High school anglers from across Tennessee, including several from Greene County, recently took to the waters of Dale Hollow Lake to compete in the state championship, all hoping to land the “big one” and make a splash in the standings. Both South Greene and Chuckey-Doak High Schools had teams qualify for the two-day event, representing their county with pride.
Alcoa’s Walker LaRue and Jackie Hatfield stole the spotlight, dominating the field by catching five fish each day and finishing with a tournament-best total of 34.91 pounds.
South Greene sophomores Noah Wright and Shane Williams entered the tournament with high expectations. “You come into every tournament hoping to excel,” said Williams. “Based on our practices leading up to the event, I expected we’d catch our limit each day.” The duo brought in six fish over two days, totaling 12.88 pounds, which earned them a 70th-place finish.
Another Rebel team, Christian Darnell and Jaxen Taylor, made their first appearance at the state level. Though they managed just one fish on the first day, they bounced back on day two to add three more, finishing in 91st place with 9.64 pounds. Taylor reflected, “The competition was a really fun experience. Making it to state gave me a great sense of what to expect next year and how we can improve.”
Chuckey Doak’s brother team of Brodie and Kobie Gibson ended the weekend with a total of 7 fish weighing 10.48 pounds and placing them in 83rd position. When asked about the experience of fishing with his brother, Brodie replied, “It’s a cool experience to go through something so big with my own blood and watch him succeed so well”.
All six Greene County anglers expressed gratitude to their teammates, families, and especially their sponsors for the continued support throughout the season.
Up next will be the Regional competition at Douglas Lake on Saturday, June 7. The Rebels had three teams qualify, including Wright & Williams, Taylor & Darnell, along with Kasen Carr & Grayson Ellenburg.
