By B.A.S.S. Communications Staff
ORANGE, Texas — Pat Schlapper knew he had to return to the scene of his first-round success, but knowing when and how to adjust enabled him to maintain his lead on Day 2 of the Bassmaster Elite Series event at the Sabine River.
Schlapper took the top spot on Day 1 with a limit of 12 pounds, 2 ounces. Day 2 was less generous and the pro from Eleva, Wis., added a smaller limit that went 8-7. With a two-day total of 20-9, Schlapper heads into Saturday 4 ounces ahead of Cooper Gallant.
“It was a tougher day, but I got one good quality bite and five other keeper bites that I landed,” Schlapper said. “The Sabine River is a tough playing field, but it’s kinda cool because you get a couple of those quality bites and that’s what can make your whole tournament.
“It’s easy to have really bad tournament, but it’s also easy to have a good tournament if you get a couple of those good bites.”
Day 1 saw Schlapper spend his entire day fishing a bridge near the Taylor Slough area. He gave that spot first crack again today, but ended up making a few relocations.
“I started there and I caught a small keeper and then I caught a good one and missed a couple more,” Schlapper said. “Then I left, went and flipped a stretch, and caught a keeper. Then, I came back to the bridge and once I switched baits, I caught two keepers immediately.
“After I caught those two, I left the bridge again. I had a limit and I need it for tomorrow. The bridge is definitely running out of fish but I know there are still some more there.”
Along with his location changes, Schlapper also adjusted his bait presentations. Day 1 saw him catch all of his fish on a 3/8-ounce Do-it Molds compact finesse jig with a Big Bite Baits chunk trailer.
Schlapper tried the jig again on Day 2, but the response was less enthusiastic.
“I fished my normal stuff and they didn’t touch it,” Schlapper said.
When he realized his jig was not happening, Schlapper switched to a finesse presentation and a Texas-rigged creature bait.
Pondering his Day-3 options, Schlapper said he’ll definitely give his bridge another chance to produce, but he’ll likely precede that with a morning stop.
“In practice, I had been getting a good morning bite in other areas, but I haven’t fished them (during the tournament) because I wanted to get right up to that bridge,” Schlapper said. “Now, I’m not super worried about anyone else going there; I think it’s been established. No one else has fished there.
“I’m going to run a couple of things in the morning on the way up and seen if I can pick off a few. Then I’m going to go up to the bridge and see what’s left.”
Despite what he believes is a dwindling bridge opportunity, Schlapper’s optimistic about his overall chances.
“I still have a shot at it; I need to make a little more magic happen,” Schlapper said. “We’re in the game and that’s all you can ask for after two days here.”
Gallant, who lives in Bowmanville, Ontario has turned in the most consistent performance thus far. After placing seventh on Day 1 with 10-2, Gallant added 10-3 on Day 2 and rose to second place with 20-5.
Anchoring his second-round limit with a 4-7, Gallant said his second day’s success came as a pleasant surprise.
“It’s funny, this morning I was saying, I’ve never been sitting in the Top 10 going into Day 2 thinking: ‘Hopefully, I catch a bass,’” Gallant said. “In the morning, I was like, ‘I need 4 pounds; I need to make the cut.’
“To catch 4 pounds out here is not easy, but as the day goes on, I’m like, ‘Holy smokes, I might be on the winning deal, I might be in the winning area. Your mindset goes from making Day 3 to, I want to try and win this thing.’”
Gallant caught all of his fish flipping shallow cover. He’s alternating between a 3/8-ounce hand-tied flipping jig and a 3/8-ounce Outkast Tackle Cage Feider jig, both with X Zone Lures Adrenaline Craw Jr. trailers.
“I feel like every day I’m figuring out more and more and I’m getting more confident in my area and expanding on it,” Gallant said. “Those big bites go a long way in this tournament. If you can figure out how to get one of those big bites a day, that’s probably what’s going to win this tournament.”
Kyoya Fujita of Yamanishi, Japan is in third place with 19-11. A Day-1 limit of 8-8 put him in a three-way tie for 18th place, but Fujita stepped up his performance on Day 2 and added 11-3.
Known for his technological prowess, Fujita made an important clarification: “I didn’t use forward-facing sonar today. It was all power-fishing.”
