IHSA postpones state bass fishing championship due to high water

From the Illinois High School Association:

The Illinois High School Association Bass Fishing State Final Tournament, scheduled for May 6-7 at Carlyle Lake, has been postponed due to dangerous water levels.

The tournament date could be pushed into June if water levels do not recede to a safe level.

The Carlyle area has received 10 inches of rain in the past 10 days.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers expects the lake to crest 13 feet above its normal levels by the middle of next week.

Carlyle Lake could reach an elevation of 458 feet by next week, close to its all-time high of 459.5 feet in 2002.

A portion of the Dam West Recreation Area used to launch the tournament and present awards is under water.

The normal summer pool level for the lake is 445 feet.

The IHSA Board of Directors made the decision after they met via conference call with members of the Carlyle Lake U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

IHSA officials visited the lake Wednesday to assess the situation.

IHSA associate director and bass fishing administrator Kurt Gibson said a new date would be determined as soon as possible to allow qualifying schools to plan accordingly.

Gibson said the logistics of moving the state finals to another lake would be prohibitive.

The IHSA conducted 19 Sectional tournaments at lakes around the state on April 21 and April 22, with three boats from each lake qualifying for the state final tournament.

One sectional lake produced a single state final qualifier, leaving 55 state final qualifying boats from 50 schools.

Five schools qualified two boats.