Michigan’s Aaron Jagdfeld has taken the lead on Day 1 of the Mercury B.A.S.S. Nation Qualifier at Lake Erie presented by Lowrance with a total of 23 pounds, 5 ounces.
Photo by Grant Moxley/B.A.S.S.
July 16, 2025
Familiar waters carry Jagdfeld to lead at Nation Regional at Lake Erie
MONROE, Mich. — Fishing familiar territory proved to be the right choice for Aaron Jagdfeld on Day 1 of the 2025 Mercury B.A.S.S. Nation Qualifier at Lake Erie presented by Lowrance.
The 24-year-old made the 130 round-trip trek to Lake St. Clair to land 23 pounds, 5 ounces of smallmouth to take the Day 1 lead, anchoring his bag with a 5-7 to take control of Big Bass of the Tournament.
Jagdfeld carries a 1-15 over Iowa’s Chris Miller into Day 2 and a nearly 2-pound advantage over Ohio’s Cody Dawson.
The waves across this massive system created by scattered thunderstorms caught much of the field off guard, cutting many fishing days short and resulting in several late penalties. Even still, more than half the field landed limits on the first day of competition with 27 anglers catching more than 17 pounds.
With winds forecasted at 15 to 30 mph and waves on Lake Erie projected to be between 5 and 9 feet, tournament officials made the decision to cancel Day 2 after Wednesday’s weigh-in. The full field of 166 anglers will compete on the final day.
A native of Rochester Hills, Mich., Jagdfeld said he is far more familiar with Lake St. Clair than Lake Erie, and despite the long run, felt like making the trip was well worth it.
“I spent all of practice in St. Clair,” the Adrian College graduate said. “I broke down new water and tried to find some stuff. I didn’t really find any big groups, it has just been a one here, one there kind of deal. It is all about staying on the trolling motor and hunting them down.”
During the warm-up period, Jagdfeld found many of the smallmouth in St. Clair are still in a postspawn funk and skinny. Those bass are honing in on a mayfly hatch, and have been generally reluctant to bite a bait.
Instead, the 2024 Bassmaster College Classic Bracket presented by Lew’s runner-up is targeting the smallmouth that are in a full summer pattern in deeper water. On Day 1, he pitched a Rapala CrushCity Freeloader and a 6-inch Deps Sakamata Shad to smallies hovering around sand and cabbage in 19 feet of water.
“I’m targeting the bass that have been out there for a good month now,” he said. “I’ve kept two different baits on the deck in several different colors and rolled with it.”
Jagdfeld had about four hours to fish, but made the most of his limited time by landing 21 pounds by 10:30 a.m., landing his biggest bass during that time frame.
“That was about 9 in the morning,” Jagdfeld said. “I had three big ones at that point. I saw it floating out there and casted at it. I thought it was only about 5 at first.”
He managed to cull one last time before seeing the storm clouds building and decided to run back and ensure he made it back to weigh-in on time.
“I saw the storm coming at 11:45 and said screw this, turned around and ran back,” he explained.
His better bites came during the short period of time the sun was out, but once the clouds rolled back in he noticed the bass sank to the bottom.
Miller also made the run to St. Clair, making it back to check-in with a bag of smallmouth weighing 21-10, anchored by a 4-14, with three minutes to spare.
“This place is absolutely awesome,” Miller said. “The winds weren’t supposed to be this bad, and I saw they were picking up so I decided to cut my day short and come back. That was a good call because I barely made it in.”
Fishing around a patch of weeds in 10 to 12 feet of water he found during practice and landed a limit within 20 minutes of fishing. Throughout the day, the Spirit Lake, Iowa native caught around 40 bass to get to his total weight using a Strike King Z Too.
“During practice, I figured out right away that there were postspawn fish that hadn’t fattened up yet,” the 2025 St. Croix Bassmaster Open at Sam Rayburn presented by SEVIIN champion said. “They were long but didn’t weigh much. So I found a section of the lake that I could hit where the bass were more in their summer patterns.
“They were grouped up better today than they had been all week.”
