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By ALEC ETHEREDGE | Managing Editor

WETUMPKA – A Shelby County High School angler recently won a state championship as one member of a two-man team in the 2020-2021 Alabama Bass Federation High School State Championship Tournament.

Held on Lake Jordan in Wetumpka, Hall Hobbs of Shelby County High School joined Mountain Brook angler Jack Alexander to claim this year’s state championship thanks to a total score of 289.

The duo was part of a crowded field that fished the lake April 16-17 looking to bring home the highest two-day weigh-in, which they did thanks to a dominant second day on the lake.

Hobs and Alexander reeled in 12.82 pounds for the day-one weigh in, which put them slightly behind the eight ball after Brody Robison and Colton Cash of Sand Rock reeled in a total of 17.58 pounds on day one.

There were actually seven teams in front of the duo at the end of the first day of fishing, forcing them to need a strong end to the tournament on April 17.

And day two proved to be a more difficult challenge for most anglers. After 16 different teams were able to finish day one with double-digit weigh ins, the second day of competition saw just six teams finish with 10 pounds or more.

Luckily for Hobbs and Alexander, they were one of the six and not just that, they reeled in a total of 16.09 pounds, which was the second highest total for either day of the tournament. A big reason for that was reeling in the big fish of the day, weighing in at 4.37 pounds.

With the strong day, the anglers were able to overcome the deficit faced from day one to win with a total of 28.91 pounds between the two days. That beat out Ethan Meadows and Tucker Smith, who totaled 27.74 pounds to finish second.

Robison and Cash were also right on their heels with a total weight of 27.05 pounds after totaling a tournament-high 17.58 pounds on day one and 9.47 pounds on day two.

Chelsea anglers Peyton Harris and Braxton Hopper finished fourth with a total of 24.38 pounds after totaling 14.62 pounds on day one and 9.76 pounds on day two.

The Helena Bass Club saw Brandon Berry and Hunter Bright finish 13th in the standings after totaling 19.78 pounds behind a total of 9.67 on day one and 10.11 on day two.

From this event, 10 high school teams will be eligible to advance to the 2021 TBF SAF High School National Tournament on Lake Hartwell in Anderson, South Carolina June 29-July 3.