CHS anglers make National Bass Fishing Championships

June 7, 2023 by Ken Lay

For the second-consecutive year, Clinton High School will be represented at the National Bass Fishing Championships.

After posting a fifth-place finish Saturday at the state championships, Clinton sophomores J.C. Mashburn and Kobe Walden advanced to the national tournament at Lake Hartwell in Anderson, South Carolina, July 27-29.

Clinton is coached by the husband and wife tandem of David and Rachel Jones. They both teach special education at CHS.

The duo also coached Anderson County High’s fishing team during the 2022-23 school year.

Clinton has had a fishing team for several years.

“We actually started the fishing team several years ago; one of the boys on the team ... started the team,” Rachel Jones said. “My husband knows everything there is to know about fishing, and I handle the paperwork, the administrative stuff. He doesn’t do paperwork, and I just finished registering them for the nationals.

“This year, we coached the team for A.C. because they couldn’t get a coach,” she said. “They couldn’t find anybody to take it on and I didn’t want their kids to miss the opportunity to have a team and fish.”

Mashburn and Walden finished fifth at the state in a field of 202 boats, and will be heading to the Palmetto State with big plans, after a tough go of things last year on the national scene.

“Last year, they finished 56th in the state; and at nationals, they didn’t do so well,” Rachel Jones said.

“I think they finished something like 102nd.”

At the nationals, Mashburn and Walden won’t only compete against some the country’s top anglers; they’ll face some of the top competition in the world.

“It is the national championship, but there will be kids there from other countries,” Jones said.

In preparation for the nationals, Clinton’s duo will head to South Carolina to scout fishing spots later this month.

“They’ll probably head over later in June because they can’t be at Lake Hartwell in July,” Jones said.

“These kids understand the work that it takes and they know what‘s in store for them. They’re working hard. J.C.’s dad is their boat captain.”

For high school anglers, preparation goes well beyond the water.

“They have to go with their boat captains and scout out spots, and they also have to make sure that they have the proper clothing,” Jones said.

“They have to make sure that they have the right gear, because they’ll leave for a tournament around 3 a.m. and they won’t get home until about 8 or 9 o’clock at night.”