DATE: Monday, August 18, 1997               TAG: 9708180176

SECTION: SPORTS                  PAGE: C7   EDITION: FINAL 

SOURCE: BY BOB HUTCHINSON, OUTDOORS EDITOR 

                                            LENGTH:  119 lines

WEEKEND FISHING

The private boat Wet Floors out of Atlantic Beach, N.C., won the annual Pirate's Cove Marina billfish release tournament by boating a 670-pound blue marlin and releasing a white marlin for 740 points.

The contest, based at the Manteo marina, attracted a record field of 84 boats and paid out $347,000 in prize money.

The Wet Floor's big blue was boated by Jonathan Stallings of Raleigh. The contest began Tuesday and ended Friday, and produced 109 billfish releases, plus four boated blue marlin.

Meanwhile, the annual Little Creek Marina billfish release tournament Saturday and Sunday out of the Norfolk facility failed to produce a billfish.

Gwinn Ward of Quinby, Va., boated a 66 1/2-pound yellowfin tuna for the top catch in the annual all-female Chic's Charter Club tuna tournament out of Wachapreague on the Eastern Shore. She was aboard the Four Sons.

Elsewhere, big flounder and spadefish continued to reward Chesapeake Bay anglers with citation awards from the Virginia Salt Water Fishing Tournament. The weekend's biggest reported Chesapeake Bay flounder was a 9-pound, 4-ounce lunker boated off Cape Charles by Mike Jones of Chesapeake, fishing on the boat Sean. Claude Blemmer of Chesapeake had a 7-4 flatfish on the same trip.

On the freshwater scene, Harold Bowden of Windsor earned citation awards from the Virginia Fresh Water Fishing Program with a 1-pound bream and a 1-11 shellcracker at Western Branch Reservoir in Suffolk.

Here's a rundown of other recent catches:

VIRGINIA BEACH INSHORE: Cobia: Daniel Andrasen, Norfolk, 46 pounds, caught on the boat Sea Weed.

VIRGINIA BEACH OFFSHORE: Blue marlin releases: John Hamilton, Virginia Beach, Calcutta; Josh Malbon, Virginia Beach, Sneek-E-Peet; and James Alexander Moore, Virginia Beach, Chaos. White marlin releases: Mark Laboccetta, Virginia Beach, Sneek-E-Peet; David Limroth, Virginia Beach, Samurai; Wayland Pond, Suffolk, Peanut Patch; Mark Wilging, Virginia Beach, Sea Cave;Craig Ruetzel (2), Virginia Beach, Comp Time; Lawrence A. I'Anson III, Portsmouth, Filipe DaSilva, Virginia Beach, Andrew Spiess, Virginia Beach, and Eddie Spearman, Virginia Beach, all from the Blue Magic; John Whittemore, Virginia Beach, Poor Girl; Larry Cullen, Virginia Beach, Predator; Patricia Candia, Virginia Beach, Calcutta; Mark Evans, Yorktown, Striker; Kathryn Falk, Virginia Beach, 0 Four; Phillip Decker, Virginia Beach, Khalil Elhabr, Virginia Beach, William A. Gooch, Virginia Beach, and Johnathan Ryan, Virginia Beach, all from the Chaos; and Lori A. Stiles, Virginia Beach, Our Dream.

Wahoo: Bill Schonauer, Virginia Beach, 53-0, Anticipation. Yellowfin tuna: Charles F. Lovell, Chesapeake, 90-8, Screaming Eagle; and Tim McElhenie, Norfolk, 76-8, Mac-A-Doo.

LOWER CHESAPEAKE BAY: Black drum releases: Mark Campbell, Virginia Beach, and Kevin Laxton, Virginia Beach, both from the Li'l Suzy; Chuck Harrison, Virginia Beach, Oyster Toad; Joshua Keeut, Virginia Beach, Finatic; and Kelly R. Matthews, Virginia Beach, Clarence E. Howard, Virginia Beach, and Russell G. Shaffer, Hampton, all from the Prowler. Cobia: William Overton, Chesapeake, 63-0, Dream Weaver; and Robert Julian Jr., Virginia Beach, 58-0, Sea Craft. Cobia release: Andy Thompson, Virginia Beach, Fin-S.

Flounder: Sean Janeseck, Virginia Beach, 8-8, and Andrew Parsons, Virginia Beach, 6-0, both from the Miss Anna; John Kleinknecht, Norfolk, 8-0, and Don Myers, Virginia Beach, 6-8, both from the Get The Net; Terry Miltier, Norfolk, 7-11, Wildabeast; Stuart Chesson, Virginia Beach, 7-0, Finatic; Michael Weatherford, Virginia Beach, 7-0, Reel Classic; Swede Owens, Portsmouth, 6-8, Lil Bert; Ed Wood Sr., Portsmouth, 6-8, Hooked; Robert Foster, Virginia Beach, 6-4, Foster Corp.; J.W. Godwin Jr., Virginia Beach, 6-3, Kristen; Ron Proffitt, Virginia Beach, 6-3, no name on boat; James Dixon, Chesapeake, 6-2, no name; Charles Young, Norfolk, 6-2, Snow Goose; and James Gazaway, Portsmouth, 6-2, Little Joe.

