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Jack Wollitz: Anglers will reel in awards today
Later today at a banquet center in Hubbard, around 30 of the best bass anglers in the Youngstown area will gather to celebrate the accomplishments of the members of their bass fishing club.
It’s the annual awards banquet for Mohawk Valley Bass Club and members will crown their 2018 season champions. Fish tales will fly fast and furious at this evening’s event, some of them perhaps a bit exaggerated because that’s the way it always is when fishermen share stories.
The evening is an annual highlight for the club’s members. It’s the time when the top anglers get a moment in the spotlight because of their angling prowess as measured against the performance of a strong corps of anglers.
They include the young up-and-comers seeking to make their marks and the veteran sticks whose instincts are honed by years of experience on waters they know as well as the veins on the backs of their hands.
A variety of awards will be given for individual tournament performances. Topping the evening’s festivities will be the three major trophies of 2019.
The Mr. Bass award will go to Jason Abbott, a Trumbull County angler who backed up his 2017 title with another great year in 2018. The award goes to the angler who scores the most points throughout the year and Abbott outdistanced the entire membership with multiple wins during the past season.
Doug Iorio, a western Pennsylvanian, earned the other two top Mohawk honors. He dominated the two-day Fall Classic contested on Pymatuning and Mosquito to secure the first-place trophy. He also claimed the Tommy Award, given annually to the Mohawk member who catches the largest bass of the year.
The Tommy is especially meaningful, as it is named in honor of the late Tommy Ventresco, a long-time member and many-time champion. Iorio’s biggest fish was a largemouth of nearly six pounds caught at Lake Wilhelm during the Mohawk tournament there last summer.
Mohawk Valley Bass Club, which has been in operation for more than 40 years, is one of two bass clubs in our area. The other is Ohio Valley Bass Anglers, which meets in Columbiana. Both clubs include members from throughout Mahoning, Trumbull and Columbiana counties, as well as Lawrence and Mercer counties in Pennsylvania.
Ohio Valley and Mohawk present excellent opportunities for anglers who are interested in learning and competing in the excitement of organized bass fishing competition.
Mohawk Valley members meet monthly at the Maennerchor Club on Mahoning Avenue and fish a full schedule of catch-and-release bass tournaments throughout northeastern Ohio, western Pennsylvania and upstate New York. Though it meets in Youngstown, the club’s name harks back to its earliest days when monthly meetings were in Mohawk school district in Lawrence County.
The 2018 season of Mohawk Valley Bass Club included tournaments on Lake Erie, Chautauqua Lake, the Ohio River, West Branch, Milton, Mosquito, Pymatuning, Shenango and Lake Wilhelm.
Mohawk’s 2019 tournament director is Jonathan Creed, who also is a senior member of the Youngstown State University intercollegiate bass fishing team. He’s lined up a challenging schedule of tournaments this year and the membership is looking forward to the season opener April 13 on Mosquito Creek Reservoir.
Mohawk and Ohio Valley always welcome new members. Readers who may be interested in membership in either club may contact me via the email address at the end of today’s column and I’ll provide contact information for the clubs.