Jessica Hickey displays her catch before taking home top honors for the Bobcats on Lake Champlain. (Provided photo — Paul Smith’s College/Brett Wimsatt)

CHAZY — To kick off her final year with the Paul Smith’s College Bass Fishing team, senior angler Jessica Hickey of Tewksbury, Massachusetts, brought home her first-ever first-place trophy in the team’s first event of the collegiate fall season.

The team competed against 21 other teams on the northern end of Lake Champlain in the North Country Bass Anglers (NCBA) event. With a successful practice day under their belts, two PSC boats took off at 7 a.m. on Saturday with high hopes. Battling high winds and big waves, many teams struggled to locate offshore bass to be able to effectively fish the shallow water structure.

The duo of Kirk Smith of Henderson and Collin Trapiss fought through tough conditions and finished the day in the middle of the pack. The team of Jessica Hickey and head coach Brett Wimsatt was able to execute their plan flawlessly and secure a first-place finish with a 20.42 lb total bag.

“It feels incredible to finally break through,” said Hickey, who has been a mainstay on the team since its inception in 2022. “The key for the day was slowing down and locking in on finesse fishing.”

Head coach Brett Wimsatt was thrilled about the performance of his senior trawler, complimenting her strategy while recalling the fortuitous practice round, which led to not only first-place honors but the Big Bass of the tournament award as well.

“We knew Saturday was going to be something special when we landed two four-pound largemouth bass and found a school of offshore smallies during practice,” Wimsatt said. “Seeing Jess take what we learned in practice and then apply it during game time was absolutely incredible. It was all that much sweeter when she landed the final 3.8 lb largemouth that secured her first-ever tournament win!”

Recognizing that getting quality bites was going to be challenging, Hickey made the decision to put down reaction baits in shallower water and concentrate on fishing deep structure with finesse tactics. Playing to her strong suits and working a drop shot in 8 to 20 feet of water, Hickey weighed in three of the five bass for the team, averaging an impressive 3.8 lbs.

“This is just the beginning,” Hickey said. “And I couldn’t be more excited for what’s ahead.”

The Bobcats are back on Lake Champlain on Sunday for another NCBA event, this time based out of Port Henry, near the idyllic Crown Point Bridge, which is sure to give anglers and onlookers alike good fishing and amazing scenery as the Adirondack leaves begin to change and herald in the crisp autumn season.