Spadefish: Elliott Warsoff, Virginia Beach, 9-0, Jack Jennings, Virginia Beach, 7-9, and Bert Gray, Virginia Beach, 7-4, all from the Delta Bravo; A. Leslie Parr, Virginia Beach, 8-8, and Charles Parker, Virginia Beach, 7-12, both from the Seminar; Robert Meier, Chesapeake, 8-8, John Trant III, Virginia Beach, 8-0, Larry I'Anson, Portsmouth, 7-0, and James Blaketer, Virginia Beach, 7-0, all from the Weekend Fisherman; Pete Peterson, Norfolk, 7-10, Reel Fun; Daniel Kee, Chesapeake, 7-9, Caroline Melody; Jay Terry, Chesapeake, 7-9, and Margaret C. Toms, Norfolk, 7-2, both from the Lil Bert; James C. Wright, Virginia Beach, 7-4, Tudor; and Thomas Nixon Sr., Norfolk, 7-0, Tuff Stuff.

EASTERN SHORE: Red drum: Sonny Spiers, Cheriton, Va., 53-0, Old Hickory. Flounder: Bob Warren, Murfreesboro, N.C., 7-5, no name; Winfield Ellwanger, Cherrystone, Va., 7-4, no name; Wilson Leggett, Seaview, Va., 6-14, no name; Phil Johring, Cherrystone, Va., 6-12, no name; Bill Sadukas, Cherrystone, Va., 6-7, no name; and Mark Short, Toano, Va., 6-3, no name.

OUTER BANKS INSHORE: King mackerel: Lee Twiddy, Kitty Hawk, 49-0, caught from Kitty Hawk Pier. Sheepshead: Justin Hurst, Suffolk, 12-8, Lost at Sea. Kingfish (sea mullet): Justin Morgan, Norfolk, 1-11, caught from the surf.

OUTER BANKS OFFSHORE: Blue marlin release: Ed Frock, Manteo, Outer Limits. Blue marlin: Don Herring, Norfolk, 424-0, Smoker. White marlin releases: Thad Hull, Elizabeth City, Hatteras Fever II; David Spring, Williamsburg, Candlewick Lady; and Ed Frock, Manteo, Outer Limits. Dolphin: David Hoover, Colington, N.C., 43-0, Candlewick Lady. Sailfish release: Michael Seimetz, Chesapeake, Pelican.

FRESHWATER: Largemouth bass: Tom Gilmet, Windsor, 24 1/2 inches, caught at Western Branch Reservoir; Paul Knowles, Chesapeake, 23 3/4 inches, Lake Prince; and Tim Farrell, Suffolk, 22 1/2 inches, Speight's Run. Yellow perch: Adam Skinner, Wakefield, 1-7, Prince; Jeff Beard, Chesapeake, 1-2, Prince; and Anthony McLaughlin, Chesapeake, 12 inches, Western Branch. White perch: James Worrell, Suffolk, 1-7, Prince. Shellcracker: Tommy Salmon, Courtland, 1-8, Western Branch; Harry Griffin, Windsor, 1-2, Western Branch; Jim Simmons, Chesapeake, 1-1, Western Branch; and Erica McCracken, Virginia Beach, 11 inches, Western Branch. Channel catfish: Flea Davis, Chesapeake, 33-0, James River; Charlie Weise, Virginia Beach, 28-0, James River; and Van Turpin, Chesapeake, 25-0, James River.

TOURNAMENTS:

Results of the Little Creek Marina billfish release tournament: Dolphin, Willie Copeland, Windsor, 11-8, Tappa B.; tuna, Richard Rouse, Norfolk, 52-0, Terese B.; wahoo, Omar McCall, Washington, D.C., 18-8, El Gato.

Results of the Pirate's Cove Marina billfish release tournament: 1. Wet Floors, 740 points for a 670-pound blue marlin and one white marlin release; 2. Surfside, 350 points for one blue marlin release, two white marlin releases and two sailfish releases; 3. Huntress, 280 points for two blue marlin releases and two white marlin releases (released billfish scored 70 points). Tuna, Barbara Davis, Wanchese, N.C., 58-3, Anamar; wahoo, Barbara Davis, 94-0, Anamar; dolphin, angler unknown, 30-0, Country Girl. Top female angler, Barbara Davis, Anamar; top junior angler, Dell Williamson, white marlin release, Hog Wild; boat with most tagged billfish, Leslie Ann, two white marlin; 14th billfish caught, Tom Corr, address unknown, Summer Girl.

Results of the Chic's Charter Club tuna tournament out of Wachapreague Marina: Tuna, Gwinn Ward, Quinby, Va., 66-8, Four sons; dolphin, Angie Yeager, Annapolis, Md., 14-6, Heat Wave; wahoo, Debbie Moon, Wachapreague, 16-8, Foxy Lady.

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