Things did not always go smoothly for Manteca High senior Austin Barnes and teammate Niko Mirante leading up to and during the 16th Student Angler Federation High School Fishing World Finals & National Championship, which took place June 24-28 at Grand Lake O’ the Cherokees in Grove, Okla.
The prize they earned at the end made it all worth it.
Representing the San Joaquin BassMasters Club, Barnes and Mirante were among the three California tandems to each receive $200,000 scholarship offers — to be split in half by each team — from the Simpson University bass fishing team after qualifying for the World Finals.
“It was eye-opening,” Barnes said of his first experience at the event. His father, Brian, served as boat captain.
Mirante, of Copperopolis, competed at the 15th SAF High School World Finals & National Championship with Manteca High grad Zackary Anderson in South Carolina.
“We just went out there each day, played it smart and learned from our mistakes,” Austin said. “It was a grind. There was a lot of adversity.”
Inclement weather on the way forced a detour that added 200 miles to the trip, then the check-engine light flashed on in Brian Barnes’ truck. They also dealt with battery and motor issues with the boat. To top it all off, all teams looking to practice in the days prior to the tournament were forced to launch their boats off the parking on the roads, because of the raised water levels on the lake caused by recent rainstorms.
They started strong in the national championship, weighing in at 11.4 pounds and ending day 1 at 26th place out of 232 teams. Barnes and Mirante ended up in 71st place with a two-day total of 17.3 pounds.
Three hundred and eighty-three teams entered the World Finals, with some arriving from Canada, Japan and Zimbabwe.
Barnes and Mirante were among the 31 teams to advance to the World Finals, placing 29th. They were each awarded a plaque for making the World Finals, but scholarship offer was the biggest prize for Barnes. Although he has not yet committed to accepting the scholarship, Barnes said Simpson University has been one of his top choices. He also plays basketball and competes on the Manteca High varsity team.
“It’s really a dream come true,” Barnes said. “I always see Simpson boats on the Delta. Getting the check that day, a lot of thoughts went through my head. Niko and I are really blessed to get this opportunity to pursue our dreams of fishing at an even higher level.”
The Barnes family has been involved with San Joaquin BassMasters Club for three years. Austin’s mother, Becky, is a board member. The club held multiple fund raisers to get aid the two youngsters.
“There were a lot of people behind us that got us to Oklahoma and back,” Austin Barnes said. “There were probably 500 people that pitched in and helped us out. We really couldn’t have done it without them.”
