Two University fishing teammates reeled in an unusual catch May 28 — $6,000, to be exact.

After four days of battling more than 90 degree weather on Dallas/Fort-Worth’s Lewisville Lake impoundment, University of Georgia’s Ben Cleary and Bo Page won the 2010 Boat US Collegiate Bass Fishing Championship, and the $6,000 first-place prize that went along with it. The money will be used by the University of Georgia Bass Fishing Club.

“I knew we were on some pretty good fish after day one,” Page said. “I felt pretty confident because we were fishing in spots that were reloaded with fish every day.”

The dynamic duo reeled against more than 300 anglers from across the United States in hopes of reeling in the highest combined weight of bass. During two days, Page and Cleary caught a combined weight of 36.4 pounds, beating the pair of Tyler Beam and Eric Self from the University of North Carolina-Charlotte by a solid 2.85 pounds, as Beam and Self ended the tournament with a combined weight of 33.56 pounds.

Using watermelon and football jigs, Page and Cleary weighed in at 18.34 pounds on the first day of the tournament, landing in third place.

“I am glad we were not leading after day one because there was no bull’s-eye on us,” Cleary said. “I thought we could come back on day two.”

Although exhausted from the excruciating heat and endless hours of standing on day one, both Cleary and Page awoke on day two determined to do something no school in the Southeastern Conference had ever done before — win the BoatUS Collegiate Bass Fishing Championship.

The team weighed in at 18.07 pounds on day two, securing their

victory.

“It was a great accomplishment for us,” Cleary said.

Due to their win, the pair automatically qualified for the 2011 Bass Federation National Championship, which Page revealed he is already getting a start on.

Ben Cleary and Bo Page show off their catch, which helped them win the Collegiate Bass Fishing Championship title in May. PHOTO COURTESY COLLEGIATE BASS FISHING CHAMPIONSHIP.

“To prepare for the Bass Federation National Championship I plan to research the lake and get as much information as possible,” Page said. “Hopefully I can figure out a pattern.”

Cleary, a rising junior at the University, grew up in Covington. Cleary first started fishing when he was three years old, and at fourteen began competitive fishing.

“I love the competition more than anything,” Cleary said.  Cleary is currently an Agribusiness major and said he may pursue a career in professional fishing or with an outdoor company.

Aside from fishing, he said he enjoys many things any normal University of Georgia student would.

“I love to hang out with the guys on the fishing team,” he said. “I like to go to Georgia sporting events, especially football.”

Cleary is home for the summer, but plans to continue to fish for Georgia when he returns in the fall.

Page, a recent University alumnus from Canton, began fishing in college and said he enjoys the competition aspect most about the sport.

The Lewisville win was huge for Page.

“It was the highlight of my fishing career,” he said. “I just graduated so it put a good end to my fishing career at UGA.”