Port Charlotte’s LaPorta Grabs Co-angler Title

CLEWISTON, Fla. (Sept. 25, 2017) – Jessie Mizell of Sarasota, Florida, won the T-H Marine FLW Bass Fishing League (BFL) Gator Division tournament on Lake Okeechobee Sunday with a two-day cumulative catch of 10 bass weighing 42 pounds, 12 ounces. For his win, Mizell earned $5,848.

According to post-tournament reports, Mizell targeted schooling fish in the northeast area of the lake using a 6th Sense crankbait.

The top 10 boaters finished the tournament in:

1^st:          Jessie Mizell, Sarasota, Fla., 10 bass, 42-12, $5,848

2^nd:         Richard Sasina, Port St. Lucie, Fla., 10 bass,   37-9, $2,824

3^rd:          Donald Locke, Loxahatchee, Fla., 10 bass, 36-11, $2,182

4^th:          Mason Boylan, Melbourne, Fla., 10 bass, 34-4, $1,318

5^th:          Cody Wright, Okeechobee, Fla., 10 bass, 34-3, $1,130

6^th:          Matthew Wieteha, Miami, Fla., 10 bass, 33-1, $1,135

7^th:          Joey Roberts, Jensen Beach, Fla., 10 bass, 33-1, $941

8^th:          William Schmitt, West Palm Beach, Fla., 10 bass, 30-12, $847

9^th:          Jason Pike, Greenacres, Fla., 10 bass, 30-12, $753

10^th:        Steve Broughton, Palm Beach Gardens, Fla., 10 bass, 30-3, $659

Complete results can be found at FLWFishing.com.

Dustin Royer of Davie, Florida, caught a 7-pound, 8-ounce bass – the heaviest of the event in the Boater Division – and earned the Boater Big Bass award of $750.

Mike LaPorta of Port Charlotte, Florida, caught a two-day total of 10 bass weighing 38 pounds, 4 ounces, to win the Co-angler Division and $2,824.

The top 10 co-anglers were:

1^st:          Mike LaPorta, Port Charlotte, Fla., 10 bass, 38-4, $2,824

2^nd:         Richard Mongiovi, Indian Lake Estates, Fla., 10 bass, 33-8, $1,412

3^rd:          Rusty Lacy, Plantation, Fla., 10 bass, 30-5, $940

4^th:          James Tyler, Deltona, Fla., 10 bass, 26-4, $659

5^th:          Nik Kayler, Apopka, Fla., 10 bass, 25-13, $565

6^th:          Garrett Colbert, Orlando, Fla., 10 bass, 25-12, $518

7^th:          Junior Iriban, Lantana, Fla., 10 bass, 25-4, $671

8^th:          James Ryba, West Palm Beach, Fla., 10 bass, 23-15, $424

9^th:          Bill Wight, Punta Gorda, Fla., 10 bass, 22-15, $377

10^th:        Ernie Thompson, Anthony, Fla., 10 bass, 22-13, $379

Delfin Pernas of Miami, Florida, caught the largest bass in the Co-angler Division – a fish weighing 6 pounds, 1 ounce – and earned the Co-angler Big Bass award of $375.

The T-H Marine FLW BFL Gator Division tournament on Lake Okeechobee was hosted by Roland & Mary Ann Martin’s Marina & Resort.

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. 19-21 BFL Regional Championship on Lake Lanier in Gainesville, Georgia. 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 2017 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 2018 All-American will be held on Cross Lake in Shreveport, Louisiana, May 31-June 2 and is hosted by the Shreveport-Bossier City Sports Commission and the Red River Waterway Commission. Top performers in the BFL can move up to the Costa FLW Series or even the FLW Tour.

For regular updates, photos, tournament news and more, follow the BFL on Facebook at Facebook.com/FLWFishing and on Twitter at Twitter.com/FLWFishing.