Clarke Central High School junior Will Forrester (left), alumnus Zach Donegan (middle) and tournament fishermen Darren Taylor (right), pose with the fish they caught at the Georgia High School Fishing Tournament at Lake Lanier on March 18. CCHS Bass Fishing team sponsor Christian Barner is confident that the team will perform better this year than in previous years with the help of Darren Taylor. “He is a captain for us, he’s a tournament fisherman himself so he competes in tournaments,” Barner said. “On weekends when he’s not competing in tournaments, he will captain for us which means he brings his boat and he essentially acts as a guide, mentor and coach for students around the boat with him throughout the tournament.” Photo courtesy of Christian Barner
The Clarke Central High School Bass Fishing season began on Sept. 15 with the team going to Lake Lanier for the early bird opening– a tournament hosted by the Georgia High School Fishing association.
As a way of launching the season, the Clarke Central High School Bass Fishing team competed on Sept. 15 in the Early Bird Opening– a tournament hosted by the Georgia High School Fishing– at Lake Lanier under the leadership of Bass Fishing sponsor Christian Barne.
“Essentially, you’re fishing from first light which is about seven o’clock in the morning until three o’clock,” Barner said. “You’re specifically fishing for black bass, and (there are) different types of (fish). Mostly on these lakes, we’re looking at largemouth or spotted bass, and you’re bringing your best five fish your heaviest fish.”
According to CCHS junior Will Forrester, competition has grown over the years with competing schools having more members and resources.
“At these tournaments, we go there, I think our biggest tournament last year was like 130 boats in each boat has two anglers from different schools on it,” Forrester said. “For example, Buford has like 30 kids on their bass fishing team, which is boats. So I mean, you’re really competing with schools all over the state.”
As the program matures, Barner’s team has faced challenges.
“Last year was a bit of a transition year. We had two of our students who founded the team (graduate),” Barner said. “So last year we kind of lost a lot of our leadership with the team, and we did gain some new members.”
Despite the loss of old members, Barner is hopeful for the upcoming season.
“Scott Derek Taylor, who’s a local tournament fisherman, he’ll be captaining (with Forrester and Jackson Forrester, a CCHS sophomore), and that’s going to be a really strong team this year,” Barner said. “We got some really good kids coming back as well as a lot of newer students as well.”
