West Alabama and a Virginia father-son team win MLF events on Cherokee Lake

Cherokee Lake near Jefferson City, Tenn., hosted two Major League Fishing youth events last weekend.

In Friday's Columbia PFG College Fishing presented by Abu Garcia tournament, the University of West Alabama's Cooper McDonald and Hayden Seabolt won with five bass weighing 16 pounds, 12 ounces. The win paid $2,100 and earned the team a spot in the 2027 college national championship. MLF says they fished worms on rock points. Their best fish included a 3-pound largemouth and a 4-pound, 1-ounce smallmouth that McDonald caught. Emmanuel University (Jackson Thomas) was second with 15-13, and Campbellsville University (Eli and Sam Scroggins) was third with 15-9.

In Saturday's Abu Garcia High School Fishing Open presented by Tackle Warehouse, John and Jacob Hicks of SML Anglers in Bedford, Va., won with four bass for 12-4. Hamblen County Anglers' Elijah Caudill and Dawson Shultz were just 2 ounces back at 12-2. Both teams advance to the 2027 high school national championship. Premiere Anglers finished third with 11-13.

Photo: Cooper McDonald and Hayden Seabolt of the University of West Alabama with their first-place check. Credit: Major League Fishing.

This is a The Gillnet news desk summary, not a reprint.

Source: Major League Fishing — University of West Alabama Wins Columbia PFG College Fishing Tournament on Cherokee Lake (Oct. 26, 2026); MLF — SML Anglers Win Abu Garcia High School Fishing Open on Cherokee Lake (Oct. 26, 2026).