood, Ky.         10  19-04  248
  Day 1: 5    8-09    Day 2: 5   10-11  
15. Cliff Pace             Petal, Miss.            6  18-09  245
  Day 1: 5   16-03    Day 2: 1    2-06  
16. Jeff Freeman           Max Meadows, Va.       10  18-05  243
  Day 1: 5    9-08    Day 2: 5    8-13  
17. Gerald Swindle         Warrior, Ala.          10  17-09  241
  Day 1: 5   10-08    Day 2: 5    7-01  
18. Kotaro Kiriyama        Moody, Ala.            10  17-06  239
  Day 1: 5   10-03    Day 2: 5    7-03  
19. Shaw Grigsby           Gainesville, Fla.       9  17-06  237
  Day 1: 4    6-15    Day 2: 5   10-07  
20. Mark Tucker            Kirkwood, Mo.           9  17-03  235
  Day 1: 5    9-15    Day 2: 4    7-04  
21. Pam Martin-Wells       Bainbridge, Ga.        10  16-12  233
  Day 1: 5    6-13    Day 2: 5    9-15  
22. Aaron Martens          Leeds, Ala.            10  16-04  231
  Day 1: 5    8-11    Day 2: 5    7-09  
23. Dean Rojas             Lake Havasu City, Ariz. 10  15-14  229
  Day 1: 5    6-09    Day 2: 5    9-05  
24. Stephen Browning       Hot Springs, Ark.      10  15-13  227
  Day 1: 5    8-15    Day 2: 5    6-14  
25. Jason Quinn            Lake Wylie, S.C.        6  15-09  225
  Day 1: 2    5-12    Day 2: 4    9-13  
26. Terry Scroggins        San Mateo, Fla.         7  14-13  223
  Day 1: 5   13-00    Day 2: 2    1-13  
27. Alton Jones            Waco, Texas             7  14-01  221
  Day 1: 5    6-12    Day 2: 2    7-05  
28. Frank Scalish          Cleveland Heights, Ohio 10  13-05  219
  Day 1: 5    7-02    Day 2: 5    6-03  
29. Mike McClelland        Bella Vista, Ark.       5  13-05  217
  Day 1: 2    5-09    Day 2: 3    7-12  
30. Bryan Schmidt          Olney, Texas            5  12-10  215
  Day 1: 2    6-02    Day 2: 3    6-08  
31. John Murray            Phoenix, Ariz.          7  12-05  213
  Day 1: 4    7-12    Day 2: 3    4-09  
32. Gary Klein             Weatherford, Texas      4  10-07  211
  Day 1: 1    2-10    Day 2: 3    7-13  
33. Randy Howell           Springville, Ala.       6  10-06  209
  Day 1: 5    8-15    Day 2: 1    1-07  
34. Byron Velvick          Del Rio, Texas          5  10-00  207
  Day 1: 5   10-00    Day 2: 0    0-00  
35. Kelly Jordon           Mineola, Texas          4   9-12  205
  Day 1: 1    2-09    Day 2: 3    7-03  
36. Terry Butcher          Talala, Okla.           4   9-07  203
  Day 1: 2    2-15    Day 2: 2    6-08  
37. Randy Phillips         Oxford, Mass.           8   9-01  201
  Day 1: 4    4-05    Day 2: 4    4-12  
38. Mark Menendez          Paducah, Ky.            6   8-07  199
  Day 1: 5    7-09    Day 2: 1    0-14  
39. Brent Long             Cornelius, N.C.         6   7-10  197
  Day 1: 5    6-08    Day 2: 1    1-02  
40. Don Hogue              Pasco, Wash.            2   7-01  195
  Day 1: 2    7-01    Day 2: 0    0-00  
41. Casey Ashley           Donalds, S.C.           6   6-11  193
  Day 1: 4    4-02    Day 2: 2    2-09  
42. Steve Kennedy          Auburn, Ala.            3   6-02  191
  Day 1: 2    2-10    Day 2: 1    3-08  
43. Skeet Reese            Auburn, Calif.          3   5-00  189
  Day 1: 3    5-00    Day 2: 0    0-00  
44. Jody Adkins            North Canton, Ohio      2   3-08  187
  Day 1: 0    0-00    Day 2: 2    3-08  
45. Greg Hackney           Gonzales, La.           1   3-05  185
  Day 1: 1    3-05    Day 2: 0    0-00  
46. Jami Fralick           Martin, S.D.            1   2-08  183
  Day 1: 1    2-08    Day 2: 0    0-00  
47. Scott Ashmore          Broken Arrow, Okla.     2   2-07  181
  Day 1: 1    1-07    Day 2: 1    1-00  
48. Kevin Short            Mayflower, Ark.         2   2-06  179
  Day 1: 2    2-06    Day 2: 0    0-00  
49. Boyd Duckett           Demopolis, Ala.         1   1-02  177
  Day 1: 1    1-02    Day 2: 0    0-00  
50. Denny Brauer           Camdenton, Mo.          0   0-00    0
  Day 1: 0    0-00    Day 2: 0    0-00  
50. Darrell West           Drasco, Ark.            0   0-00    0
  Day 1: 0    0-00    Day 2: 0    0-00  
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
 
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
Totals
Day   #Limits    #Fish      Weight
1       30       189       410-03
2       19       153       313-13
----------------------------------
         49       342       724-00

 

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