Despite being formed three years ago, the bass fishing team has become one of the elite fishing programs in the country after earning a second place national ranking in the 2011 Collegiate Bass Fishing Championships.
The ten-man team is led by fishing duo Nick LaDart (team Vice-President) and Brian Eaton who placed fourth in last year’s national championship out of 200 entered teams.
After Paul Clark took over as president last year, the team competes in 10-15 tournaments a season, which kicks off this spring and lasts into the summer months.
“In fishing it’s all about consistency. It’s easy to win one tournament a year, but our goal is to win every tournament we enter,” LaDart said.
The team has higher expectations for this year’s tournament schedule and is looking to overtake first ranked Stephen F. Austin.
The team has picked up several local sponsors. The team doesn’t receive any funding from ULM, because it isn’t recognized as a NCAA sport.
LaDart said, “We supply all of our own money through fundraisers and out of our own pockets.” He said, “We should at least receive some support from the University for the way we have represented
ULM this year.” With additional funding, LaDart said he hopes the team can travel to more tournaments throughout the country, and this is “valuable experience” for such a young team.