Paul Andorfer from Albion, Ind. and Ontario’s Warren Cooper are tied for the nonboater lead with a three-bass limit weighing 12-0. Rochester, Minn.’s Perry See is third with 11-11. Wisconsin’s Jediah Barrett landed the Big Bass of the Day, a 4-3 smallmouth.
2025 Mercury B.A.S.S. Nation Qualifier at Lake Erie presented by Lowrance 7/16-7/18
Lake Erie, Monroe MI.
(BOATER) Standings Day 1
Angler Hometown No./lbs-oz Pts Total $$$
1. Aaron Jagdfeld Rochester Hills, MI 5 23-05 0
Day 1: 5 23-05
2. Chris Miller Spirit Lake, IA 5 21-10 0
Day 1: 5 21-10
3. Cody Dawson Mount Vernon, OH 5 21-08 0
Day 1: 5 21-08
4. Allex Conner Delaware, OH 5 20-10 0
Day 1: 5 20-10
5. Jacob Swanson Framingham, MA 5 19-15 0
Day 1: 5 19-15
6. Jonathon Dewey Fort Gratiot, MI 5 19-13 0
Day 1: 5 19-13
7. Kevin Martin Crown City, OH 5 19-11 0
Day 1: 5 19-11
8. Connor Sirois Buxton, ME 5 19-11 0
Day 1: 5 19-11
9. Brian Brown Sandusky, OH 5 19-03 0
Day 1: 5 19-03
10. Garrett Paquette Canton, MI 5 19-02 0
Day 1: 5 19-02
11. Charles Sim Wasaga Beach Ontario CA 5 19-00 0
Day 1: 5 19-00
12. Keith Poulin Lisbon, ME 5 18-13 0
Day 1: 5 18-13
13. Bryce Poulin Lisbon, ME 5 18-11 0
Day 1: 5 18-11
14. Reece Keeney Winneconne, WI 5 18-10 0
Day 1: 5 18-10
15. Paul Ersing Ogunquit, ME 5 18-09 0
Day 1: 5 18-09
16. Justin Hrach Rostraver Township, PA 5 18-04 0
Day 1: 5 18-04
17. Nathan Delaney Jr Weyauwega, WI 5 18-01 0
Day 1: 5 18-01
18. Larry Clontz Trenton, OH 5 18-01 0
Day 1: 5 18-01
19. Ty Austin Rush, NY 5 17-15 0
Day 1: 5 17-15
20. Nick Deering Portland, ME 5 17-14 0
Day 1: 5 17-14
21. Griffin Fernandes Fishers, IN 5 17-14 0
Day 1: 5 17-14
22. Eddie Levin Westerville, OH 5 17-12 0
Day 1: 5 17-12
23. Matt Mosby Dryden, MI 5 17-07 0
Day 1: 5 17-07
24. Whitney Stephens Waverly, OH 5 17-04 0
Day 1: 5 17-04
25. Kyle Moodie Ripon, WI 5 17-04 0
Day 1: 5 17-04
26. Jack Frame Fremont, WI 5 17-02 0
Day 1: 5 17-02
27. Bradley Baxter Willshire, OH 5 17-01 0
Day 1: 5 17-01
28. Taylor Umland Carlock, IL 5 16-15 0
Day 1: 5 16-15
29. Eric Storms Winner, SD 5 16-15 0
Day 1: 5 16-15
30. Doug Chapin Tigerton, WI 5 16-14 0
Day 1: 5 16-14
31. Matt McCoy Indianapolis, IN 5 16-14 0
Day 1: 5 16-14
32. Mark Tonjum Jr Spencer, IA 5 16-12 0
Day 1: 5 16-12
33. Russell Volquardsen Creighton, NE 5 16-10 0
Day 1: 5 16-10
34. Trysten Williams Georgetown, IN 5 16-10 0
Day 1: 5 16-10
35. Michael Spaulding Jr. Dundee, MI 5 16-07 0
Day 1: 5 16-07
36. Derrick Soulliere Belle River Ontario CAN 4 16-07 0
Day 1: 4 16-07
