Monstrous Sack Puts Lane Up By 9 Pounds

By BassFan Staff

The good news for the other 49 remaining anglers at the St. Johns River Bassmaster Elite Series is that Chris Lane is highly unlikely to keep doubling his previous day's haul. Accomplishing that would require a 15-pound average – per fish – on day 3.

Lane weighed a bulging 37-09 bag on day 2 that catapulted him from 15th place to the lead, with a big gap between him and everybody else. He's not sight-fishing, but still managed to compile a stringer that contained a bruiser just shy of 10 pounds, an almost-9-pounder and a trio of solid 6s.

With a 56-04 total, he's nearly 9 pounds up on Randy Howell, the reigning Bassmaster Classic champion and day-1 leader. Howell caught 20-02 today to give him a 47-05 aggregate.

The hot start to Justin Lucas' Elite Series career continued as he bagged 24-15 for a 3rd-place total of 44-11. The rejuvenated Mark Davis sacked sacked 26-07 to gain 13 places and settle into 4th with 44-10.

Veteran Paul Elias, who's sharing an area with Davis, completed the Top 5 with a 24-14 stringer for a 44-03 total.

Here's the breakdown of the Top 12 heading into the weekend, with deficit margins from the leader in red numbers:

1. Chris Lane: 56-04
2. Randy Howell: 47-05 (8-14)
3. Justin Lucas: 44-11 (11-09)
4. Mark Davis: 44-10 (11-10)
5. Paul Elias: 44-03 (12-01)
6. Greg Hackney: 44-02 (12-02)
7. Keith Combs: 42-14 (13-06)
8. Alton Jones: 39-12 (14-08)
9. Mike Kernan: 39-00 (17-04)
10. Davy Hite: 38-08 (17-12)
11. Dean Rojas: 37-06 (18-14)
12. Takahiro Omori: 37-03 (19-01)

Kevin VanDam failed to make the 50-cut for the first time in 30 Elite Series events dating back nearly 3 calendar years. He had a better day today (14-14 compared to just 9-08 on day 1), but his 24-06 total left him in 70th place.

It's KVD's lowest final placement in an Elite event he actually fished – he was disqualified before the start of a derby at Santee Cooper in 2006 and was saddled with a 103rd-place finish.

Local favorite Terry Scroggins was the last angler into the cut with just over half of Lane's weight. Joining VanDam on the list of those who failed to advance included Edwin Evers (the 2011 winner at the St. Johns), Jason Christie, Brent Chapman, Mike Iaconelli and Skeet Reese.

Combs made the biggest upward move with a 28-02 stringer that was second-biggest of the day. On the flip side of that, John Murray fell from 8th to 41st with a 9-07 bag.

Conditions for the sight-fishermen should be favorable again for most of day 3. Scattered thunderstorms are in the forecast, but might not arrive until all or most of the session is in the books.

The field will be reduced to 12 after the day-3 weigh-in, with the winner determined Sunday based on highest cumulative weight.

Lane not Looking

> Day 2: 5, 37-09 (10, 56-04)

The average fish that Lane brought to the scale on day 1 weighed 3 3/4 pounds. Today's average was 7 1/2 as he put together the biggest stringer of his life – competitive or recreational.

"I'm just going fishing and having fun and really enjoying myself," said the Florida native who now resides on the shores of Alabama's Lake Guntersville. "I just had a great time out there. I'm catching them the way I like to catch them in Florida.

He's flipping and pitching to lily pads in about 2 1/2 feet of water and has completely avoided the crowded western shore of Lake George, where many of the sight gurus are doing their thing. He hasn't looked at a single fish he's caught thus far.

He made no effort to conserve fish for the weekend.

"When they're biting like that, you've got to catch them when you can," he said. "Today was the day to bust a giant bag and I didn't want to let up.

"I'm thinking tomorrow I'm going to go out and do the same things I've done the last 2 days. What I catch might weigh 10 pounds, or they might weigh 40. All I know is today was just a great day. It was a true blessing."

