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 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.