37. Cory Mathes New Holstein, WI 5 16-06 0
Day 1: 5 16-06
38. Eric Aguilar Grand Blanc, MI 5 16-04 0
Day 1: 5 16-04
39. Michael Egnac West Mifflin, PA 5 16-03 0
Day 1: 5 16-03
40. Jacob Zaremski Rochester, NY 5 15-15 0
Day 1: 5 15-15
41. Andrew Sams Easton, MD 5 15-13 0
Day 1: 5 15-13
42. Brock Belik Orchard, NE 5 15-12 0
Day 1: 5 15-12
43. Carson Peeters Menasha, WI 5 15-11 0
Day 1: 5 15-11
44. Josh Cole Columbus, IN 5 15-10 0
Day 1: 5 15-10
45. Corey Bohlmann Le Roy, IL 5 15-09 0
Day 1: 5 15-09
45. Mason Gillihan Manchester, IA 5 15-09 0
Day 1: 5 15-09
47. Cason Hiers St. Paul, MN 5 15-08 0
Day 1: 5 15-08
48. Matthew Davis Morenci, MI 5 15-07 0
Day 1: 5 15-07
49. Matt Marques Seneca, IL 5 15-07 0
Day 1: 5 15-07
50. Darryl Halbert Enoree, SC 5 15-07 0
Day 1: 5 15-07
51. Jose Munoz McHenry , IL 5 15-05 0
Day 1: 5 15-05
52. Chad Timmer Hudsonville, MI 5 15-05 0
Day 1: 5 15-05
53. Shane Nelson Wadsworth, OH 5 15-04 0
Day 1: 5 15-04
54. Vince Xiong Champlin, MN 5 15-03 0
Day 1: 5 15-03
55. Dustin Bauer Louisville , KY 5 15-02 0
Day 1: 5 15-02
55. Corey Lindsey Marion, OH 5 15-02 0
Day 1: 5 15-02
57. Bryan Finch Belton, TX 5 15-02 0
Day 1: 5 15-02
58. Dan Hendley Mankato, MN 4 14-15 0
Day 1: 4 14-15
59. Randy Huffman Charleston, WV 5 14-14 0
Day 1: 5 14-14
60. Tim Ward Coshocton, OH 5 14-13 0
Day 1: 5 14-13
61. Steven Smith Johnstown, OH 5 14-10 0
Day 1: 5 14-10
62. Jeremiah Acton Shelbyville, MI 5 14-09 0
Day 1: 5 14-09
63. Miles Johnson Washington Twp, OH 5 14-09 0
Day 1: 5 14-09
63. Zack Morris Durham, ME 5 14-09 0
Day 1: 5 14-09
65. Bryce Hauf Winner, SD 5 14-08 0
Day 1: 5 14-08
66. Nathan Reynolds Florence, AL 5 14-07 0
Day 1: 5 14-07
67. Ed Powell Sandyville, WV 5 14-06 0
Day 1: 5 14-06
68. Joe Titus Bemidji, MN 5 14-06 0
Day 1: 5 14-06
69. Gunner Wilson Fenton, MI 5 14-05 0
Day 1: 5 14-05
70. James Welch II Litchfield, ME 5 14-05 0
Day 1: 5 14-05
71. Josh Orland Park, IL 5 14-04 0
Day 1: 5 14-04
72. Louis Monetti Brielle, NJ 5 14-03 0
Day 1: 5 14-03
73. Troy Thorington West Olive, MI 5 14-00 0
Day 1: 5 14-00
74. Jerry Koller Paragon, IN 5 13-14 0
Day 1: 5 13-14
75. Gary Greenwood Taylors, SC 4 13-14 0
Day 1: 4 13-14
76. Jordan Hirt Council Bluffs, IA 5 13-12 0
Day 1: 5 13-12
76. Chris Johnson Farmington, AR 5 13-12 0
Day 1: 5 13-12
78. Nick Hargis Wentzville, MO 5 13-11 0
Day 1: 5 13-11
79. Mitchell Elsey Olivet, MI 5 13-11 0
Day 1: 5 13-11
80. Steve York Bronson, MI 4 13-10 0
Day 1: 4 13-10
81. Michael Kazmierczak Lemont, IL 5 13-09 0
Day 1: 5 13-09
