PARIS, Tenn. – The McKendree bass fishing team competed in the Bass Pro Shops Big Bass Bash presented by Berkley this past weekend held here at Kentucky Lake.

Two anglers from McKendree claimed the title in two of the three sessions held on Sunday and the team was awarded the most points in the competition for the School of the Year standings. McKendree entered the event sitting third in the most recent Bass Pro Shops School of the Year standings presented by Abu Garcia.
 
After a tough first day on the water, which included only four fish in four sessions for McKendree, the team was able to bounce back on day two to finish on top in two of the sessions and earn the highest School of the Year total points for the event, resulting in a first place finish overall for the team. School of the Year points are determined by the team's two largest catches in the tournament. 
 
In session one on Sunday, freshman Kai Barnett (Columbiana, Ala./Shelby County) was the top finisher for McKendree, taking sixth place with the weigh-in of a 3.53-pound bass.
 
For session two, senior Harper Burkeen (Paducah, Ky./McCracken County) claimed first place with a 5.43-pound bass, marking the second-biggest bass in the tournament overall. Burkeen finished second overall behind Dallas Baptist's Parker Brown, who posted a 7.21-pound final weight in session three of day one. Junior Grant Olsen (Gardner, Ill./Gardner South Wilmington) placed sixth in the session, posting 3.54 pounds with his catch.
 
Session three sealed the win for the Bearcats as freshman Ethan Fields (Breese, Ill./Mater Dei) took first with a 5.39-pound bass, the fourth-largest in the tournament. Fields finished fourth overall just .01 pound behind the third-place finisher, Levi Mullens of Bethel University. Junior Tomas Matual (Chicago, Ill./Nazareth) recorded a 3.92-pound bass, placing seventh in the third session.
 
McKendree's overall standings from the Big Bass Bass presented by Berkley:
 
2nd – Harper Burkeen (Day 2 / Session 2 - 5.43 lbs.)
4th – Ethan Fields (Day 2 / Session 3 - 5.39 lbs.)
27th – Tomas Matual (Day 2 / Session 3 - 3.93 lbs.)
T-46th – Grant Olsen (Day 2 / Session 2 - 3.54 lbs.)
49th – Kai Barnett (Day 2 / Session 1 - 3.50 lbs.)
T-51st – Tucker Siminak (Antioch, Ill./Antioch) (Day 1 / Session 3 - 3.48 lbs.)
84th - Fields (Day 1 / Session 4 - 3.17 lbs.)
91st – Will Hornsby (Morris, Ill./Morris) (Day 1 / Session 3 - 3.07 lbs.)
T-107th – Colsyn Head (Poland, Ind./Owen Valley) (Day 1 / Session 4 - 2.84 lbs.)
 
McKendree's next competition is Sept. 30-Oct. 3 as Tyler Christy (Bolingbrook, Ill./Bolingbrook) and Trey Schroeder (Crestwood, Mo./Lindbergh), who finished in the top four at the Bassmaster College Series National Championships, compete in the College Classic Bracket Finals in Greenwood, S.C. at Greenwood Lake.
 
The remainder of the bass fishing team will resume regular season as they host the McKendree Fall Invitational on Oct. 1-2 at Vandalia Lake in Vandalia, Ill.