2nd: Howell Solid Again

> Day 2: 5, 20-02 (10, 47-05)

Howell, who is bed-fishing went from having a lead of more than 3 pounds to facing a deficit of 9, but it certainly wasn't because he had a lousy day.

"I'm happy with what I got out of the area I was in," he said. "I didn't have as many bites today – there didn't seem to be any new fish around and there were a lot more boats. Guys were picking off one here and one there and they got a lot of the ones I was hoping to be able to catch, but that's Florida flats fishing. You just go everywhere you can trying to find more fish."

His bag was headed up by a 7-14. He's hoping that some similar specimens will come to the spawning grounds for tomorrow.

"I'll expand my area. There will be fewer boats and the guys not being there who didn't make the cut will give me more room. Also, maybe some of the fish that are sitting out there will move up with few boats on top of them.

"With what Chris did, I'm going to have to some big ones, for sure, to have a shot. I know fish are still pulling up all around and I've got several areas I haven't been to yet where I know they spawn – they just weren't there yet in practice."

3rd: Late Rally by Lucas

> Day 2: 5, 24-15 (10, 44-11)

Lucas, the 10th-place finisher last week at Lake Seminole, was behind a big 8-ball at mid-afternoon today.

"I only had about 6 pounds, and then at 2:30 I came across a honey hole of sight-fish," he said. "Everything happened in about 45 minutes and I had the place all to myself."

That's good, because it wasn't a very big place to begin with.

"It was maybe three times the size of my boat. I caught all that weight, plus several other keepers."

His biggest fish was slightly north of 10 pounds and it came on his final toss of the day. His weight would've been 2 pounds heavier if not for a culling infraction – he had six fish in the box at one point.

"Everything was happening so fast and I was just so excited to be catching big ones. I weigh all my fish and I always keep track. It's the first culling penalty I've ever had in my life."

4th: Another Good Day for Davis

> Day 2: 5, 26-07 (10, 44-10)

Davis, the three-time Angler of the Year who finished 3rd at Seminole, is back among the leaders again.

"It was another pretty good day," he said. "I'm not sight-fishing – I'm just casting. I'm in George and I'm not fishing in the big crowd, but I am fishing shallow.

He has some company in that area, including Elias. He would've had an even bigger sack had he not last an 8-pounder right at the boat.

He'll go with the same gameplan on day 3.

"I'm in a good area," he said. "How I do will depend on whether more big bass move up."

41st: Bad Call by Murray

> Day 2: 5, 9-07 (10, 30-04)

Murray plummeted 33 places in the standings with a stringer that was less than half the weight of his day-1 catch.

"I didn't go back to the crowd, I went to another area," he said. "Guys caught them in the area I went to, but I just didn't. I think I fished a little too fast to catch the really big ones."

He's employing a combination of casting and sight-fishing.

"I saw two decent fish today, but they never locked up and they eventually swam off. I'll probably go back to where I was today, but I'll work a lot slower.

"There's been some big stringers where I went today, but it's a lot dingier area and you can't see as well. If the weather changes and it's cloudy or rainy, maybe they'll bite the moving baits a little better."

Notable

> Day 2 stats – 108 anglers, 99 limits (9 fewer than day 1), 2 fours, 3 threes, 3 ones, 1 zero (1 more than day 1).

