Many collegiate sport teams and clubs never get the sweet taste of winning regional tournaments or championships. That can’t be said for UVU’s Bass Club. The club won two of the four tournaments it entered during its first year of existence.
“It was pretty exciting, especially to get that first win ever for UVU,” said junior Aaron Warner. “It was pretty special.”
Warner has been in the club since the beginning of last November and was one of the team’s top fishers. He said the team was lucky to even be fishing in the two tournaments it won at Clear Lake in California and Lake Havasu in Arizona.
“We were on the wait list both times, we weren’t exactly sure if we were going to be able to fish or not,” said Warner. “We got called up on the wait list and we knew we were fishing. We were just excited to be there and we ended up winning both the tournaments we were on the wait list for.”
Clint Martinez, the club’s adviser, spoke highly of Warner’s contributions to the team during its inaugural year.
“Aaron was a big part of both of those wins,” Martinez said.
The team fell a little short at the Utah Lake Western Regional Championship last month and didn’t qualify for nationals, but gained some national exposure in the process. Media giant NBC was there to film the entire competition.
“It was kind of weird,” Warner said. “Usually when you are out fishing no one is around, it’s just you and nature. But to have a couple boats following your every move, it’s a little bit nerve-racking, but after you catch your first fish, it’s kind of natural and you get used to it.”
California State University, Long Beach won the regional tournament at Utah Lake and the competition will air on the NBC Sports Network Nov. 5 from 2-4 p.m.
Currently, the team is getting ready for a new set of tryouts.
“We are currently in process of doing that,” Martinez said. The tryout is scheduled for Sept. 29 at Pine View reservoir.
“We weigh-in the fish, there’s certain points they get and at the end of it the guys that qualify will fish next January,” Martinez said regarding tryouts.
Students interested in fishing for UVU’s Bass Club are encouraged to visit Clint Martinez on the second floor of the Woodbury Business Building for more details.
