Penn Staters to Compete in Regional Championship for Big Bass

UNIVERSITY PARK - It's all about the competition. For Penn State senior David Grube and spring 2009 graduate David Steinour, the excitement of representing Penn State while competing against other university teams in big bass tournaments is a challenging and rewarding way to test their fishing expertise.

"Fishing is a game of chance, and the more knowledge, skills and techniques you know, the better your chances are of finding and catching fish," Grube, a senior studying fisheries science, said. "I like competing because it gives me a chance to test my skills. Winning money, trophies and pride are always a good reward too."

Grube and Steinour will represent Penn State this weekend (Nov. 7-9) in the National Guard Forrest L. Wood (FLW) Collegiate Northern Regional Championship on Lake Norman, about 20 miles north of Charlotte, N.C. The top five teams in the regional competition will advance to the national championship in Knoxville, Tenn., in April 2010.

Steinour, a marketing graduate who begins pilot training for the Air Force in Oklahoma two days after the competition, co-founded Penn State's Bass Fishing Club in the fall of 2006 with his friends.

"My parents didn't really fish, but we lived by a creek [in Gettysburg, Pa.], so when I was 12, I decided I wanted to catch fish," Steinour said. "I'm a really obsessive and competitive person, so tournament fishing is perfect. I love the outdoors and I like that I get to travel for competitions."

Within the first year the Penn State club placed fifth in the Big Ten Classic in Madison, Wis., and participated in the Fox College Sports National Collegiate Bass Fishing Championship in Lewisville, TX.

Steinour, the former club president and Grube, the current president, have competed against each other in the past but had never fished in the same boat together as a team until this summer, when they finished fourth in the National Guard FLW College Fishing bass tournament on the Potomac River. The win qualified them for this weekend's regional championship. Their win earned Penn State a $1,500 donation, and if they win the regional event, Penn State will receive a $25,000 unrestricted donation.

To prepare for the regional championship, the teams get one practice day out on the water before the tournament begins. During this time they get a feel for the lake, try to find the fish, study maps of the river and lay out a strategy for winning. At the end of the tournament, each angler gets to weigh in his or her three biggest fish -- each team gets to weigh six fish total. The team with the heaviest fish wins. Fish are kept alive in an aquarium-like container on the boats and are released back into the water after weighed.

National Guard FLW College Fishing is a nationwide competitive bass-fishing program open to all full-time students at four-year colleges and universities. The competition can be seen live this weekend online.