Targeting mostly reeds in 1-2 feet of water, Fujita caught his fish by flipping Texas-rigged plastics. With big bites few and far between, he found that fishing fast and covering water was the key to running into the quality fish.
“Speed (was important),” Fujita said. “More casts, more casts, more casts. I caught many little fish, but maybe seven or eight keepers.”
John Crews of Salem, Va., is in the lead for Phoenix Boats Big Bass honors with a 4-14.
Saturday’s takeoff is scheduled for 6:30 a.m. CT at City of Orange Boat Ramp. The weigh-in will be held at the same location at 2:30 p.m.
Bassmaster LIVE coverage will be available on FS1 on Days 3 and 4 from 8 a.m. to 11 a.m. ET before heading over to Bassmaster.com in the afternoon.
Day 2 Standings
1. Pat Schlapper -- Eleva, WI -- 10, 20-09 -- 104
Day 1: 5, 12-02 -- Day 2: 5, 08-07
2. Cooper Gallant -- Bowmanville, ON -- 10, 20-05 -- 103
Day 1: 5, 10-02 -- Day 2: 5, 10-03
3. Kyoya Fujita -- Yamanashi, JAPAN -- 10, 19-11 -- 102
Day 1: 5, 08-08 -- Day 2: 5, 11-03
4. John Crews Jr -- Salem, VA -- 10, 18-00 -- 101
Day 1: 5, 05-07 -- Day 2: 5, 12-09
5. Stetson Blaylock -- Benton, AR -- 10, 17-03 -- 100
Day 1: 5, 11-05 -- Day 2: 5, 05-14
6. Beau Browning -- Hot Springs, AR -- 10, 17-03 -- 99
Day 1: 5, 07-04 -- Day 2: 5, 09-15
7. Carl Jocumsen -- Queensland, AUS -- 9, 17-03 -- 98
Day 1: 5, 09-04 -- Day 2: 4, 07-15
8. KJ Queen -- Catawba, NC -- 10, 17-01 -- 97
Day 1: 5, 05-08 -- Day 2: 5, 11-09
9. JT Thompkins -- Myrtle Beach, SC -- 10, 17-00 -- 96
Day 1: 5, 09-02 -- Day 2: 5, 07-14
10. Chris Johnston -- Otonabee, ON -- 10, 16-15 -- 95
Day 1: 5, 06-13 -- Day 2: 5, 10-02
11. Gregory DiPalma -- Millville, NJ -- 9, 16-15 -- 94
Day 1: 4, 07-07 -- Day 2: 5, 09-08
12. Trey McKinney -- Carbondale, IL -- 10, 16-14 -- 93
Day 1: 5, 07-15 -- Day 2: 5, 08-15
13. Joey Cifuentes III -- Clinton, AR -- 10, 16-10 -- 92
Day 1: 5, 09-05 -- Day 2: 5, 07-05
14. Dakota Ebare -- Brookeland, TX -- 10, 16-10 -- 91
Day 1: 5, 09-02 -- Day 2: 5, 07-08
15. Taku Ito -- Dalton, GA -- 9, 16-07 -- 90
Day 1: 5, 11-01 -- Day 2: 4, 05-06
16. Matt Arey -- Shelby, NC -- 10, 16-07 -- 89
Day 1: 5, 07-00 -- Day 2: 5, 09-07
17. Tyler Williams -- Belgrade, ME -- 10, 16-05 -- 88
Day 1: 5, 09-00 -- Day 2: 5, 07-05
18. Jeff Gustafson -- Kenora, ON, 10, 16-03 -- 87
Day 1: 5, 07-10 -- Day 2: 5, 08-09
19. Easton Fothergill -- Grand Rapids , MN -- 10, 16-03 -- 86
Day 1: 5, 08-02 -- Day 2: 5, 08-01
20. Clifford Pirch -- Payson, AZ -- 10, 16-02 -- 85
Day 1: 5, 07-15 -- Day 2: 5, 08-03
21. Justin Hamner -- Northport, AL -- 9, 16-01 -- 84
Day 1: 5, 10-05 -- Day 2: 4, 05-12
