10/7 reels in mightiest mahi

Captain Alvin Iglecias and his crew of five aboard the boat Trophy are awarded their $2,000 cash prize for winning the 17th Annual Mahi Mahi Fishing Derby at the weighing station of Smiling Cove Marina last Saturday. (Mark Rabago)

Captain Alvin Iglecias and his crew of five aboard the boat Trophy reeled in the mightiest mahi Saturday to rule the 17th Annual Mahi Mahi Fishing Derby.

The 50-year-old skipper and 10/7 team made up of Ivan Ilmov, Keith Torres, Brandon Echalico, John Jimeno, and Phil Babauta topped 58 other boaters to win the COVID-19 edition of the yearly fishing tournament for the coryphaena hippurus or dolphin fish.

Iglecias and his crew caught the day’s bounty of the sea—an 18.9-lb whopper. The retired Customs employee said they were just lucky they caught the mightiest mahi of the derby.

“I got bigger ones before…normally mahi they stay out late every year. For February and March it’s hard to catch especially April. By July it’s like 1lb or 2 lbs and that’s the biggest catch. I tried fishing for it in July during the [The Saipan International Fishing Tournament] and I caught 2 lbs and it was already good enough for second place,” he said.

Iglecias said they got their prize about five hours after setting sail from the Smiling Cove Marina and caught it east of Saipan, more specifically between Saipan and Tinian.

“Every year that’s my favorite spot for the derby,” said the resident of Dandan.

Iglecias’ first mate, Ilmov, said them winning the 2017 mahi derby wasn’t just about pure luck as he and the rest of the crew of Trophy leaned heavily on the experience of their captain.

“I’ve been with captain Alvin for two years. He has already many years of experience and he really knows the waters around Saipan and also understands the weather and lures…it’s his experience and a little bit of luck that allowed us to win this year,” he said.

Iglecias and company edged CAT-SIKA of captain Jesse Sablan who landed an 18.2-lb mahi, while rounding out the Top 3 was Kingfisher 2 of captain Jun Azarcon with their 17.9-lb catch.

Sablan’s crew aboard Reel Tight was made up of Gonzalo Pangelinan, Christopher Pangelinan, George Davi, and Nathan David.

Kingfisher 2 crewmembers aboard the ship with the same name included Elmer Ocampo and Manuel Mogan.

For a hard day’s work in the water, 10/17 took home the top prize of $2,000, while CAT-SIKA got $1,500 and Kingfisher 2 $1,000.

Masaki Kitami’s Salty Bandits (16.5 lbs) and John Sablan’s MV Gloria 2 (14.4 lbs) received consolation prizes for finishing fourth and fifth places, respectively.

The main sponsor of the year’s 17th Annual Mahi Mahi Fishing Derby is Budweiser and the sporting event was organized by the Saipan Fishermen’s Association.