Americana Outdoors E-Magazine - May 2022

day one, and on day two, he managed 12.09. His total weight of 30.01 pounds placed him third. “I’m just familiar with fishing Missouri River reservoirs, especially what postspawn fish look for. I’m absolutely happy with third place.” ARNOLDUSSEN RALLIES TO FOURTH, COON RETAINS FIFTH Rounding out the top five are pros Dean Arnoldussen and Jeremy Coon. Arnoldussen, the 2017 NWT Championship winner, skyrocketed up the leaderboard today with 18.76 pounds, the second-heaviest limit of the tournament. Combined with his 10.75 from day one, the veteran Wisconsin stick finished the tournament fourth overall with a total weight of 29.51 pounds. Coon, the local stick from Wolsey, S.D., managed limits of 15.55 and 13.08. He finished fifth with a cumulative weight of 28.63 pounds. Rounding out the top 10 pros at the NWT event on Lake Francis Case: 6th: Sammy Cappelli of Poland, Ohio, ten walleyes, 28.33 7th: Ted Takasaki of Sioux Falls, S.D., ten walleyes, 27.95 8th: Tommy Kemos of Oconomowoc, Wis., ten walleyes, 27.59 9th: Keith Kavajecz of Deerbrook, Wis., ten walleyes, 27.59 10th: Ray Wellman of Pukwana, S.D., ten walleyes, 27.52 Up next The NWT swings east for its third event of the 2022 season, held June 9-10 on the Mississippi River in Prairie du Chien, Wis. REST OF THE BEST

On day one, Lorensen caught two overs. On day two, he boated only one, but it was an incredibly fat prespawner. While it measured only 24 inches, Lorensen said it weighed well over 6 pounds. “Honestly, I was surprised that jigging was so successful last year. It’s tough to do it consistently for two days. The crankbaits are typically going to give you a better chance at consistency. The one thing I’ve learned about this place is that the fish will open their mouths, but you’ve got to be there when they do.” NORTHROP SLIPS TO THIRD With two nice overs on day one, Cody Northrop thought he had a realistic shot at winning the tournament. Today, he was again able to cobble together two overs, although they shrunk a bit. “We were catching the slot fish this morning; I just couldn’t get an over,” said Northrop, the winner of the 2020 NWT event on Lake Sakakawea. “At 10:30, I made the decision to run 30 miles south to a big fish spot where I caught one of my overs yesterday. I had time for about two passes, and I ended up getting a 20 1/2 and a 19-inch slot fish. Then we had to drop the cameraman off and head back. I had time for one more pass by the ramp, and with about 20 minutes to go I caught a 20-incher.” At times Northrop was in sight of Kjelden, and the two ran largely the same crankbait programs. “It was all crankbaits, all the time for me. Bombers (24) worked best as we followed contours at 2 mph. We ran our leadcore with a 6-foot Denali rod out the back and a 12-foot Denali rod on the side. The soft tip lets you know when you have a bite, and the power is great for fighting fish in current.”

With the bigger overs, Northrop weighed 17.92 on