Jacob Runyan and Chase Cominsky won the 2022 Rossford Walleye Roundup over the weekend by finding big fish and then staying on them. The duo weighed in a five-fish limit at 33.19 pounds on Friday and then checked in Saturday's second-largest take at 35.1 pounds, giving them a two-day, 10-fish total weight of 68.29 pounds.
“We had researched the Rossford tournament a lot and found out that it would probably take right around 70 pounds total weight to win it or be right there in the top group,” Runyan said. “We knew we had to be consistent and if you couldn't average six or seven pounds a fish, then you probably ought to just go home.”
The Cleveland area angler and his fishing teammate from Pennsylvania came to the western end of Lake Erie on Tuesday and got in three days of intense scouting before the event's opening day.
“That helped tremendously, to put in the time, make sure the fish were where we thought they would be, and then see how they reacted to certain baits,” Runyon said. “We had a Plan A, B, and C and it was all based on water clarity. We found some spots that were fishable without making a huge run, and that helped. That way you spend more time fishing and less running around from one place to the next.”
Runyon said the Lowrance electronics the duo use will mark fish at speeds of 20 or 30 miles per hour, allowing them to cover a lot of areas when scouting.
“Once we found suspended fish, we trolled the wind and used crankbaits, running one brand on one side of the boat, and another brand on the other side,” Runyon said. “When we came back in on that first day, we were confident that we'd be in the top 10, but we also knew there were some Michigan guys in this tournament who are big players and really know their stuff.”
On Saturday, with the lake churning up a good froth, the pod of big fish they had worked the previous day had moved.
“We panicked at first, but then we found them in about five or 10 feet shallower than they were the day before,” Runyon said. “That northwest wind had pushed them. We thought we had around 32-33 pounds when we came in so we were sweating it out, not sure if that was enough. When I saw that scale hit 35 pounds, I was shocked.”
Runyon and Cominsky, who also won last fall's Walleye Slam on Lake Erie, took home $10,000 for their Rossford Walleye Roundup championship. The duo also finished first in the 2021 Lake Erie Fall Brawl, a six-week-long biggest fish format, but were disqualified by the tournament director Frank Murphy, who has not provided an explanation or justification for that disqualification. Runyon and Cominsky currently are involved in litigation to restore the Fall Brawl championship, which is worth more than $100,000.
In the Rossford Walleye Roundup, Toledo angler Joe Whitten and teammate Jim Preissner took second place with 34.53 pounds on Friday and 30.31 pounds on Saturday for a tournament total of 64.84 pounds.
Travis Dulude and Dave Keyser were third with 62.23 pounds over the two days, while Mathew Leben and Shaun Gilson were fourth with 62.18 pounds. Chris Heckel and Josh Monaghan, the first-day leaders with a five-fish bag on Friday that weighed in at 34.85 pounds, ended up fifth in the 42-team field with 61.92 total pounds for their 10 fish.
Friday's biggest fish was a 9.42-pound walleye caught by the team of Randle Myszkier and Steve Hislop. Saturday's biggest fish was a 9.06-pounder caught by Austin Smith and Tracy Petit, Jr. The biggest one-day catch award went to the team of Eric Vandenk and Bob Barnhart after they checked in a 35.3-pound five-fish bag on Saturday that included an 8.04-pound fish.
“What you saw in this tournament is more evidence of just how healthy Lake Erie is for walleye,” Runyon said. “You could throw a kitchen spoon out there with a hook on it and catch a walleye. I would put the walleye fishing here up against anywhere in the country. We are blessed, very, very blessed.”
The fish from the tournament were donated to Helping Hands of St. Louis, a Catholic Charities ministry that provides nutritious meals for low-income and homeless families and individuals. Butch & Denny's Bait Shop, located on Corduroy Road in Curtice, donated the fish cleaning service.
First Published April 18, 2022, 1:32 p.m.
