Jr. Walleye Championship nets 27 teams

Tim Brody - Editor

A little rain didn’t dampen the spirits of participants in this year’s Jr. Walleye Championship presented by Sioux Lookout Anglers and Hunters and sponsored by Morgan Fuels.
Taking place on June 25, 27 teams took part in this year’s fishing tournament.
Taking place on the MAPB lakes (Minnitaki, Abram, Pelican and Botsford) each two-person team was able to submit four fish to be weighed. 
Teams were divided into under (10 and under) or over (11 - 17) age groups.
This year’s winners in the 10 and under category were, in first place - Jaxson & Mike Labelle  with a total weight of 8.54. Second place - Theo Mansfield & Bailey Gravelle with a total weight of 7.36. Third place - Brody Courchene & Derrick Sawdo with a total weight of 6.71, Courchene and Sawdo also had the big fish of the tournament at 5.04 pounds.
This year’s winners in the 11-17 category were, in first place - Hunter Atwood & Travis Tourond with a total weight of 8.94. In second place - Reese & Darren Sitar with a total weight of 7.29. And in third place - Kendall and BJ Egerter with a total weight of 7.19.
First place in each division won $500. Second place won $350, and third place won $200.
As the tournament drew to a close, teams raced to the Town Beach to have their catches weighed in.
Competitors, families, friends and community members congregated around the stage as team’s information was added to the leaderboard.
First place winner in the 11-17 category, Tourond said it was a good day on the water, “I thought the weather was going to turn the fish off, but we got to our first spot and it was good. We got our unders and then went looking for overs.”
He said it’s great to see the tournament held each year, “It’s great to see the kids out.”
Jenn Sitar shared after congratulating daughter Reece on her second place finish in the 11-17 category, “I just think that the quality of this tournament for the community is beautiful. It brings everyone together downtown at this new, beautiful site and it brings an energy to life here in Sioux Lookout. We have pristine waters and everybody’s out enjoying it today, rain or shine.”
BJ Egerter, who coordinator the tournament, said he was thrilled with the turnout, “I was so happy when I saw 12 (teams) and then I saw 20 (teams) and it just kept climbing, so I was very happy to see 27 teams out. It’s the best number of boats that I’ve organized, so it’s fantastic.”
He said competitors were pretty evenly split among the under and over categories.
Egerter thanked Morgan Fuels for their continued support of the tournament.
He further shared, “I’d also like to thank Al’s Sports for their great donations and sponsorship this year, Peter Barclay and Lac Seul Tackle – he donated all the jigs and spinners that got in the kids’ bags as well as to all of my volunteers who showed up to help up… I’d also like to thank Backwoods Company for taking care of the plaques for us and giving us a fantastic deal.”