LAKE COUNTY — Her license plates don”t read “BASSKAT” for nothing. As the only female competitor in the Triton Boat Owners Team Tournament, Katrina DeHaven, 34, of Phoenix, AZ, proved this weekend that despite hardship she can reel them in with the best.
Out on the water with professional bass fishermen and event coordinators from Tenn., DeHaven not only won the competition with a two-day total weight of 45.60 pounds for 10 bass, but she also caught a 9.44-pound bass on Saturday. She held the biggest bass lead for the rest of the tournament.
True to the nature of her win, DeHaven was not only the only professional female Triton boat owner in the weekend tournament, but she also reportedly suffered a grand mal seizure and a stroke during surgery about three months ago.
According to her partner Sieg Taylor, DeHaven used a cane right up until she got on the boat with him Saturday for a 7 a.m. launch. “I told her she couldn”t bring it, that there was no room for it,” Taylor said. “Within the first 30 minutes she completely forgot about the cane. She was too busy catching fish. It”s amazing what the human mind can do.”
DeHaven and had a few other hiccups during the tournament as well, like the ribbing she faced for partnering with Taylor, a favorite in the myriad of bass tournaments on Clear Lake. “A lot of people think, ?yeah, yeah, Sieg”s going to catch all the fish.” The first day, I caught two and she caught 10,” Taylor said.
Another complication was a broken trolling motor for maneuvering that took a day to fix, Taylor said. That didn”t stop her from catching three in a row right off the bat.
The big catch wasn”t far behind. DeHaven reeled it in at around noon Saturday, Taylor said. A five- or six-minute struggle made Taylor think DeHaven had a catfish on her six-pound test line, which Taylor said was “bent like a noodle.”
The pair split $6,000 in prize money, including five grand for winning the tournament and a $1,000 bonus for the biggest bass. But like most anglers, she didn”t do it for the money, according to Taylor. She did it for the love of the sport.
DeHaven may hail from Ariz., but she calls Clear Lake her home lake, according to Taylor. Competing as the only female isn”t new to DeHaven. She was the only female to represent the United States in 2004 on its U.S. Euro-Cup Team in Spain. DeHaven is also a member of the Fish to Cure Diabetes Pro Team, which supports education about and research into the need for a cure for diabetes.
Taylor said DeHaven called him two months ago in tears because she was worried about winning the tournament. “I told her, ?win or lose we”re going to have the time of our lives.”” Not losing any fish and having a lighthearted approach was important to the win, Taylor said. “By the time she caught the first fish, her momentum picked up. Mentally we were in right frame of mind.”
Contact Tiffany Revelle at trevelle@record-bee.com.
