BEMIDJI, Minn. — The first day of the 2017 Carhartt Bassmaster College Series National Championship presented by Bass Pro Shops on Lake Bemidji started under gloomy conditions as storms pushed through the region, but it didn't seem to hurt the fishing.
 
Campbellsville's Luke Patterson and Nick Ratliff are currently in 31^st place after catching a limit of five fish weighing in at 8 pounds 10 ounces.

Storylines for the event consisted of tough and crowded fishing, but Thursday shined light on the quality bass that live in the Minnesota fishery. While 21 teams brought limits to the scales, several other teams stayed in contention by bringing three or four quality fish to the Bassmaster stage.
 
Today the CU duo were the 81^st boat out of 89 to go out and with a close and stingy lake like Lake Bemidji, the late takeoff played into the hands of the early bunch.
 
But Ratliff and Patterson stayed the course and pushed through tough weather to catch a limit. They were one of the 21 boats in the field to catch their five-fish limit and are only four pounds outside the Top 12 cut, which will be made after tomorrow's second round.
 
"Nick lost a good one today but that was the only fish that could have made a difference," said coach Tommy Hall. "He reeled in three times but the fish came loose and those things happen. The fish are bunched up in one area on this lake and most teams found those spots today.
 
"Lake Bemidji has various canals that are prime time spots but it takes an hour and a half to idle through to the good locations where the fish are. It takes some time but the guys were patient today and I am very proud of how they handled the conditions.  

Tomorrow the field is flipped as Ratliff and Patterson will be the eighth boat to take off in the morning at approximately 7 a.m. ET (6 a.m. CT/local).
 
Jake Lee and Jacob Foutz of Bryan College lead after Thursday's action with 16 pounds, 6 ounces. Their field-topping weight consisted of only four fish, one short of their five-bass limit.
 
Bryan College carries a 10-ounce lead going into Friday's competition day over their nearest pursuer, which happens to be one of the local Bemidji State University teams.
 
Brothers Thor and Mitch Swanson took the lead early in the weigh-in and held it right until the end, when Lee and Foutz dethroned them. The Swansons are in good position and well within contention to make the final day cut, as long as they can survive Day 2.
 
With numerous teams in their area, they aren't sure they can match their first-day weight of 15-12 again, but the good start is extremely crucial to staying within the projected cut line after Friday's weigh-in.
 
Logan Laprarie and Aaron Belgard of Northwestern State University brought the big bass on Day 1 to the scales, and it topped out at 6-6.
 
Live weigh-ins scheduled for 3:30 p.m. ET each day on Bassmaster.com at the link above. In addition, fans can follow the live championship blog throughout the day to stay up-to-date with Ratliff and Patterson.