Weather Forecast

> Sat., March 22 – Scattered T-Storms - 81°/56°
- Wind: From the SSW at 7 mph

> Sun., March 23 – Partly Cloudy - 81°/59°
- Wind: From the WSW at 13 mph

Day 2 Standings

1. Chris Lane -- Guntersville, AL -- 10, 56-04 -- 100
Day 1: 5, 18-11 -- Day 2: 5, 37-09

2. Randy Howell -- Springville, AL -- 10, 47-05 -- 99
Day 1: 5, 27-03 -- Day 2: 5, 20-02

3. Justin Lucas -- Guntersville, AL -- 10, 44-11 -- 98
Day 1: 5, 19-12 -- Day 2: 5, 24-15

4. Mark Davis -- Mount Ida, AR -- 10, 44-10 -- 97
Day 1: 5, 18-03 -- Day 2: 5, 26-07

5. Paul Elias -- Laurel, MS -- 10, 44-03 -- 96
Day 1: 5, 19-05 -- Day 2: 5, 24-14

6. Greg Hackney -- Gonzales, LA -- 10, 44-02 -- 95
Day 1: 5, 20-02 -- Day 2: 5, 24-00

7. Keith Combs -- Huntington, TX -- 10, 42-14 -- 94
Day 1: 5, 14-12 -- Day 2: 5, 28-02

8. Alton Jones -- Lorena, TX -- 10, 39-12 -- 93
Day 1: 5, 18-01 -- Day 2: 5, 21-11

9. Mike Kernan -- Wylie, TX -- 10, 39-00 -- 92
Day 1: 5, 20-14 -- Day 2: 5, 18-02

10. Davy Hite -- Ninety Six, SC -- 10, 38-08 -- 91
Day 1: 5, 24-01 -- Day 2: 5, 14-07

11. Dean Rojas -- Lake Havasu City, AZ -- 10, 37-06 -- 90
Day 1: 5, 17-15 -- Day 2: 5, 19-07

12. Takahiro Omori -- Emory, TX -- 10, 37-03 -- 89
Day 1: 5, 22-01 -- Day 2: 5, 15-02

13. Jared Miller -- Norman, OK -- 10, 35-12 -- 88
Day 1: 5, 14-11 -- Day 2: 5, 21-01

14. Bobby Lane -- Lakeland, FL -- 10, 34-13 -- 87
Day 1: 5, 14-13 -- Day 2: 5, 20-00

15. Marty Robinson -- Lyman, SC -- 10, 34-11 -- 86
Day 1: 5, 24-01 -- Day 2: 5, 10-10

16. Jason Williamson -- Aiken, SC -- 10, 34-09 -- 85
Day 1: 5, 17-14 -- Day 2: 5, 16-11

17. David Walker -- Sevierville, TN -- 10, 34-08 -- 84
Day 1: 5, 14-07 -- Day 2: 5, 20-01

18. Russ Lane -- Prattville, AL -- 10, 34-08 -- 83
Day 1: 5, 18-15 -- Day 2: 5, 15-09

19. Matt Herren -- Trussville, AL -- 10, 34-05 -- 82
Day 1: 5, 16-03 -- Day 2: 5, 18-02

20. Todd Faircloth -- Jasper, TX -- 10, 33-13 -- 81
Day 1: 5, 12-11 -- Day 2: 5, 21-02

21. Randall Tharp -- Port Saint Joe, FL -- 10, 33-12 -- 80
Day 1: 5, 18-02 -- Day 2: 5, 15-10

22. Gerald Swindle -- Warrior, AL -- 10, 33-06 -- 79
Day 1: 5, 11-07 -- Day 2: 5, 21-15

23. Ott DeFoe -- Knoxville, TN -- 10, 33-04 -- 78
Day 1: 5, 12-10 -- Day 2: 5, 20-10

24. Tim Horton -- Muscle Shoals, AL -- 10, 33-02 -- 77
Day 1: 5, 17-11 -- Day 2: 5, 15-07

25. Jacob Powroznik -- Port Haywood, VA -- 10, 32-14 -- 76
