Bass friends

Cooper Johnson, Conner Balthis win state high school fishing title

Conner Balthis (left) and Cooper Johnson (right) won the Oklahoma Bass Nation High School Fishing State Championship with a two-day total of 27.83 pounds.
Conner Balthis (left) and Cooper Johnson (right) won the Oklahoma Bass Nation High School Fishing State Championship with a two-day total of 27.83 pounds.

TENKILLER LAKE – Cooper Johnson scanned a room full of unfamiliar faces, looking for a fishing partner.

The Oklahoma Bass Nation High School Fishing season was about to begin, and Johnson, a freshman at Cushing High School, was attending the team meeting before the year started. The problem was, he didn’t have a boat or a partner.

Johnson wasn’t guaranteed to find a teammate that day, and he would h…