PLATTSBURGH, N.Y. — It’s Deja vu for Dan Tavilla this week at the 2026 Mercury B.A.S.S. Nation at Lake Champlain presented by Lowrance. Just like in 2024, the New Hampshire native leads the field after two days of competition in upstate New York, only this time Tavilla hopes he’ll be the one holding up the first-place trophy on the final day.
With daily limits weighing 22 pounds, 4 ounces and 21-13, Tavilla has a two-day total weighing 44-1, a 6-ounce advantage over Michigan’s Matt Mosby heading into the final day of competition.
“I’m trying to change the script this year. It’s nice having people trying to catch me I guess,” Tavilla said. “I was happy to do as well as I did last time and I was happy for Mark (Burgess), but there’s definitely a part of me that wanted to be first. I’ve put in a lot of time the last couple of years getting better. I’d really like to hold that first-place trophy.”
Although weekend boat traffic and overall breezier conditions made life a little more difficult on anglers Saturday, the weights were still impressive on Day 2. To make the Top 20 cut, Cooper Gilroy needed a total of 40-5, better than a 20-pound average.
Tavilla, a two-time qualifier, has spent many hours on Lake Champlain the last several years learning how to catch the giant smallmouth that swim in these waters.
So far this week, he has rotated between several different areas searching for pelagic smallmouth in their summertime patterns. The smallies he has caught this week have been located over 30 to 60 feet of water feeding on balls of baitfish. A minnow-style presentation has produced all his bites.
“They are all in full summer pattern,” he explained. “I’ll say this, the bait situation on the lake is different from the past couple of years in what and how the fish are eating.”
On Day 1, Tavilla opened the morning by landing a quality smallmouth before filling out a limit weighing around 18 pounds in his initial starting spot. After bouncing around a while without any meaningful upgrades, he arrived in a popular area of the lake and landed multiple 4-pounders to reach the 22-4 mark.
“I ran to my most promising spot, and caught a 4 1/2, a 4 and then a couple other good ones,” Tavilla said. “I spent an hour largemouth fishing but didn’t get any bites. It was definitely a prolonged build like you’re used to seeing on Champlain. Today was totally different.”
Tavilla flipped the script on Day 2, starting in the area he finished on the first day. The results were about the same, as he landed a little over 18 pounds before 10 a.m.
In the morning there is a little window before the wind builds, so I wanted to get first crack at those bass,” Tavilla said. “I caught a 4.-3, and I couldn’t stop catching them after that but every fish I caught was between 2 1/2 and 3 pounds.”
He rotated through his secondary areas without many meaningful upgrades before moving to his Day 1 starting spot. There, he landed on the motherload. His first catch was a near 4-pounder, but his next couple catches were even better.
“I put that one in the livewell, look down at my (Garmin LiveScope) and the second I look down there are three giants. The first one that bit was a 5-pound smallmouth. That turned my day around, my spirits around. I caught two more 4-pounders and headed back.”
Breezy conditions are expected over Lake Champlain on Championship Sunday, and Tavilla isn’t sure how that will affect his area other than making them choppy.
“I don’t know what I’m going to do tomorrow. I have a decision to make,” he said.
Mosby is second with 43-11 followed by Georgia’s Jack Story in third with 43-7, South Carolina’s Cody Abbott in fourth with 43-5 and Massachusetts’ Jacob Swanson in fifth with 42-15. Mark Hogan caught the Big Bass of the Day, a 6-15 largemouth that is also the Big Bass of the Tournament currently.
New York’s Matt Belmore leads the nonboater division with 22-1 followed by Lyn England in second with 21-11 and Wayne England in third with 21-5. New York’s Jack Campbell caught the Big Bass of the Day, a 5-5, also the Big Bass of the Tournament.
The Top 20 boaters and nonboaters will advance to Sunday’s final round while the Top 17 at the end of the tournament will punch their tickets to the 2026 Mercury B.A.S.S. Nation Championship at Lake Hartwell presented by Lowrance. Competitors will launch from Plattsburgh City Boat Launch at 5:30 a.m. ET and return for weigh-in starting at 1:30 p.m.
Discover Plattsburgh and the Adirondack Coast are hosting the event.