Day 1: 5, 15-01 -- Day 2: 5, 17-13

26. Mike McClelland -- Bella Vista, AR -- 10, 32-11 -- 75
Day 1: 5, 14-01 -- Day 2: 5, 18-10

27. David Mullins -- Mt Carmel, TN -- 10, 32-08 -- 74
Day 1: 5, 12-03 -- Day 2: 5, 20-05

28. Andy Montgomery -- Blacksburg, SC -- 10, 32-07 -- 73
Day 1: 5, 22-06 -- Day 2: 5, 10-01

29. Steve Kennedy -- Auburn, AL -- 10, 32-04 -- 72
Day 1: 5, 21-06 -- Day 2: 5, 10-14

30. Pete Ponds -- Madison, MS -- 10, 31-14 -- 71
Day 1: 5, 10-07 -- Day 2: 5, 21-07

31. Casey Ashley -- Donalds, SC -- 10, 31-09 -- 70
Day 1: 5, 20-09 -- Day 2: 5, 11-00

32. Aaron Martens -- Leeds, AL -- 10, 31-07 -- 69
Day 1: 5, 16-15 -- Day 2: 5, 14-08

33. James Niggemeyer -- Van, TX -- 10, 31-04 -- 68
Day 1: 5, 20-05 -- Day 2: 5, 10-15

34. Grant Goldbeck -- Boerne, TX -- 10, 31-01 -- 67
Day 1: 5, 16-02 -- Day 2: 5, 14-15

35. Jamie Horton -- Centerville, AL -- 10, 30-10 -- 66
Day 1: 5, 17-09 -- Day 2: 5, 13-01

36. Kenyon Hill -- Norman, OK -- 10, 30-10 -- 65
Day 1: 5, 15-06 -- Day 2: 5, 15-04

37. Cliff Crochet -- Pierre Part, LA -- 9, 30-08 -- 64
Day 1: 4, 08-05 -- Day 2: 5, 22-03

38. Casey Scanlon -- Shawnee Mission, KS -- 10, 30-08 -- 63
Day 1: 5, 14-09 -- Day 2: 5, 15-15

39. Scott Rook -- Little Rock, AR -- 10, 30-06 -- 62
Day 1: 5, 16-10 -- Day 2: 5, 13-12

40. Fred Roumbanis -- Bixby, OK -- 10, 30-05 -- 61
Day 1: 5, 09-10 -- Day 2: 5, 20-11

41. John Murray -- Phoenix, AZ -- 10, 30-04 -- 60
Day 1: 5, 20-13 -- Day 2: 5, 09-07

42. Bradley Roy -- Lancaster, KY -- 10, 30-04 -- 59
Day 1: 5, 12-04 -- Day 2: 5, 18-00

43. John Crews Jr -- Salem, VA -- 10, 30-03 -- 58
Day 1: 5, 13-06 -- Day 2: 5, 16-13

44. Brett Hite -- Phoenix, AZ -- 10, 30-01 -- 57
Day 1: 5, 13-13 -- Day 2: 5, 16-04

45. Rick Morris -- Lake Gaston, VA -- 10, 30-00 -- 56
Day 1: 5, 14-06 -- Day 2: 5, 15-10

46. Chad Morgenthaler -- Coulterville, IL -- 10, 29-04 -- 55
Day 1: 5, 14-03 -- Day 2: 5, 15-01

47. Jared Lintner -- Arroyo Grande, CA -- 10, 29-03 -- 54
Day 1: 5, 12-15 -- Day 2: 5, 16-04

48. Nate Wellman -- Newaygo, MI -- 10, 29-00 -- 53
Day 1: 5, 11-11 -- Day 2: 5, 17-05

49. Jeff Kriet -- Ardmore, OK -- 10, 28-14 -- 52
Day 1: 5, 14-11 -- Day 2: 5, 14-03

50. Terry Scroggins -- San Mateo, FL -- 10, 28-14 -- 51
Day 1: 5, 14-05 -- Day 2: 5, 14-09

The following anglers did not make the cut and will not fish on day 3.