22. Austin Felix -- Eden Prairie, MN -- 10, 16-01 -- 83
Day 1: 5, 08-08 -- Day 2: 5, 07-09
23. David Gaston -- Sylacauga, AL -- 10, 16-00 -- 82
Day 1: 5, 07-12 -- Day 2: 5, 08-04
24. Hunter Shryock -- Ooltewah, TN -- 10, 15-15 -- 81
Day 1: 5, 08-06 -- Day 2: 5, 07-09
25. Jay Przekurat -- Plover, WI -- 9, 15-14 -- 80
Day 1: 5, 10-12 -- Day 2: 4, 05-02
26. Bill Lowen -- Brookville, IN -- 10, 15-10 -- 79
Day 1: 5, 08-07 -- Day 2: 5, 07-03
27. Bob Downey -- Detroit Lakes, MN -- 10, 15-10 -- 78
Day 1: 5, 07-08 -- Day 2: 5, 08-02
28. Brandon Lester -- Fayetteville, TN -- 10, 15-01 -- 77
Day 1: 5, 08-13 -- Day 2: 5, 06-04
29. Kyle Welcher -- Valley, AL -- 10, 14-11 -- 76
Day 1: 5, 07-11 -- Day 2: 5, 07-00
30. Bryan New -- Leesville, SC -- 9, 14-09 -- 75
Day 1: 5, 05-13 -- Day 2: 4, 08-12
31. Cody Huff -- Ava, MO -- 10, 14-09 -- 74
Day 1: 5, 06-08 -- Day 2: 5, 08-01
32. Emil Wagner -- Marietta, GA -- 10, 14-09 -- 73
Day 1: 5, 06-15 -- Day 2: 5, 07-10
33. Bryan Schmitt -- Deale, MD -- 10, 14-08 -- 72
Day 1: 5, 07-00 -- Day 2: 5, 07-08
34. Patrick Walters -- Eutawville, SC -- 10, 14-08 -- 71
Day 1: 5, 07-06 -- Day 2: 5, 07-02
35. John Cox -- Debary, FL -- 10, 14-06 -- 70
Day 1: 5, 06-04 -- Day 2: 5, 08-02
36. Scott Canterbury -- Odenville, AL -- 10, 14-04 -- 69
Day 1: 5, 08-08 -- Day 2: 5, 05-12
37. Logan Parks -- Auburn, AL -- 9, 14-03 -- 68
Day 1: 4, 06-13 -- Day 2: 5, 07-06
38. Robert Gee -- Knoxville, TN -- 10, 14-02 -- 67
Day 1: 5, 06-00 -- Day 2: 5, 08-02
39. Luke Palmer -- Coalgate, OK -- 10, 14-01 -- 66
Day 1: 5, 08-00 -- Day 2: 5, 06-01
40. Alex Redwine -- Blue Ash, OH -- 10, 13-15 -- 65
Day 1: 5, 07-01 -- Day 2: 5, 06-14
41. Hank Cherry Jr -- Lincolnton, NC -- 10, 13-14 -- 64
Day 1: 5, 06-08 -- Day 2: 5, 07-06
42. Lee Livesay -- Longview, TX -- 10, 13-13 -- 63
Day 1: 5, 07-12 -- Day 2: 5, 06-01
43. Kenta Kimura -- Osaka, JAPAN -- 9, 13-12 -- 62
Day 1: 4, 05-15 -- Day 2: 5, 07-13
44. David Mullins -- Mt Carmel, TN -- 10, 13-12 -- 61
Day 1: 5, 06-13 -- Day 2: 5, 06-15
45. Will Davis Jr -- Sylacauga, AL -- 10, 13-06 -- 60
Day 1: 5, 07-10 -- Day 2: 5, 05-12
46. Buddy Gross -- Chattanooga, TN -- 8, 13-05 -- 59
Day 1: 5, 08-03 -- Day 2: 3, 05-02
47. Alex Wetherell -- Middletown, CT -- 9, 13-01 -- 58
Day 1: 5, 07-09 -- Day 2: 4, 05-08
48. Ben Milliken -- Omaha, NE -- 7, 13-00 -- 57
Day 1: 5, 10-03 -- Day 2: 2, 02-13
49. Shane LeHew -- Catawba, NC -- 10, 13-00 -- 56
Day 1: 5, 06-04 -- Day 2: 5, 06-12
50. Cliff Pace -- Ovett, MS -- 9, 12-14 -- 55
Day 1: 4, 07-01 -- Day 2: 5, 05-13
The following anglers did not make the cut and will not fish on Day 3.
