(LEBANON, Ill., June 12)--The McKendree University bass fishing program sent four teams recently to the FLW National Finals. The event was held on the Red River in Shreveport, La., and consisted of 168 of the best teams from 94 different universities across the country.

"Little did these guys know what was in store for them at the time they qualified," said McKendree bass fishing coach Jon Rinderer. "If you've never been to the Red River near Shreveport, you have to know how tough it is. To start off, you must realize these guys are on unfamiliar water for 12-14 hours a day during practice for two or three consecutive days prior to the tournament. Then, two or three tournament days from 5:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. Now factor in the environment with daily temperatures around 95 to 100 degrees, a shallow stump-filled lake where GPS systems are not accurate and navigation is treacherous, often causing both anglers to climb out of the boat and push it out of the mud. There are biting ants everywhere, mosquitoes like you've never seen before, poisonous cottonmouth water moccasins everywhere, and more than once on the end of their line, alligators...big alligators. They are seven to 12 feet long and swimming near the boat. Several times they even got hooked on our lines. Just getting everyone and their boats back in one piece and in working order would have been considered a success."

Once again, McKendree stepped up and had a very successful tournament. Shane Campbell (Highland, IL/Highland) and Phillip Germagliotti (Highland, IL/Highland) weighed in at 14 pounds, nine ounces and placed 21st overall. The duo of Joseph Bruener (Douglas, TX/Douglas) and Nate Doty (Decatur, IL/Sangamon Valley) caught the Bearcats' only two-day, 10-fish limit and weighed in at 12 pounds, one ounce to grab 45th place. Trevor McKinney (Benton, IL/Benton) and Taylor Schmitt (Lebanon, IL/Lebanon) combined to catch 11 pounds, 13 pounds for 47th place, while Jacob Louis (Pinckneyville, IL/Pinckneyville) and J.T. Russell had nine pounds, 12 ounces for 65th place. 

The McKendree bass fishing program now gets a much-needed break before taking three boats to the Bassmaster National Championship on Lake Tenkiller in Oklahoma in mid-July. Then the following week the Bearcats will fish the FLW Regional on the Mississippi River in Wabasha, Minn.