51. Edwin Evers -- Talala, OK -- 10, 28-07 -- 50
Day 1: 5, 10-14 -- Day 2: 5, 17-09

52. J Todd Tucker -- Moultrie, GA -- 10, 28-04 -- 49
Day 1: 5, 12-05 -- Day 2: 5, 15-15

53. Jason Christie -- Park Hill, OK -- 9, 28-01 -- 48
Day 1: 4, 08-12 -- Day 2: 5, 19-05

54. Josh Bertrand -- Gilbert, AZ -- 9, 27-15 -- 47
Day 1: 4, 11-15 -- Day 2: 5, 16-00

55. Boo Woods -- Oneida, KY -- 10, 27-13 -- 46
Day 1: 5, 09-13 -- Day 2: 5, 18-00

56. Cliff Prince -- Palatka, FL -- 10, 27-11 -- 45
Day 1: 5, 12-08 -- Day 2: 5, 15-03

57. Brent Chapman -- Lake Quivira, KS -- 10, 27-09 -- 44
Day 1: 5, 16-12 -- Day 2: 5, 10-13

58. Glenn Browne -- Ocala, FL -- 10, 27-07 -- 43
Day 1: 5, 15-04 -- Day 2: 5, 12-03

59. Hank Cherry Jr -- Maiden, NC -- 10, 27-06 -- 42
Day 1: 5, 17-02 -- Day 2: 5, 10-04

60. Scott Ashmore -- Broken Arrow, OK -- 10, 27-00 -- 41
Day 1: 5, 13-14 -- Day 2: 5, 13-02

61. Derek Remitz -- Grant, AL -- 10, 26-15 -- 40
Day 1: 5, 14-11 -- Day 2: 5, 12-04

62. Matt Reed -- Madisonville, TX -- 10, 26-11 -- 39
Day 1: 5, 18-09 -- Day 2: 5, 08-02

63. Dennis Tietje -- Roanoke, LA -- 10, 26-11 -- 38
Day 1: 5, 09-05 -- Day 2: 5, 17-06

64. Michael Iaconelli -- Pitts Grove, NJ -- 10, 26-09 -- 37
Day 1: 5, 08-01 -- Day 2: 5, 18-08

65. Rick Clunn -- Ava, MO -- 10, 25-08 -- 36
Day 1: 5, 10-09 -- Day 2: 5, 14-15

66. Bernie Schultz -- Gainesville, FL -- 10, 25-08 -- 35
Day 1: 5, 11-14 -- Day 2: 5, 13-10

67. Tommy Biffle -- Wagoner, OK -- 10, 25-04 -- 34
Day 1: 5, 11-06 -- Day 2: 5, 13-14

68. Zell Rowland -- Montgomery, TX -- 10, 25-02 -- 33
Day 1: 5, 17-00 -- Day 2: 5, 08-02

69. Brandon Lester -- Fayetteville, TN -- 10, 24-14 -- 32
Day 1: 5, 10-05 -- Day 2: 5, 14-09

70. Kevin VanDam -- Kalamazoo, MI -- 10, 24-06 -- 31
Day 1: 5, 09-08 -- Day 2: 5, 14-14

71. Charlie Hartley -- Grove City, OH -- 10, 24-04 -- 30
Day 1: 5, 11-01 -- Day 2: 5, 13-03

72. Brandon Palaniuk -- Hayden, ID -- 10, 23-07 -- 29
Day 1: 5, 12-12 -- Day 2: 5, 10-11

73. Kevin Short -- Mayflower, AR -- 10, 23-06 -- 28
Day 1: 5, 13-14 -- Day 2: 5, 09-08

74. Clifford Pirch -- Payson, AZ -- 10, 22-15 -- 27
Day 1: 5, 08-12 -- Day 2: 5, 14-03

75. Fletcher Shryock -- New Philadelphia, OH -- 10, 22-15 -- 26
Day 1: 5, 11-15 -- Day 2: 5, 11-00

76. Keith Poche -- Pike Road, AL -- 9, 22-10 -- 25
Day 1: 5, 15-12 -- Day 2: 4, 06-14

77. Brian Snowden -- Reeds Spring, MO -- 10, 22-08 -- 24
Day 1: 5, 10-04 -- Day 2: 5, 12-04

78. Gary Klein -- Weatherford, TX -- 10, 22-05 -- 23
Day 1: 5, 11-00 -- Day 2: 5, 11-05

79. Kurt Dove -- Del Rio, TX -- 10, 21-13 -- 22
Day 1: 5, 08-15 -- Day 2: 5, 12-14