51. Brock Mosley -- Collinsville, MS -- 10, 12-12 -- 54
Day 1: 5, 05-11 -- Day 2: 5, 07-01
52. Justin Atkins -- Florence, AL -- 8, 12-11 -- 53
Day 1: 5, 07-04 -- Day 2: 3, 05-07
53. Drew Cook -- Cairo, GA -- 10, 12-09 -- 52
Day 1: 5, 07-12 -- Day 2: 5, 04-13
54. Chad Pipkens -- Dewitt, MI -- 8, 12-08 -- 51
Day 1: 3, 03-05 -- Day 2: 5, 09-03
55. Logan Latuso -- Gonzales, LA -- 10, 12-07 -- 50
Day 1: 5, 07-00 -- Day 2: 5, 05-07
56. Kyle Patrick -- Cooperstown, NY -- 10, 12-07 -- 49
Day 1: 5, 06-13 -- Day 2: 5, 05-10
57. Paul Marks -- Cumming, GA -- 9, 12-05 -- 48
Day 1: 4, 05-07 -- Day 2: 5, 06-14
58. Bryant Smith -- Roseville, CA -- 8, 12-04 -- 47
Day 1: 3, 04-08 -- Day 2: 5, 07-12
59. Michael Iaconelli -- Pitts Grove, NJ -- 10, 12-03 -- 46
Day 1: 5, 06-09 -- Day 2: 5, 05-10
60. Cody Meyer -- Eagle, ID -- 9, 12-01 -- 45
Day 1: 5, 06-12 -- Day 2: 4, 05-05
61. Wesley Gore -- Clanton, AL -- 7, 12-00 -- 44
Day 1: 3, 06-11 -- Day 2: 4, 05-05
62. Cory Johnston -- Otonabee, ON -- 10, 11-15 -- 43
Day 1: 5, 05-12 -- Day 2: 5, 06-03
63. Brandon Cobb -- Greenwood, SC -- 8, 11-14 -- 42
Day 1: 5, 08-11 -- Day 2: 3, 03-03
64. Ray Hanselman Jr -- Del Rio, TX -- 10, 11-13 -- 41
Day 1: 5, 07-00 -- Day 2: 5, 04-13
65. Randy Howell -- Guntersville, AL -- 8, 11-11 -- 40
Day 1: 5, 07-11 -- Day 2: 3, 04-00
66. Brad Whatley -- Bivins, TX -- 9, 11-06 -- 39
Day 1: 4, 04-14 -- Day 2: 5, 06-08
67. Steve Kennedy -- Auburn, AL -- 8, 11-05 -- 38
Day 1: 3, 04-02 -- Day 2: 5, 07-03
68. Andrew Loberg -- Guntersville, AL -- 8, 11-05 -- 37
Day 1: 5, 06-07 -- Day 2: 3, 04-14
69. Chris Zaldain -- Boyd, TX -- 7, 11-02 -- 36
Day 1: 5, 09-01 -- Day 2: 2, 02-01
70. Wes Logan -- Springville, AL -- 8, 11-01 -- 35
Day 1: 3, 04-04 -- Day 2: 5, 06-13
71. Matty Wong -- Honolulu, HI -- 8, 10-15 -- 34
Day 1: 5, 07-00 -- Day 2: 3, 03-15
72. Bernie Schultz -- Gainesville, FL -- 7, 10-11 -- 33
Day 1: 5, 08-14 -- Day 2: 2, 01-13
73. Caleb Sumrall -- New Iberia, LA -- 8, 10-10 -- 32
Day 1: 5, 07-01 -- Day 2: 3, 03-09
74. Matt Robertson -- Kuttawa, KY -- 7, 10-06 -- 31
Day 1: 5, 08-03 -- Day 2: 2, 02-03
75. Marc Frazier -- Newnan, GA -- 9, 10-06 -- 30
Day 1: 4, 05-00 -- Day 2: 5, 05-06
76. Jamie Hartman -- Newport, NY -- 8, 10-05 -- 29
Day 1: 5, 06-10 -- Day 2: 3, 03-11