82. Chase Loftus Iowa City, IA 5 13-03 0
Day 1: 5 13-03
83. David Reiss Westport Island, ME 5 13-03 0
Day 1: 5 13-03
84. Ricardo Guzman Farmington, MO 5 13-00 0
Day 1: 5 13-00
85. Justin Rowse O’Neill, NE 5 12-15 0
Day 1: 5 12-15
86. Cliff Van Beek Canistota, SD 5 12-14 0
Day 1: 5 12-14
87. Kevin Allen Springport, IN 5 12-12 0
Day 1: 5 12-12
88. Edward Gad Morris, IL 5 12-10 0
Day 1: 5 12-10
89. Kevin Newcomb Saint Albans, WV 5 12-07 0
Day 1: 5 12-07
90. Shane Oltjenbruns Neligh, NE 5 12-06 0
Day 1: 5 12-06
91. Chris Rhodes Eaton, IN 3 12-06 0
Day 1: 3 12-06
92. Nobuyuki Terajima Hermitage, TN 4 11-15 0
Day 1: 4 11-15
93. Bailey Bleser Burlington, WI 5 11-14 0
Day 1: 5 11-14
94. Colby Kirwan Wagner, SD 5 11-11 0
Day 1: 5 11-11
95. Drew Crawford Knightstown, IN 5 11-04 0
Day 1: 5 11-04
96. Johnny Bigger II Spring Hill, FL 5 11-03 0
Day 1: 5 11-03
96. Karl Guegold Johnstown, OH 5 11-03 0
Day 1: 5 11-03
98. Larry Peterson II Hammond, WI 4 11-01 0
Day 1: 4 11-01
99. Jody White Shaftsbury, VT 5 11-00 0
Day 1: 5 11-00
100. Jeff Brown Wentworth, SD 5 10-15 0
Day 1: 5 10-15
101. Dave Schneider Jr Indianapolis, IN 5 10-14 0
Day 1: 5 10-14
102. Cade Laufenberg Onalaska, WI 4 10-09 0
Day 1: 4 10-09
103. Colton Lindsey Mount Sterling, OH 5 10-08 0
Day 1: 5 10-08
104. Jesse Stewart Lima, OH 5 10-01 0
Day 1: 5 10-01
105. Ryan Whitacre Chicago, IL 5 10-00 0
Day 1: 5 10-00
106. Bryan Hulsey Troy, MO 5 10-00 0
Day 1: 5 10-00
107. Darrin Lewellen Heath, OH 5 09-14 0
Day 1: 5 09-14
108. Brad Paradis Ogdensburg, NY 4 09-09 0
Day 1: 4 09-09
109. Dustin Taylor Galesburg, IL 4 09-08 0
Day 1: 4 09-08
110. Robert Myers Lacona, IA 4 09-04 0
Day 1: 4 09-04
111. Trevor Sanderson New Lenox, IL 5 08-08 0
Day 1: 5 08-08
112. Ray McGraw Chillicothe, OH 3 08-06 0
Day 1: 3 08-06
113. Donald Roberts Jr Bellville, OH 4 08-02 0
Day 1: 4 08-02
114. Thy Dinh Charleston, WV 3 08-01 0
Day 1: 3 08-01
115. Clayton Grimm Mechanic Falls, ME 3 07-10 0
Day 1: 3 07-10
116. Ernie Dillingham Wisconsin Rapids, WI 3 07-07 0
Day 1: 3 07-07
117. Geno Bielawa Schodack Landing, NY 5 07-06 0
Day 1: 5 07-06
118. Jeremiah Shaver Holmen, WI 2 07-06 0
Day 1: 2 07-06
119. Josh Hubbard Citrus Springs, FL 3 07-03 0
Day 1: 3 07-03
120. Andy Toft Canton, SD 2 07-02 0
Day 1: 2 07-02
121. Quincy Bryant Shakopee, MN 3 06-15 0
Day 1: 3 06-15
122. Mathew Lyons Bar Harbor, ME 2 06-01 0
Day 1: 2 06-01
123. Frank Scalish Mt Gilead, OH 2 05-14 0
Day 1: 2 05-14
124. Gary Michalski Naperville, IL 3 05-13 0
Day 1: 3 05-13
125. Bob Evans Elkhart, IN 3 05-10 0
