JEFFERSON CITY, Tenn. (Oct. 26, 2026) – The University of West Alabama duo of Cooper McDonald of Dahlonega, Georgia, and Hayden Seabolt of Dawsonville, Georgia, won the MLF Columbia PFG College Fishing Presented by Abu Garcia event on Cherokee Lake Friday with a five-bass limit weighing 16 pounds, 12 ounces. The victory earned the Tigers’ bass club $2,100 and a qualification into the 2027 MLF College Fishing National Championship.

Seabolt said the freshmen’s practice consisted mostly of 3-pound smallmouth, so they had a plan in place when the tournament rolled around.

“We started on a hole we found in practice and caught about 15 pounds,” McDonald said. “Then we ran around and upgraded a little here and there. That was about it.”

McDonald said the team targeted both largemouth and smallmouth on rock points with a worm and ran “from one end of the lake to the other” in pursuit of the win.

“With about 10 minutes left I got a feeling that we needed to stop at this one hole, and we stopped,” McDonald said. “Everything I had pictured in my head happened and we culled up. At that point I thought we might have a shot at winning.”

“There were two key fish during the tournament,” Seabolt said. “I threw in on a stump and caught a 12-inch smallmouth, and there was a fish following it. I pitched in on its head, and it was a 3-pound largemouth.

“Not long after that we went back down a stretch and Coop caught a 4-pound, 1-ounce smallmouth,” Seabolt went on to say. “We were definitely blessed and I’m super glad we got the win.”

The top 10 teams finished:

1st: University of West Alabama – Cooper McDonald, Dahlonega, Ga., and Hayden Seabolt, Dawsonville, Ga., five bass, 16-12, $2,100
2nd: Emmanuel University – Jackson Thomas, Cumming, Ga., five bass, 15-13, $1,000
3rd: Campbellsville University – Eli and Sam Scroggins, both of Owenton, Ky., five bass, 15-9, $700
4th: University of West Alabama – Cassius Olson, Montevallo, Ala., and Nolan Smith, Mesa, Ariz., five bass, 15-7, $600
5th: University of Pikeville – Cameron Gates, Oregon, Wis., and Nick Giompalo, Louisa, Ky., five bass, 15-1, $500
6th: Lander University – Tanner Moulton, Enfield, New Hampshire, and Roper Putnam, Martinez, Ga., five bass, 15-1
7th: Bryan College – Andrew Terry, Burns, Tenn., and Kole Weir, Magnolia, Texas, five bass, 15-0
8th: University of West Alabama –David Robinson, Vancleave, Miss., and Carson Yero, Montevallo, Fla., five bass, 14-14
9th: Carson-Newman University – Walker Larue, Alcoa, Tenn., and Joe Vaulton, Knoxville, Tenn., five bass, 14-9
10th: Carson-Newman University – Jackie Hatfield, Sweetwater, Tenn., and Hunter Owens, Knoxville, Tenn., five bass, 14-2

Complete results for the entire field, along with the full list of National Championship Qualifier teams can be found at MajorLeagueFishing.com.

The MLF Columbia PFG College Fishing Presented by Abu Garcia event on Cherokee Lake was hosted by Visit Jefferson County TN.

The 2026 MLF Columbia PFG College Fishing Presented by Abu Garcia season features college teams from across the country competing in six regular-season open tournaments, plus the Columbia PFG College Fishing Heavy Hitters all-star event. The top 15% of teams from each regular-season tournament advance to the 2027 Columbia PFG College Fishing Presented by Abu Garcia National Championship.

Proud sponsors of MLF Columbia PFG College Fishing Presented by Abu Garcia include: 7 Brew, Abu Garcia, B&W Trailer Hitches, Berkley, BUBBA, Columbia PFG, Epic Baits, Mercury, MillerTech, OFF! Deep Woods Repellants, Onyx, O’Reilly Auto Parts, Phoenix Boats, PiranhO2, Power-Pole, Precision Sonar, Suzuki Marine, Tackle Warehouse, T-H Marine, Toyota, VOSKER and YETI.

For complete details and updated tournament information, visit MajorLeagueFishing.com. For regular College Fishing updates, photos, tournament news and more, follow MLF5’s social media outlets at Facebook, Instagram  and YouTube.

About Major League Fishing
Major League Fishing (MLF) is the world’s largest tournament-fishing organization, producing more than 250 events annually at some of the most prestigious fisheries in the world, while broadcasting to America’s living rooms on CBS, Discovery, Outdoor Channel, VICE, World Fishing Network, RFD-TV, Game & Fish TV and Rumble, and on demand on MyOutdoorTV (MOTV). Headquartered in Benton, Kentucky, the MLF roster of bass anglers includes the world’s top pros and more than 30,000 competitors in all 50 states and 20 countries. Since its founding in 2011, MLF has advanced the sport of competitive fishing through its premier television broadcasts and livestreams and is dedicated to improving the quality of life for bass through research, education, fisheries enhancement and fish care.