Clarence Jenkins and Chuck Conger won the first event in the Big Bash Bass Tournament series Saturday at Beaverdam Park. The pair weighed in a catch of 16 lbs. 4 oz.

Steve Coffin and Eddie Coffin were second with 15 lbs. 13 oz.; Quillie Countiss and Robert Countiss were third with 15 lbs. 8 oz.; Richard Thurston was fourth with 12 lbs. 10 oz., and Jerry Jenkins and Ricky West were fifth with 11 lbs. 9 oz. Robert Countiss had the big fish of the tourney with a 6-lb. 8-oz. specimen.

Most of the fishing at Beaverdam last week focused on crappie, according to park ranger Eddie Hester. He said Darnell Whitehead of Newport News hooked 23 crappie, with some weighing a pound and a half and one that tipped the scale at 2 lbs. 4 oz.

Hester said chain pickerel are also being caught in large numbers, as some anglers reported catching as many as 20 a day. The reservoir is now at 50 degrees with a full, slightly stained pool.
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