Cochrane’s Rothering Takes Co-angler Title

LA CROSSE, Wis. (Sept. 10, 2018) – Local boater T.J. Maglio of La Crosse, Wisconsin, won the T-H Marine FLW Bass Fishing League (BFL) Great Lakes Division tournament on the Mississippi River Sunday with a two-day cumulative catch of 10 bass weighing 31 pounds, 3 ounces. For his win, Maglio earned $6,295.

“I’ve been looking forward to this Super Tournament all year. This tournament is one of my favorites because it’s in the fall and provides a bigger payout,” said Maglio, who earned his first win in FLW competition. “The river rose about a foot from takeoff on Saturday to weigh-in on Sunday – it definitely made it tougher.”

Maglio stated that the water he was fishing in Pool No. 8 managed to stay clear during the two days of competition. He said he caught all of his fish on moving baits – ChatterBaits, Rat-L-Traps and swimjigs, all in white or shad colors.

“In my rotation I would hit spots two or three times a day with different bait presentations,” said Maglio. “I caught fish from three different areas – grass, current seams and rocks. The largest shad were in the areas I was fishing and that is what the bass were feeding on.”

The top 10 boaters finished the tournament in:

1^st:          T.J. Maglio, La Crosse, Wis., 10 bass, 31-3, $6,295

2^nd:         Cade Laufenberg, Goodview, Minn., 10 bass, 30-6, $3,348

3^rd:          Curtis Samo, Rochelle, Ill., 10 bass, 29-5, $2,096

4^th:          Mike Brueggen, La Crosse, Wis., 10 bass, 29-4, $1,469

5^th:          Jeff Ritter, Prairie du Chien, Wis., 10 bass, 28-1, $1,359

6^th:          Yamamoto Baits pro Tom Monsoor, La Crosse, Wis., 10 bass, 28-0, $1,154

7^th:          Devin Teigen, Eau Claire, Wis., 10 bass, 27-7, $1,049

8^th:          Mark Myers, Cedar Falls, Iowa, 10 bass, 27-4, $944

9^th:          Kyle Von Ruden, Stoddard, Wis., 10 bass, 26-14, $839

10^th:        John Engler, Vinton, Iowa, 10 bass, 26-10, $734

Complete results can be found at FLWFishing.com.

Kevin Johnson of Sparta, Wisconsin, caught a bass weighing 4 pounds, 13 ounces – the heaviest of the event in the Boater Division. The catch earned him the Boater Big Bass award of $877.

Tom Rothering of Cochrane, Wisconsin, caught a two-day total of nine bass weighing 24 pounds, 4 ounces, to win the Co-angler Division and $3,148.

The top 10 co-anglers were:

1^st:          Tom Rothering, Cochrane, Wis., nine bass, 24-4, $3,148

2^nd:         Nathan Huss, Elkhart Lake, Wis., eight bass, 22-14, $1,574

3^rd:          Pelli Lee, La Crosse, Wis., nine bass, 21-8, $1,050

4^th:          Jason Swanson, Waterloo, Iowa, 10 bass, 20-8, $934

5^th:          Josh Mohn, Lansing, Iowa, nine bass, 20-5, $630

6^th:          Matt Knox, Metamora, Ill., eight bass, 19-15, $577

7^th:          Alan Bernicky, Joliet, Ill., seven bass, 18-1, $575

8^th:          Rick Ragner, La Crosse, Wis., six bass, 17-1, $472

9^th:          Arden Damberg, Wheatland, Iowa, seven bass, 15-15, $420

10^th:        Kristian Dus, Chicago, Ill., seven bass, 15-11, $367

Andrew Hegerty of Colgate, Wisconsin, caught the largest bass in the Co-angler Division – a fish weighing 4 pounds, 4 ounces – and earned the Co-angler Big Bass award of $439.

The 2018 T-H Marine FLW Bass Fishing League (BFL) Great Lakes Division finale on the Mississippi River at La Crosse was hosted by the La Crosse County Convention and Visitors Bureau.

The top 45 boaters and co-anglers in the region based on point standings, along with the five winners in each qualifying event, will be entered in the Oct. 25-27 BFL Regional Championship Lake of the Ozarks in Osage Beach, Missouri. Boaters will compete for a top award of a Ranger Z518C with a 200-horsepower Evinrude outboard and $20,000, while co-anglers will fish for a new Ranger Z518C with a 200-horsepower Evinrude outboard.

The 2018 BFL is a 24-division circuit devoted to weekend anglers, with 128 tournaments throughout the season, five qualifying events in each division. The top 45 boaters and co-anglers from each division, along with the five winners of the qualifying events, will advance to one of six regional tournaments where they are competing to finish in the top six, which then qualifies them for one of the longest-running championships in all of competitive bass fishing – the BFL All-American. The 2019 BFL All-American will take place May 30-June 1 on the Potomac River in Marbury, Maryland.

For complete details and updated information visit FLWFishing.com. For regular updates, photos, tournament news and more, follow the T-H Marine FLW Bass Fishing League on FLW’s social media outlets at Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube and Snapchat.