Silverdale Baptist Academy anglers Ethan and Lincoln Phillips fish during the Tennessee High School Fishing State Championship while Billy Fryar pilots the boat on Nickajack Lake in Kimball, Tenn.More than 100 two-student teams are expected in Dayton this Saturday for the Tennessee high school fishing tournament.
“The last time I checked late last week, 96 teams had registered, so we’ll probably have more than 100 boats for the tournament,” Rhea County coach Brian Derlak said. “We’re super tickled at the opportunity to have a state tournament right here in Dayton.”
Takeoff from the Dayton Boat Dock is scheduled for 6:15 a.m.; weigh-in is at 3 p.m.
Area schools participating in the tournament along with Rhea County are East Hamilton, Grundy County, Silverdale Baptist and Soddy-Daisy.
While some teams will be getting their first competitive look at Lake Chickamauga, Silverdale hosted a tournament there on May 17. A Rhea County team (Justin Wright and Cody Gunter) won it, and a Soddy-Daisy duo (Slater Daniel and Eli Thomas) finished second.