That's right; bass fishing is a sanctioned Georgia High School Association (GHSA) varsity sport. The inaugural season took place last year. Evans High School of August caught the first GHSA Bass Fishing State Championship on May 8, 2021, at Lake Lanier. So far, five Savannah area schools have qualified for this year's GHSA Bass fishing tournament, which returns to Clarks Hill Lake on May 14, 2022. Like year one this year, the bass fishing season comprises four region-scheduled events.
GHSA Bass Fishing's second regional event was last weekend, February 12, 2022, at Lake Oconee. The Bryan County High School Redskins Bass Fishing team of Hunter Shuman and Logan Sehr caught the max limit of 5 total basses with a winning weight of 16lbs 15oz. In the event, 257 boats took part, and in its first-ever GHSA Bass Fishing regional qualifier, Bryan County High School took regional championship.
Also, qualifying was the Richmond Hill boat of Jagger Monaco and Joey Moore, who finished ninth. Richmond Hill High School now has two boats qualified for the state championships, and this is also Richmond Hill's first year of competing in GHSA sport of bass fishing. Not newcomers to the sport, Savannah Christian Preparatory Schools veteran anglers Mathew Gunn and Robert Miller hooked another state championship appearance with an 11th place finish. Gunn and Miller qualified last year.
The first regional event occurred at Lake Seminole on January 22, 2022. The Richmond Hill High School team of Branton Champion and Jackson Behringer placed fifth, followed by South Effingham High School Mustangs anglers Jon Goss and Trent Bryant in sixth. These were the only two Savannah area boats to qualify.
Like year one, the bass fishing season comprises four region-scheduled events. Each regional's top 15 boats advance to the state championship. One other boat will advance for every ten boats that compete in a regional with a minimum of 100 boats. Boats will advance to the state championship based on their performance in the first event they qualified for. If a boat has already qualified for the GHSA state championship, the next eligible boat will compete via the GHSA Bass Fishing rules.
The remaining qualifier schedule includes West Point Lake on March 19 and Lake Lanier on April 16. Then it's put the boats in the water at Clarke Hills Lake on May 14, 2022, for the 2022 GHSA Bass Fishing Championships.
Photo - Bryan County High School twitter
Optim Orthopedics supports Benedictine Military School, Calvary Day School, Richmond Hill High School, Savannah Country Day, South Effingham High School, and St. Vincent's athletics. Benedictine Military School's team doctor is Dr. David Sedory. Dr. David Palmer is the team doctor for Calvary Day School, South Effingham, and Richmond Hill. Savannah Country Day and St. Vincent's team doctor is Dr. Thomas Alexander.