Cifuentes Boosts Lead To 6 3/4 Pounds

By MLF Communications Staff

On the hunt for his first major title of his career, Joey Cifuentes of Clinton, Ark., extended his lead on day 3 of the MLF Pro Circuit event at the St. Lawrence River in Massena, N.Y. dropping his second 24-pound-plus bag of the event on the scales, Cifuentes weighed in 24-02 to boost his three-day total to 67-05 for a hefty lead over Cody Pike of Powhatan, Va., who ended the day in 2nd place with a three-day total of 60-09.

Day-1 leader John Cox of DeBary, Fla., moved from 15th place into 7th to secure his spot in the Top 10 after Day 3, while Skeet Reese of Auburn, Calif., made the biggest jump from 30th place into 5th, weighing 24 pounds even, to bring his total to 58-08 heading into the final round.

“This is unbelievable,” said Cifuentes. “I don’t even know what to say. I’m in hog heaven, as we say in Arkansas.”

Cifuentes said surprisingly enough, he didn’t make a single cast where he caught his weight the previous two days. While he had been fishing deep humps near Frontenac, Cifuentes said he decided to expand into some new water near Clayton – the first spot produced a 6-pound smallmouth and his day took off from there.

“I hadn’t fished shallow all week, but after that big one I decided to try it and went to a shallow spot I’d found in practice,” said Cifuentes. “I caught a pair of 5-pounders, then went back out deep and caught a 3-pounder and a 2.5-pounder.”

Having a solid limit, Cifuentes said he gassed up to run back toward check-in, leaving him plenty of time to fish his way back. He was rewarded near takeoff with 4- and 3-pounders to pad his lead even more.

After a solid day where both shallow and deep fishing worked across the river, Cifuentes said he is eager going into the final round.

“I’m so excited, but I’m also nervous,” said Cifuentes. “I’ve never been in this situation before, where I'm leading going into the final day. The 6-12 lead is a nice cushion for error if I struggle, but I just plan to go out and go fishing. Whatever happens, happens. I’ve had a blast.”

Here are the totals for the 10 anglers who moved on to the final day:

1. Joey Cifuentes: 67-05
2. Cody Pike: 60-09
3. Matthew Stefan: 60-06
4. Ron Nelson: 59-06
5. Skeet Reese: 58-08
6. Scott Dobson: 57-13
7. John Cox: 56-11
8. Jon Canada: 56-09
9. Justin Cooper: 55-14
10. Aaron Britt: 55-08

Anglers were also vying for the prestigious 2021 Pro Circuit Angler of the Year (AOY) title that is determined by the most points accumulated over the six Pro Circuit events. Michael Neal of Dayton, Tenn., clinched the title on day 3 after bringing in a limit of 18-08 and ending the day in 11th place.

Neal held a 21-point lead over Reese coming into the event, so despite Reese making the Top 10, Neal will bring the coveted trophy back to East Tennessee. Neal will receive his entry fees paid for the entire 2022 Pro Circuit season.

Clabion Johns of Social Circle, Ga., clinched the Rookie of the Year (ROY) award on Friday. For his efforts, Johns won a Polaris Ranger 1000.

The final 10 anglers will take off at 6:30 a.m. ET on Sunday from the Massena Intake Boat Launch located at 1415 State Highway 131. The weigh-in will also be held at the boat launch Sunday at 3 p.m. Fans are welcome to attend the event or follow the action online through the MLF NOW! livestream and coverage at MajorLeagueFishing.com.

Day 3 Standings

1. Joey Cifuentes -- 24-05 (5) -- 18-14 (5) -- 24-02 (5) -- 67-05 (15)

2. Cody Pike -- 19-07 (5) -- 22-02 (5) -- 19-00 (5) -- 60-09 (15)

3. Matthew Stefan -- 22-07 (5) -- 19-02 (5) -- 18-13 (5) -- 60-06 (15)

4. Ron Nelson -- 23-07 (5) -- 19-10 (5) -- 16-05 (5) -- 59-06 (15)

5. Skeet Reese -- 17-10 (5) -- 16-14 (5) -- 24-00 (5) -- 58-08 (15)

6. Scott Dobson -- 20-11 (5) -- 21-12 (5) -- 15-06 (5) -- 57-13 (15)

7. John Cox -- 24-12 (5) -- 11-08 (3) -- 20-07 (5) -- 56-11 (13)

8. Jon Canada -- 15-12 (5) -- 21-15 (5) -- 18-14 (5) -- 56-09 (15)

9. Justin Cooper -- 19-08 (5) -- 18-03 (5) -- 18-03 (5) -- 55-14 (15)

10. Aaron Britt -- 20-00 (5) -- 17-02 (5) -- 18-06 (5) -- 55-08 (15)

The following anglers did not make the cut and will not fish on day 4.

