For the second straight year, the biggest fish reeled in the coveted title Saturday at Honokohau Harbor: Huggo’s Na Pua O Ke Kai Wahine Fishing Tournament champion. For the second straight year, the biggest fish reeled in the coveted title
For the second straight year, the biggest fish reeled in the coveted title Saturday at Honokohau Harbor: Huggo’s Na Pua O Ke Kai Wahine Fishing Tournament champion.
Libby Snider caught a 401-pound Pacific blue marlin at 12:55 p.m. aboard Alibi, giving Congo My Bongos the victory at the annual women’s fishing tournament.
The fish gave the four-person team 401 points — one point per pound weighed — in the one-day, 75-team tournament. Alana Adams, Jackie Trask and Taylor Terrazas accompanied Snider aboard Alibi, where they fished with Capt. Trevor Child and crew Nick Atkins before weighing their 401-pounder at Honokohau.
Four other teams collected 600 catch-and-release points, but the largest fish supersedes any amount of release points at the tournament. Last year, Kaimalino Wahine caught just one fish — Kari Teshima’s 733-pounder — but won the tournament.
Tournament officials weighed just one other fish on Saturday, disqualifying a 293-pound marlin because it failed to meet the tourney’s 300-pound minimum for weighed fish.
Thirty-five of the 75 teams caught at least one fish, with the field releasing 22 marlin but catching no ono or mahimahi weighing a tournament minimum of 20 pounds.
Foxy Seafari, Don’t Be A Cheatah, Reel Wahine Hunters and Wild Things placed second, third, fourth and fifth, respectively. With all four teams having caught two billfish and racking up 600 points, officials used second-fish catch times to break ties, with the earliest catch (10:29 a.m.) earning Foxy Seafari second place and the latest (1:33 p.m.) giving Wild Things fifth.
The top five teams will receive cash prizes, but amounts were not determined by press time. An awards ceremony will take place at 6 p.m. today at Huggo’s On The Rocks.
Saturday’s notable catches:
c Aboard Foxy Lady, Foxy Seafari’s Jada Van Mols reeled in a fish estimated at 150 pounds at 8:51 a.m., and Chelsea Mata followed with a 175-pounder at 10:29 a.m.
Nicolette Palacol, Ashton Lattof, Rebekah Pyne and Saraiah Mata also fished with Capt. Boyd Decoito and crew Matt Losasso.
c Don’t Be A Cheatah’s Melissa Nitta and Tanya Posey both caught fish estimated at 200 pounds aboard Lepika with Capt. Russ Nitta, crew Jill Spanel, and team members Tanya Posey and Rose McKinnon.
c While fishing with Capt. Chad Contessa and crew Sandy Contessa aboard Bite Me 1, Reel Wahine Hunters angler Diane Page released an estimated 120-pound fish at 10:05 a.m. before catching a 280-pounder at 1:30 p.m. Other team members included Juana Moya, Lorena Cisneros, Pam Contessa and Sierra Tobiason.
c Kailani Barksdale caught a 200-pound marlin at 11:02 a.m., and Michelle Austin followed with a 175-pounder at 1:33 p.m. aboard Makanalani with Capt. Kenny Fogarty, crew Dustin Winkel, and teammates Jennifer Graves and Tesha Hall.
c Fishing for Kona’s Finest Rasta Safarians aboard Bill Me, angler Nicole War won the Biggest Tuna Award with a 48.5-pound ahi.
c Michelle Shimamoto and her daughter, Cera, reeled in the first mother/daughter catch of the day, an estimated 150-pound marlin that earned them the Mother Daughter Trophy.
