By MLF Communications Staff
MANY, La. –Dustin Connell wrecked them again on Day 2 for Group B, maintaining his position atop the leaderboard, with a two-day total of 40 bass weighing 121 pounds, 7 ounces to win his Qualifying Round at the MLF Bass Pro Tour event on Toledo Bend Reservoir.
Reigning Angler of the Year (AOY) pro Matt Becker finished the round in second place with a two-day total of 30 bass weighing 100-2, while Michael Neal was third with 27 bass weighing 95-6. Cole Floyd caught 29 bass weighing 95-5 to end in fourth, while Alton Jones, Jr. advanced to the Knockout Round in fifth place with a two-day total of 30 bass weighing 94-14.
The remaining 20 anglers – the Top 10 from each group – now advance to Saturday’s Knockout Round, where weights are zeroed, and anglers compete to finish in the Top 10 to advance to the Championship Round on Sunday. Weights will again be zeroed for the Championship Round and the highest one-day total wins the top prize of $100,000.
Connell and the other anglers leading the pack in Group B got their work done early during their second day of competition. Connell boated 13 bass for 39 pounds, 9 ounces, Friday — 31-12 of that coming before noon. That easily led the group, 21-6 ahead of Becker.
Yet despite the likes of Connell, Becker and Jones Jr. devoting much of the day to exploring new water, ScoreTracker lit up early and often with quality Toledo Bend bass, foreshadowing a no-holds-barred slugfest when the Top 10 finishers in Group B meet the 10 best from Group A in Saturday’s Knockout Round. Meanwhile, a tightly bunched battle around the elimination line delivered drama throughout the third period, with Jesse Wiggins ultimately claiming the final spot thanks to a pair of catches in the final minutes.
For Connell, Friday was less about how much weight he could add to his total and more about how much of Toledo Bend’s massive surface area he could explore. He burned 30 gallons of gas running new water, focusing on areas that might not have produced during practice but could now hold baitfish and bass based on changing water clarity and wind direction.
He found plenty of fish in the process, as evidenced by his 13 keepers, including one new area he has “high hopes in.”
“I burned a lot of gas and I ran all over the place just trying to find a new, fresh area that’s good now that the water’s starting to clean up,” Connell explained. “I was trying to play the wind direction and really find the bait because the bait is moving around a lot. So I just went practicing all day, and I just caught what I caught practicing. It was a fun day.”
Connell’s technique isn’t a secret. Like most of the field, he’s using forward-facing sonar to find groups of suspended bass offshore, then casting to them with a soft-plastic minnow on a jighead. Eight of the 10 anglers who advanced out of Group B have caught most of their weight doing something similar.
Connell's plastic of choice has been the Rapala CrushCity Freeloader, the same bait Jacob Wheeler leaned on to win Group A. He said the pintail minnow is particularly effective in off-color water and when targeting bigger bass, making it perfect for Toledo Bend.
“I’m throwing it around some dingy water, and I think that bait has a lot of drawing power,” he said. “It has a great action, also. I mean, that’s one of the hottest techniques on the market, and that bait is really, really good.”
With so many anglers beaming offshore, Connell said Toledo Bend’s bass are showing signs of pressure. That’s one reason getting an entire day to scope out fresh schools should benefit him during the Knockout Round. He also believes the pressure and stained water have put a premium on presenting the bait accurately — something he spent the offseason perfecting.
“The fish are getting smart,” Connell said. “They’re getting used to seeing that kind of stuff, they’re getting used to hearing the transducers. The biggest key with this whole deal is being able to make a really good cast and know where your bait is at. It’s just all mechanics.
"I’ve been doing it all fall for literally three days a week and just practicing this technique because I came into this tournament anticipating it to be this way. So that’s what I’ve been doing, and practice makes perfect.”
With weights zeroing overnight, Connell knows he’ll have to come out swinging during the Knockout Round. But he’s optimistic that he can catch enough weight to earn a spot in the 10-angler Championship Round without playing all his cards.
“I want to finish in like fifth place, just enough to be alright,” he said. “And you never know, may get to practice some tomorrow. I just want to finish in the Top 10, I don’t care if it’s 10th.”
Toledo Bend’s big bass proved a bit more elusive Friday. For the first time all week, no fish over 7 pounds hit the scales. But Group B's anglers made up for it with quantity.
Friday’s $1,000 Berkley Big Bass Award was awarded to Jacob Wall, who weighed in a 6-14 largemouth that bit his swimjig early in Period 1. Berkley awards $1,000 to the angler who weighs the heaviest bass each day and a $3,000 bonus to the angler who weighs the heaviest bass of the tournament.
Anglers launch at 7:30 a.m. CT each day from Cypress Bend Park, located at 3462 Cypress Bend Drive in Many. Each day’s takeout is held at the park beginning at 4 p.m. Fans are welcome to attend all launch and takeout events and also encouraged to follow the event online throughout the day on the ScoreTracker leaderboard and event coverage at MajorLeagueFishing.com.
The MLFNOW! broadcast team of Chad McKee and J.T. Kenney break down the extended action live from 7:45 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. CT. MLFNOW! is livestreamed on MajorLeagueFishing.com and the MyOutdoorTV (MOTV) app.
