CARTER COUNTY, Tenn. — So far, the Bassmaster College Classic Bracket presented by Lew’s couldn’t have worked out any better for Tripp Berlinsky.
The University of North Alabama sophomore claimed the No. 1 seed in the head-to-head portion of the tournament with a two-day total of 35 pounds, 13 ounces, adding 15-15 to his stellar 19-14 Day 1 performance. He caught his Day 2 total without catching many bass in his primary areas, instead using Saturday’s second round as another practice day largely.
“I didn’t get a full practice, so being able to recover and spend a couple of days practicing during the tournament was huge for me,” Berlinsky said. “It worked out great for me. I think I found one or two more areas that I could be able to catch them out of the rest of the tournament. A couple 4-pounders go a long way on a fishery like this.”
Joining Berlinsky in the Semifinals are his UNA teammate Bryce Dimauro, Stephen F. Austin’s Ben Burns and Lander’s Garrett Smith.
Lander’s Andrew Blanton, Carson Newman’s 2 and Blake Wheat as well as SFA’s Grant Pursifull fell below the cutline and will not advance.
Similarly to Day 1, Berlinsky opened the morning by landing a 3-pounder on his first cast and quickly filled a quality limit before spending the rest of the day searching for new bass. He finished the day with four smallmouth and a largemouth in his bag, a trend he thinks will continue into the final days of the event.
“Smallmouth are going to be big for me,” he said. “I’ve keyed in on their forage and where they are getting it. I have a pound of crawfish sitting in my livewells. They are fat and healthy. There’s a lot of fish coming into that area.
“Right now, the bass are living on the bank. From what I’ve heard around the weigh-in, the locals are pretty impressed with the size of fish we are catching this week.”
While he wasn’t focusing as much on catching fish, Berlinsky did notice the bass were acting more finicky on Saturday.
“There was a little storm front moving in and the pressure was messed up. I think they were in a little bit of a whack today. I saw more big bass today actually, I was having trouble getting them to bite with the way they were set up.”
Watching Dimauro make a huge comeback was among the highlights for Berlinsky. Dimauro found himself below the cutline with 12-9 on Friday, but made a big rally on Day 2, landing 18-1 to claim the No. 2 seed with 30-10.
“I got back to the ramp 30 minutes early, but was the last one to get in the bag line,” Berlinsky said. “I walked up and Bryce gave me a little nod and looked like he was feeling confident. He hammered down on them today and I’m super happy and proud of him.”
Berlinsky will go head-to-head with Smith, one half of the back-to-back National Championship winning duo while Dimauro will clash with Burns. Competition will begin at 7 a.m. ET and conclude at 3 p.m.
The winner of the head-to-head matchups will advance to Championship Monday and battle for a spot in the 2026 Bass Pro Shops Bassmaster Classic presented by Under Armour as well as paid entry into the St. Croix Bassmaster Opens presented by SEVIIN with use of a fully-rigged Nitro Boat and Toyota Tundra.
Bassmaster LIVE will be available on Bassmaster.com and the Roku Sports Channel on Sunday and Monday from 8 a.m. ET to 11 a.m. and again from Noon to 3 p.m.
This event is being hosted by Carter County Tourism.