11. Michael Neal -- 21-08 (5) -- 15-03 (5) -- 18-08 (5) -- 55-03 (15) -- $11,000

12. Darrel Robertson -- 16-11 (5) -- 17-09 (5) -- 20-13 (5) -- 55-01 (15) -- $11,000

13. Kurt Mitchell -- 18-11 (5) -- 20-09 (5) -- 15-04 (5) -- 54-08 (15) -- $11,000

14. Todd Walters -- 18-00 (5) -- 17-02 (5) -- 19-04 (5) -- 54-06 (15) -- $11,000

15. Zack Birge -- 16-15 (5) -- 18-13 (5) -- 18-01 (5) -- 53-13 (15) -- $11,000

16. Dakota Ebare -- 15-02 (5) -- 20-12 (5) -- 17-14 (5) -- 53-12 (15) -- $11,000

17. Billy Hines -- 17-05 (5) -- 17-05 (5) -- 18-15 (5) -- 53-09 (15) -- $11,000

18. Miles Howe -- 22-10 (5) -- 17-05 (5) -- 13-05 (5) -- 53-04 (15) -- $11,000

19. Grae Buck -- 15-05 (5) -- 19-13 (5) -- 18-02 (5) -- 53-04 (15) -- $11,000

20. Wesley Strader -- 19-02 (5) -- 13-03 (5) -- 20-14 (5) -- 53-03 (15) -- $11,000

21. Troy Morrow -- 14-11 (5) -- 17-10 (5) -- 20-12 (5) -- 53-01 (15) -- $10,500

22. Braxton Setzer -- 13-11 (5) -- 19-03 (5) -- 19-10 (5) -- 52-08 (15) -- $10,500

23. Kerry Milner -- 17-15 (5) -- 15-15 (5) -- 18-04 (5) -- 52-02 (15) -- $10,500

24. Cody Meyer -- 17-11 (5) -- 17-09 (5) -- 16-11 (5) -- 51-15 (15) -- $10,500

25. Mitch Crane -- 15-02 (5) -- 18-15 (5) -- 17-06 (4) -- 51-07 (14) -- $10,500

26. Troy Stokes -- 19-07 (5) -- 13-11 (5) -- 18-05 (5) -- 51-07 (15) -- $10,500

27. Ryan Salzman -- 19-04 (5) -- 14-03 (5) -- 17-09 (5) -- 51-00 (15) -- $10,500

28. Lawson Hibdon -- 14-06 (5) -- 20-04 (5) -- 16-05 (5) -- 50-15 (15) -- $10,500

29. Scott Wiley -- 17-14 (5) -- 17-03 (5) -- 15-13 (5) -- 50-14 (15) -- $10,500

30. Alex Davis -- 22-00 (5) -- 13-03 (5) -- 15-08 (5) -- 50-11 (15) -- $10,500

31. Brad Knight -- 17-11 (5) -- 17-01 (5) -- 15-13 (5) -- 50-09 (15) -- $10,000

32. Justin Lucas -- 21-00 (5) -- 17-12 (5) -- 11-08 (4) -- 50-04 (14) -- $10,000

33. Jamie Horton -- 14-04 (5) -- 18-00 (5) -- 17-15 (5) -- 50-03 (15) -- $10,000

34. Kyle Hall -- 15-10 (5) -- 18-00 (5) -- 16-02 (5) -- 49-12 (15) -- $10,000

35. Clabion Johns -- 17-05 (5) -- 16-00 (5) -- 16-06 (5) -- 49-11 (15) -- $10,000

36. Tom Monsoor -- 21-02 (5) -- 14-10 (5) -- 13-12 (5) -- 49-08 (15) -- $10,000

37. Corey Neece -- 18-06 (5) -- 15-14 (5) -- 14-12 (5) -- 49-00 (15) -- $10,000

38. Jason Lambert -- 19-13 (5) -- 17-07 (5) -- 11-06 (5) -- 48-10 (15) -- $10,000

39. Greg Bohannan -- 17-02 (5) -- 14-15 (5) -- 15-12 (5) -- 47-13 (15) -- $10,000

40. Jimmy Reese -- 16-04 (5) -- 16-15 (5) -- 13-03 (5) -- 46-06 (15) -- $10,000

41. Randy Ramsey -- 20-07 (5) -- 15-11 (5) -- 9-03 (4) -- 45-05 (14) -- $10,000

42. Laramy Strickland -- 15-03 (5) -- 16-13 (5) -- 13-04 (5) -- 45-04 (15) -- $10,000

43. Evan Barnes -- 18-14 (5) -- 17-05 (5) -- 8-09 (4) -- 44-12 (14) -- $10,000

44. Erik Luzak -- 22-00 (5) -- 15-11 (5) -- 6-06 (3) -- 44-01 (13) -- $10,000

45. Jacopo Gallelli -- 17-12 (5) -- 17-01 (5) -- 9-00 (4) -- 43-13 (14) -- $10,000

46. David Williams -- 18-08 (5) -- 13-05 (5) -- 8-11 (3) -- 40-08 (13) -- $10,000

47. Jesse Wiggins -- 17-07 (5) -- 14-05 (5) -- 8-11 (4) -- 40-07 (14) -- $10,000

48. Joe Wieberg -- 13-11 (5) -- 19-03 (5) -- 6-05 (3) -- 39-03 (13) -- $10,000

49. Joshua Weaver -- 16-15 (5) -- 15-00 (5) -- 6-14 (3) -- 38-13 (13) -- $10,000

50. Mike Surman -- 16-10 (5) -- 15-09 (5) -- 2-13 (1) -- 35-00 (11) -- $10,000