80. Kelly Jordon -- Palestine, TX -- 10, 21-06 -- 21
Day 1: 5, 07-15 -- Day 2: 5, 13-07

81. Skeet Reese -- Auburn, CA -- 10, 21-02 -- 20
Day 1: 5, 08-02 -- Day 2: 5, 13-00

82. Shaw Grigsby Jr. -- Gainesville, FL -- 10, 20-09 -- 19
Day 1: 5, 12-10 -- Day 2: 5, 07-15

83. Byron Velvick -- Boenre, TX -- 10, 20-05 -- 18
Day 1: 5, 11-12 -- Day 2: 5, 08-09

84. Greg Vinson -- Wetumpka, AL -- 10, 20-04 -- 17
Day 1: 5, 10-15 -- Day 2: 5, 09-05

85. Chris Zaldain -- San Jose, CA -- 10, 20-02 -- 16
Day 1: 5, 09-14 -- Day 2: 5, 10-04

86. Bill Lowen -- Brookville, IN -- 10, 19-15 -- 15
Day 1: 5, 07-01 -- Day 2: 5, 12-14

87. Chad Pipkens -- Holt, MI -- 10, 19-07 -- 14
Day 1: 5, 09-07 -- Day 2: 5, 10-00

88. Kevin Hawk -- Guntersville, AL -- 10, 19-04 -- 13
Day 1: 5, 10-01 -- Day 2: 5, 09-03

89. Joseph Sancho -- New Windsor, NY -- 8, 18-12 -- 12
Day 1: 5, 11-00 -- Day 2: 3, 07-12

90. Yusuke Miyazaki -- Forney, TX -- 10, 18-12 -- 11
Day 1: 5, 07-13 -- Day 2: 5, 10-15

91. Boyd Duckett -- Guntersville, AL -- 8, 18-12 -- 10
Day 1: 3, 10-13 -- Day 2: 5, 07-15

92. Ish Monroe -- Hughson, CA -- 8, 18-04 -- 9
Day 1: 5, 13-13 -- Day 2: 3, 04-07

93. Tracy Adams -- Wilkesboro, NC -- 8, 18-02 -- 8
Day 1: 5, 12-07 -- Day 2: 3, 05-11

94. Stephen Browning -- Hot Springs, AR -- 9, 17-11 -- 7
Day 1: 5, 10-11 -- Day 2: 4, 07-00

95. Billy McCaghren -- Mayflower, AR -- 10, 17-10 -- 6
Day 1: 5, 11-02 -- Day 2: 5, 06-08

96. Britt Myers -- Lake Wylie, SC -- 9, 17-09 -- 5
Day 1: 4, 07-12 -- Day 2: 5, 09-13

97. Morizo Shimizu -- Osaka, Japan -- 10, 17-04 -- 4
Day 1: 5, 09-00 -- Day 2: 5, 08-04

98. Jonathon VanDam -- Kalamazoo, MI -- 10, 17-02 -- 3
Day 1: 5, 09-10 -- Day 2: 5, 07-08

99. Jeremy Starks -- Scott Depot, WV -- 10, 16-07 -- 2
Day 1: 5, 07-13 -- Day 2: 5, 08-10

100. Brandon Card -- Caryville, TN -- 10, 15-15 -- 1
Day 1: 5, 07-04 -- Day 2: 5, 08-11

101. David Smith -- Del City, OK -- 6, 15-14 -- 0
Day 1: 5, 15-00 -- Day 2: 1, 00-14

102. Michael Simonton -- Fremont, OH -- 5, 14-10 -- 0
Day 1: 4, 13-04 -- Day 2: 1, 01-06

103. Trevor Romans -- Plano, TX -- 7, 14-09 -- 0
Day 1: 2, 01-14 -- Day 2: 5, 12-11

104. James Elam -- Tulsa, OK -- 8, 14-08 -- 0
Day 1: 3, 04-07 -- Day 2: 5, 10-01

105. Kotaro Kiriyama -- Moody, AL -- 8, 14-05 -- 0
Day 1: 3, 05-15 -- Day 2: 5, 08-06

106. Kelley Jaye -- Dadeville, AL -- 6, 08-05 -- 0
Day 1: 1, 01-12 -- Day 2: 5, 06-09

107. BJ Haseotes -- Centerville, MA -- 4, 06-07 -- 0
Day 1: 4, 06-07 -- Day 2: 0 -- 00-00

108. Joel Baker -- Talala, OK -- 6, 05-01 -- 0
Day 1: 5, 01-08 -- Day 2: 1, 03-09