2008 State Casting Kids Tournament

2008 State Casting Kids Tournament was held on March 9, 2008 during the Sports Show at the Qwest Center. The 7-10 year old age group was won by Jordon Schaefer with a perfect score of 150 and the 11-14 year old age group was won by Brad Schaefer with a score of 130 points plus winning the castoff with 30 points. Both Jordon and Brad are children of Mr. and Mrs. Randy Schaefer of Omaha, Nebraska.

2007 State Casting Kids Finals

"The Boat Dock in Grand Island once again served as the site for our State Casting Kids Championship. Doug and his staff go to great lengths to make sure this is a first rate experience for the competitors by clearing his shop for us to hold this event. Although the number of competitors was down compared to recent years the enthusiasm by the kids for the events is still high. This was the first year that I can remember that we have been able to determine our champions without the dramatic cast-off. In the 7-10 age group Bayley Shuman was the winner with a score of 110. Finishing right behind Bayley was Jordan Schaefer and Joshua Coffman who both scored 90. In the 11-14 age group Shea Baumgartner reversed her fortunes from the previous weekend and scored 130 . She edged out Brad Schaefer and Carleigh Schuman who both scored 120. Jake Schaefer was right in the mix with 110. Congrats to both Bayley and Shea for their win at the state championship they represented Nebraska and BFNC championship at Lake Toho in Kissimmee, Fla. As of this writing I am pleased to report that Shea Baumgartner qualified to move on and will be representing us at Classic this coming February in South Carolina."

(Story and photos from the January 2008 edition of the Nebraska Bass Angler)

2007 State Jr. Championship
By Dave Greer

The first ever Nebraska Jr. State Championship was held on Sunday October 7, 2007. The event was hosted by the Fremont Anglers Association at their private lake located just west of Fremont, NE. This turned out to be an excellent location as due to the private nature of the lake, none of the competitors had previously fished there.

Competing in the event were the champions of the Jr. Bass Clubs of Nebraska. Representing Lincoln County Jr. Bassmasters in the 11-14 age group was Shea Baumgartner and Jacob Pyzer represented Lincoln County in the 15-18 age group. Representing the Young Rods Bass Club in the 11-14 age group was Brad Schaefer.

The sponsoring clubs are Lincoln County Bassmasters and River City Bass Club respectively. The day dawned with an overcast and the threat of showers as the competitors and their boat captains oozed off from the ramp. Although the rain held off for most of the event we did experience a significant shower about half way thru the day. The rapidly changing weather patterns may have put a damper on the bite but in the end each competitor ended up bringing two fish each to the scales. Since Jacob had a walk thru this year , the real drama was between Shea and Brad. I am not sure who was more nervous the kids or Julie Baumgartner and Randy Schaefer as they rode along with their kids but were not allowed to offer any advice as to what to do. In the end, Brad Schaefer ended up edging Shea for the right to represent Nebraska at the National 2008 Jr. World Championships. Brad reported catching his fish on topwater and Senkos. Jacob caught his keepers on a spinnerbait and tube. Shea caught her fish on topwater. After the weigh-in, the competitors ,their families, and volunteers were treated to a hot dog roast hosted by the Fremont Bassmasters. The Nebraska Bass Federation would like to recognize the following who helped may this event a success. The Fremont Anglers Association, Fremont Bassmasters, Boat Captains: Rick Riley Sr. , Rick Riley Jr. and Dave Greer (all from River City Bass Club). A special thank you to Sean Smith of Twin Rivers Bass Club who made the initial contact and did much of the legwork to secure the location.

Good luck and tight lines to Brad and Jacob at the upcoming Jr. World Championships.

(Story and photos from the January 2008 edition of the Nebraska Bass Angler)