St. Laurence fishermen study up on state final

St. Laurence took family fishing all the way to the state finals.

The Vikings won a tough Wolf Lake sectional in late April to qualify for the first time for the IHSA state championship for bass fishing on Carlyle Lake.

The flooding in April caused the state championship, originally scheduled for May 3-4, to be postponed until this weekend.

“I have been doing some research, a cousin has a couple buddies who fish it,’’ said senior Zach Marcolini, who caught the two bass needed to win on Wolf Lake.

They fished Wolf Lake in the boat of Zach’s 25-year-old brother John.

“He guides us, offers pointers if he sees something we missed,’’ Zach Marcolini said. “He really does a great job.’’

Another brother, Nick, will be the driver at state.

Each boat has up to two student fishermen and an adult boat driver. Each boat may weigh its five heaviest black bass, 12 inches or longer.

The other advancing Viking — sophomore Santo Munizzi — also comes from a fishing family; his uncle and dad are tournament fishermen

“Both [students] are getting as much background on the lake as possible,’’ St. Laurence coach Barry Shaw said.

This year will be another different experience on Carlyle with a later start, which means fish will be in a different part of spawn (or post-spawn). And the high water may leave cloudier water than normal.

St. Laurence’s fishing program is in its third year. Shaw said the Vikings had about 12 serious fishermen out of about 75 students who expressed interest.

“I am looking to getting a bigger experience in the bass fishing world: bigger fish and better fishing,’’ Marcolini said.