Day 1: 3 05-10
126. Kevin Scheibelhut Mishawaka, IN 5 05-02 0
Day 1: 5 05-02
127. Mason Phillpotts Swartz Creek, MI 3 05-00 0
Day 1: 3 05-00
128. Jacob Crapyou Wheelersburg, OH 2 04-06 0
Day 1: 2 04-06
129. Travis Wise Rootstown, OH 2 04-05 0
Day 1: 2 04-05
130. Harry Therault Elgin, IL 2 03-11 0
Day 1: 2 03-11
131. Colton Boelkes Roscoe, IL 1 02-09 0
Day 1: 1 02-09
132. Joseph Kinsley Parkersburg, WV 1 02-08 0
Day 1: 1 02-08
133. Allen Williford Paducah, KY 1 01-13 0
Day 1: 1 01-13
134. Kevin Postalwait Ripley, WV 5 00-00 0
Day 1: 5 00-00
135. Brennan Berglund Zimmerman, MN 0 00-00 0
Day 1: 0 00-00
135. Dustin Bliss Brooklyn Park, MN 0 00-00 0
Day 1: 0 00-00
135. Jonathan Carter Portland, ME 0 00-00 0
Day 1: 0 00-00
135. Hunter Colwell Bellefontaine, OH 0 00-00 0
Day 1: 0 00-00
135. Tyler Conde Chepachet, RI 0 00-00 0
Day 1: 0 00-00
135. Kollin Crawford Broken Bow, OK 0 00-00 0
Day 1: 0 00-00
135. Lance Crawford Broken Bow, OK 0 00-00 0
Day 1: 0 00-00
135. Evan Delarosa Kalamazoo, MI 0 00-00 0
Day 1: 0 00-00
135. Mark Desjardin Vassalboro, ME 0 00-00 0
Day 1: 0 00-00
135. John Engler Vinton, IA 0 00-00 0
Day 1: 0 00-00
135. Chris Episcopo Canonsburg, PA 0 00-00 0
Day 1: 0 00-00
135. Ethan Fields Carlyle, IL 0 00-00 0
Day 1: 0 00-00
135. Joe Grafeman Camdenton, MO 0 00-00 0
Day 1: 0 00-00
135. Patrick Henry Westerville, OH 0 00-00 0
Day 1: 0 00-00
135. Jon Jezierski Clinton Twsp, MI 0 00-00 0
Day 1: 0 00-00
135. Casey Knaup Fort Atkinson, WI 0 00-00 0
Day 1: 0 00-00
135. Ryan Koehn/Lofts Ada, MI 0 00-00 0
Day 1: 0 00-00
135. Nick Koehne Manteno, IL 0 00-00 0
Day 1: 0 00-00
135. Randy Kukral Aurora, OH 0 00-00 0
Day 1: 0 00-00
135. Buck Mallory Lawton, MI 0 00-00 0
Day 1: 0 00-00
135. Harmon Marien Eagle River, WI 0 00-00 0
Day 1: 0 00-00
135. Tylor Marquis Gray, ME 0 00-00 0
Day 1: 0 00-00
135. Tricia Mcgraw Chillicothe, OH 0 00-00 0
Day 1: 0 00-00
135. Brian Post Janesville, WI 0 00-00 0
Day 1: 0 00-00
135. Nic Rand Paw Paw, MI 0 00-00 0
Day 1: 0 00-00
135. Clay Reitz Morton, IL 0 00-00 0
Day 1: 0 00-00
135. Craig Saylor Oak Hill, OH 0 00-00 0
Day 1: 0 00-00
135. Dan Stowell Plainwell, MI 0 00-00 0
Day 1: 0 00-00
135. Kenneth Swint Bargersville, IN 0 00-00 0
Day 1: 0 00-00
135. Zach Ravenna, MI 0 00-00 0
Day 1: 0 00-00
135. Neal Wisinski Stevens Point, WI 0 00-00 0
Day 1: 0 00-00
135. Justin Yenter Stevens Point, WI 0 00-00 0
Day 1: 0 00-00
———————————————————————–
Totals
Day #Limits #Fish Weight
1 103 606 1796-01
———————————-
103 606 1796-01