The tournament features anglers competing with a 2-pound minimum weight requirement for a bass to be deemed scorable. The MLF Fisheries Management Division determines minimum weights for each body of water that the Bass Pro Tour visits, based on the productivity, bass population and anticipated average size of fish in each fishery.
Group B Qualifying Round – Day 2
(Figure at far right denotes weight of angler's heaviest fish for the round)
1. Dustin Connell -- 81-14 (27) -- 39-09 (13) -- 121-07 (40) -- 5-05
2. Matt Becker -- 61-12 (18) -- 38-06 (12) -- 100-02 (30) -- 5-04
3. Michael Neal -- 46-14 (12) -- 48-08 (15) -- 95-06 (27) -- 5-08
4. Cole Floyd -- 45-04 (14) -- 50-01 (15) -- 95-05 (29) -- 5-06
5. Alton Jones Jr. -- 54-02 (16) -- 40-12 (14) -- 94-14 (30) -- 5-02
6. Jeff Sprague -- 19-00 (8) -- 62-01 (22) -- 81-01 (30) -- 5-08
7. Mark Daniels Jr. -- 35-01 (12) -- 44-00 (15) -- 79-01 (27) -- 4-07
8. Anthony Gagliardi -- 24-06 (7) -- 50-14 (15) -- 75-04 (22) -- 5-10
9. Brent Chapman -- 52-14 (19) -- 20-09 (8) -- 73-07 (27) -- 3-00
10. Jesse Wiggins -- 24-11 (7) -- 45-15 (16) -- 70-10 (23) -- 3-13
The following anglers did not make the cut and will not advance to the Knockout Round
11. Nick Hatfield -- 29-12 (8) -- 37-02 (13) -- 66-14 (21) -- 4-09
12. Greg Vinson -- 12-15 (4) -- 53-11 (20) -- 66-10 (24) -- 4-03
13. Dylan Hays -- 15-06 (5) -- 51-03 (17) -- 66-09 (22) -- 5-09
14. Jacob Wall -- 30-13 (10) -- 34-06 (10) -- 65-03 (20) -- 6-14
15. David Walker -- 31-08 (10) -- 32-00 (12) -- 63-08 (22) -- 4-01
16. Shin Fukae -- 21-05 (8) -- 38-00 (12) -- 59-05 (20) -- 6-12
17. Jared Lintner -- 39-12 (15) -- 11-02 (3) -- 50-14 (18) -- 6-00
18. Adrian Avena -- 18-14 (7) -- 30-03 (11) -- 49-01 (18) -- 4-09
19. Takahiro Omori -- 16-09 (7) -- 31-03 (10) -- 47-12 (17) -- 4-14
20. Matthew Stefan -- 20-15 (4) -- 24-15 (8) -- 45-14 (12) -- 4-05
21. Chris Lane -- 18-09 (7) -- 25-05 (9) -- 43-14 (16) -- 4-08
22. Dave Lefebre -- 29-05 (9) -- 11-03 (4) -- 40-08 (13) -- 3-10
23. Andy Morgan -- 24-13 (8) -- 14-14 (6) -- 39-11 (14) -- 3-06
24. Mark Rose -- 17-02 (6) -- 20-10 (7) -- 37-12 (13) -- 4-03
25. Ron Nelson -- 17-02 (5) -- 17-05 (6) -- 34-07 (11) -- 4-12
26. Marty Robinson -- 10-15 (4) -- 22-01 (9) -- 33-00 (13) -- 3-06
27. Randy Howell -- 23-15 (9) -- 8-13 (4) -- 32-12 (13) -- 2-06
28. Josh Bertrand -- 11-01 (4) -- 20-04 (7) -- 31-05 (11) -- 3-15
29. Gerald Spohrer -- 7-08 (3) -- 22-00 (7) -- 29-08 (10) -- 4-07
30. Grae Buck -- 19-05 (4) -- 9-02 (2) -- 28-07 (6) -- 4-13
31. Jason Vance -- 13-06 (5) -- 13-10 (6) -- 27-00 (11) -- 2-10
32. Matt Lee -- 14-04 (4) -- 11-05 (4) -- 25-09 (8) -- 4-00
33. Brandon Coulter -- 21-15 (6) -- 2-06 (1) -- 24-05 (7) -- 2-06
34. Skeet Reese -- 8-12 (3) -- 11-15 (5) -- 20-11 (8) -- 3-05
35. Jacopo Gallelli -- 4-00 (1) -- 10-08 (4) -- 14-08 (5) -- 3-04
36. Britt Myers -- 0-00 (0) -- 7-08 (2) -- 7-08 (2) -- 4-05
37. Colby Schrumpf -- 4-09 (1) -- 2-05 (1) -- 6-14 (2) -- 2-05
38. James Watson -- 6-11 (3) -- 0-00 (0) -- 6-11 (3) -- 0-00
39. Terry Scroggins -- 0-00 (0) -- 5-02 (2) -- 5-02 (2) -- 2-11
40. John Murray -- 0-00 (0) -- 0-00 (0) -- 0-00 (0) -- 0-00
