Franklin College bass fishing team spent the weekend on Kentucky Lake in Tennessee, where it made its intercollegiate competition debut at the ACA Big Bass Bash. Carson Volz and Logan Oppy represented the Griz at the event.

Most collegiate tournaments involve participants catching a predetermined number of fish (most often five), with the total weight of those fish determining placement in the team and individual standings. The Big Bass Bash, though, was scheduled as a two-day individual tournament with four weigh-in times scheduled on Saturday and three more on Sunday; a lightning delay on Sunday eliminated one of those weigh-ins.

The emphasis is typically on catching the single largest bass. Participants often compete to see who can catch the biggest individual fish, with prizes awarded for the largest catches.

Competing in a field of 630 anglers from schools all over the country, Franklin College did pretty well for its first collegiate tournament; Volz placed 106th overall, while Oppy was 293rd.

The anglers were targeting smallmouth and largemouth bass that had to measure at least 15 inches to be eligible for weigh-in. Volz weighed in three of the six sessions, with a high placement of 26th in the fourth Saturday session for his 3.88-pound catch. Volz was 35th and Oppy 40th in the third Saturday weigh-in with respective catches of 2.78 and 2.43 pounds.

The Grizzlies will be back in action Oct. 11-12 at the AFTCO Collegiate Bass Open on Lake Dardanelle in Arkansas.