The North Carolina East Fishers of Men Firefly Weeknight Series held their first tournament of the 2026 season on the Pasquotank River, Friday, October 24, 2025. The weather was blue skies with comfortable temperatures in the upper 60’s with a light breeze that increased toward the end of the day.  Perfect conditions to go fishing.  Six teams participated in the tournament and all the teams attended the pre-tournament meeting.

The meeting was started with a message given by our Chaplain Kenneth Wallace, who spoke about how we face the storms in our lives. He referenced Mathew 14 vs 22 where Jesus sent the disciples to the other side of the lake in their boat while he dismissed the crowd. Jesus went up into the hills alone to pray. Meanwhile the disciples encountered strong winds and they were fighting the heavy waves. Jesus knew what was going to happen in order to build the disciples faith. Jesus calmed the sea to show the disciples he was in complete control. John 14:26 tells us that we have an advocate, the Holy Spirit who lives in us when we live in Jesus. Kenneth tells us that if the Holy Spirit lives in us then what ever we do we do with Him. Outside of salvation, the most liberating, life producing, joy producing, peace giving truth is the fact that Jesus Christ gave His life so you would not lose your life and that you are not alone in this world. So no matter what storms you are facing or are going to face, God has you there for a reason and he has given you a part of Him to help you get through it. The same God who took you into the storm is the same God who will bring you out of it! So trust His heart, Lean on His Holy Spirit and Jesus love for you. Kenneth closed with a prayer.

After reviewing the rules highlights, our fishermen set out on the Pasquotank River in search of the winning catch. The fishermen found the bite to be sporadic with a bunch of small fish biting. There were 24 fish weighed for a total 64.1 pounds. 24 fish were released back into the water for 100% release. The average number of fish per team was 4, average weight per team 10.69 pounds and the average fish weight was 2.67 pounds.

When the teams came to the scale, Justin Chamblee and Josh Powell, brought three fish to the scales that weighed 15.81 pounds for First Place with a nice 6.95 pound kicker fish which was the Big Fish for the tournament. They took home $165.00 dollars for first place and $30.00 dollars for Big Fish.  Second Place went to the team of Gary Sawyer and Eric Ball with a five fish limit that weighed 14.32 pounds. They took home $45.00 dollars for second place. Third Place went to Matt Jennings and Mark Moretz with five fish that weighed 11.98 pounds with a nice 6.48 pound kicker fish. There were only two places paid due to the number of boats entered in the tournament.

We would like to thank all those who helped with making this tournament a success, especially Gary Sawyer, Eric Ball and Kenneth Wallace as well as all our fishermen who helped with set-up and take down of the scales and equipment.   We also would like to thank all the Fishers of Men sponsors; Bass Cat, Mercury, Realtree Fishing, Power Pole, Firefly Outdoor and Marine, Abu Garcia, Berkley, Spiderwire, TH Marine and X2Power.

Place	Team	Members	# Fish	Big Fish	Gross	Penalty	Net Wt	Points
1	32787	Justin Chamblee Josh Powell	3	6.95	15.81	0	15.81	200
2	32785	Gary Sawyer Eric Ball	5	0	14.32	0	14.32	199
3	37368	Matt Jennings Mark Moretz	5	6.48	11.98	0	11.98	198
4	30953	Kenneth Wallace Jason Samson	5	0	11.27	0	11.27	197
5	30954	Patrick Seigh Isaiah Seigh	5	0	7.48	0	7.48	196
6	37367	Cory Broyles	1	3.29	3.29	0	3.29	195
Justin Chamblee and Josh Powell took 1st Place with 3 fish that weighed15.81 pounds which included the Big Fish for the tournament that weighed 6.95 pounds Gary Sawyer and Eric Ball took 2nd place with a five fish limit that weighed 14.32 pounds Matt Jennings and Mike Moretz won 3rd place with a five fish limit that weighed11.93 pounds with a nice 6.48 pound kicker. Kenneth Wallace and Jason Samson display a 11.27 pound limit Cory Broyles with a nice 3.29 pound