BY FABIANA OTERO
On Friday, July 4, dozens of young anglers took part in the annual Red, White & Blue Fishing Tournament sponsored by the Village of Royal Palm Beach and the Royal Palm Bassmasters.
Members of the Bassmasters were on hand to assist and encourage the approximately 75 children who took part in the morning event.
Tournament Director Phil Northrop was pleased with the turnout and the engagement of the youngsters.
After the children presented their catches to be weighed, the numbers were tallied, everyone gathered together and the winners were announced. Bassmasters President Rick Rickenbach presented the winners with their awards.
Divided into groups by age and the type of fish, every child received something.
In the bass category, Hayden Klingensmith won first place for the 6 and under category; Jimmy Martin won first place for the 10 to 12 category; Dylan Cates, Alicia Latham and Brandon Hinkle won first through third place, respectively, for the 13 to 15 category; Kira Schartner, Kayla Neil and Bryson Lebrun won first through third place, respectively, for the adult/child category; and Jimmy Martin won big fish.
In the non-bass category, Brody Williams, Cody Arnold and Luca Gray won first through third place, respectively, for the 6 and under category; Hayden Gray, Dylan Ghetti and Matthew Mangioclo won first through third place, respectively, for the 7 to 9 category; Rebekah Dovey, Paige Kercheville and Jenna Kercheville won first through third place, respectively, for the 10 to 12 category; Vinny Loffredo and Olivia Agesto won first and second place for the adult/child category; and Vinny Loffredo won big fish.
Event sponsors included State Farm agent Barnie Walker, Southern Pool Plasters, Advanced Muffler & Brake, FishFreakOnLine.com, Walmart, Hilary’s Restaurant, Golden Corral, Costco and more.
The Royal Palm Bassmasters meets on the second Thursday of each month at 7 p.m. at the Royal Palm Beach Recreation Center, and fishing tournaments are also held monthly.
For more information, visit www.royalpalmbassmasters.org.
