Highland High School anglers net 2nd place at IHSA sectional, advance to state finals

With last year’s fishing season canceled due to COVID-19, the Highland High School bass fishing team went into the 2021 IHSA sectional tournament hungry to fish.

The Bulldog anglers competed in the Coffeen Lake Sectional on Thursday, May 6, and, although the team had two lightning delays to contend with, they completed the tournament and fished the entire day.

In a field that included 14 schools and 26 boats, the Highland team of senior Evan Sutton and junior Logan Oestringer, with boat captain and HHS coach Jon Rinderer, took second place with a five fish limit weighing in at 12.19 pounds.

Junior Cole Brown and freshman Dylan Beadle, in Highland’s second boat guided by Scott Sautman, finished in 19th place with three fish weighing in at 5.23 pounds. Only the top three boats at each sectional tourney advance to the state final tournament.

Alton Marquette finished first at the Coffeen Sectional with 12.73 pounds and Hillsboro High School finished third with 11.19 pounds. Along with Highland, both of these teams will also advance and fish at the IHSA state finals tourney.

The IHSA state final tournament, which will host the 75 qualifiers from the 25 sectionals held across the state, is currently scheduled for Friday, May 21, and Saturday, May 22, on Carlyle Lake.