77. Seth Feider -- Elko New Market, MN -- 7, 10-04 -- 28
Day 1: 5, 07-08 -- Day 2: 2, 02-12
78. Jacob Powroznik -- North Prince George, VA -- 9, 10-04 -- 27
Day 1: 5, 05-00 -- Day 2: 4, 05-04
79. Jacob Foutz -- Charleston, TN -- 7, 10-02 -- 26
Day 1: 3, 04-04 -- Day 2: 4, 05-14
80. Cole Sands -- Johnson City, TN -- 8, 10-02 -- 25
Day 1: 4, 04-06 -- Day 2: 4, 05-12
81. Brandon Card -- Salisbury, NC -- 6, 10-01 -- 24
Day 1: 5, 08-14 -- Day 2: 1, 01-03
82. Evan Kung -- Pickering, ON -- 7, 10-00 -- 23
Day 1: 5, 07-08 -- Day 2: 2, 02-08
83. Mark Menendez -- Paducah, KY -- 8, 09-09 -- 22
Day 1: 5, 06-01 -- Day 2: 3, 03-08
84. John Garrett -- Union City, TN -- 7, 09-06 -- 21
Day 1: 4, 05-04 -- Day 2: 3, 04-02
85. Tucker Smith -- Birmingham, AL -- 6, 09-05 -- 20
Day 1: 1, 01-11 -- Day 2: 5, 07-10
86. Jason Christie -- Dry Creek, OK -- 7, 09-03 -- 19
Day 1: 2, 02-11 -- Day 2: 5, 06-08
87. Caleb Kuphall -- Mukwonago, WI -- 7, 09-00 -- 18
Day 1: 2, 02-10 -- Day 2: 5, 06-06
88. Paul Mueller -- Naugatuck, CT -- 5, 09-00 -- 17
Day 1: 2, 04-01 -- Day 2: 3, 04-15
89. Greg Hackney -- Gonzales, LA -- 7, 08-15 -- 16
Day 1: 2, 03-00 -- Day 2: 5, 05-15
90. Tyler Rivet -- Raceland, LA -- 6, 08-05 -- 15
Day 1: 1, 01-12 -- Day 2: 5, 06-09
91. Gerald Swindle -- Guntersville, AL -- 7, 08-01 -- 14
Day 1: 3, 03-00 -- Day 2: 4, 05-01
92. Keith Combs -- Huntington, TX -- 5, 07-04 -- 13
Day 1: 2, 03-04 -- Day 2: 3, 04-00
93. Ed Loughran III -- Richmond, VA -- 6, 07-00 -- 12
Day 1: 3, 03-07 -- Day 2: 3, 03-09
94. Jordan Lee -- Cullman, AL -- 5, 06-11 -- 11
Day 1: 1, 01-03 -- Day 2: 4, 05-08
95. Blake Capps -- Muskogee, OK -- 4, 06-07 -- 10
Day 1: 2, 04-13 -- Day 2: 2, 01-10
96. Timothy Dube -- Nashua , NH -- 4, 06-00 -- 9
Day 1: 1, 01-09 -- Day 2: 3, 04-07
97. Kyle Norsetter -- Cottage Grove, WI -- 4, 05-15 -- 8
Day 1: 2, 02-13 -- Day 2: 2, 03-02
98. Jonathan Kelley -- Old Forge, PA -- 5, 05-12 -- 7
Day 1: 4, 04-07 -- Day 2: 1, 01-05
99. Jake Whitaker -- Hendersonville, NC -- 5, 05-06 -- 6
Day 1: 3, 03-02 -- Day 2: 2, 02-04
100. Brandon Palaniuk -- Rathdrum, ID -- 5, 05-02 -- 5
Day 1: 0, 00-00 -- Day 2: 5, 05-02
101. Jason Williamson -- Aiken, SC -- 4, 05-02 -- 4
Day 1: 3, 04-02 -- Day 2: 1, 01-00
102. Drew Benton -- Panama City, FL -- 3, 04-08 -- 3
Day 1: 1, 01-15 -- Day 2: 2, 02-09
