BLOOMSBURG, Pa. — Ewing Minor has already shown he can win a bass tournament on the Susquehanna River, having locked down a Bassmaster Kayak Series victory here in 2024.
Two years later and he’s leading the field again, this time in the 2026 Newport Bassmaster Kayak Series at Susquehanna River presented by Native Watercraft.
Minor, a 24-year-old ace angler who lives in Dandridge, Tenn., grabbed the Day 1 lead on Saturday with a five-bass limit that measured 96.75 inches. He caught 11 keepers on the day — all smallmouth bass and all considerably sized for Pennsylvania smallies. The catch put him ahead of the pace he set in winning the Susquehanna 2024 Kayak Series event in 2024 (187.75 total inches, averaging nearly 94 inches per day.)
Minor’s Saturday haul included the Daily Big Bass, a 20.5-inch smallie he hooked around 7 a.m. That catch earned him a $100 bonus and put him in the lead for the $500 prize that will be awarded to the angler with the longest bass caught in the two-day tournament.
“That’s the biggest bass I’ve ever caught on this river, and I’ve had a lot of success here,” Minor said. “There are a ton of 18- and 19-inch fish in this river, but 20-inchers don’t come every day. That was only the fourth 20-inch class bass I’ve caught here in five years of coming to Susquehanna.”
Minor rounded out his Day 1 catch with smallmouth measuring 19.5, 19.25, 19, and 18.5 inches. He said if he’s going to win again on the Susquehanna, he cannot settle for anything less than the biggest bass swimming.
“I grew up fishing rivers (in Virginia),” Minor said, “and everything clicked for me from the time I first fished here (he finished second in a Hobie BOS tournament here in 2021 when fishing for Carson-Newman University.)
“I’m confident I’ll catch fish again tomorrow. I just hope they’re the right size. It’s very easy on this river to be on a good bite but end up in the range of 85 to 90 inches for the day. So, I most definitely need to catch more than that tomorrow because there are a lot of people right behind me. I’ll keep covering a lot of water and fishing a lot of targets, looking for the best bite.”
North Carolina’s Wyatt Hammond, 95 inches; and Maryland’s Jordan Lovejoy, 93.75 are in second and third place, respectively, heading into Championship Sunday. A trio of anglers caught 93 inches on Day 1, including West Virginia’s Mark Edwards, Maryland’s Dave Crockett, and Pennsylvania’s Abby Abbondanza (who lives in Greensburg, about 2 1/2 hours away from Lewisburg.)
A total of 184 anglers from around the U.S. are fishing in this derby, the fifth of sixth regular-season kayak events scheduled this year. A total of $36,800 in prize money will be awarded to top anglers with the winner collecting $9,500 cash.
Minor has competed in three of four Bassmaster Kayak Series events to date in 2026 , finishing sixth on Florida’s Kissimmee Chain in February, 13th on lakes Caddo and Bistineau in Louisiana in April, and first in a wind-shortened derby at Santee Cooper in South Carolina in May.
Following Susquehanna, the final regular-season stop will be in Appleton, Wis., on the Wolf and Fox rivers Aug. 22-23. The season’s top anglers, including five from this week’s tournament and leaders in the Pro-Guide Batteries Angler of the Year points standings, will finish the year in the 2026 Newport Bassmaster Kayak Series Championship presented by Native Watercraft. That title event is scheduled for Oct. 14-16 on Lake Murray in South Carolina.
Action at Susquehanna resumes Sunday at 5:45 a.m. ET and will continue through 2:45 p.m. ET. An awards ceremony will follow the competition. Bass fishing fans can follow the real-time leaderboard on Bassmaster.com.
Columbia Montour Visitors Bureau is hosting the Susquehanna River event.