15-year-old is named 16th FishMaryland Master Angler

Annapolis, Md. — Luca Tucciarella, of Forest Hill, has earned a Master Angler Milestone Award under the Maryland Department of Natural Resources’ FishMaryland program.

Fifteen-year-old Tucciarella is the 16th Master Angler and the third youth angler to reach the milestone award since the program began in 2019. The award recognizes recreational anglers who catch 10 trophy-sized fish of different species in Maryland.

Tucciarella started fishing with his father at a local neighborhood pond when he was 3 or 4 years old.

“After the first time he took me fishing, I realized it was something that I would enjoy for a very long time,” Tucciarella said. “My dad told me about the Master Angler program in early spring of 2024, and I thought it would be a cool challenge to pursue. I wanted to pursue it because it’s an award that recog nizes a passion that I’ve had my whole life.”

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Tucciarella’s qualifying catches, in order, were:

Carp, 36 inches; brook trout, 12 inches; flathead catfish, 34.5 inches; sand tiger shark, 79 inches; bullhead catfish, 15.25 inches; rock bass, 11 inches; blue catfish, 44 inches largemouth bass, 22 inches; northern pike, 38.25 inches; chain pickerel, 25.75 inches.

He has a particular interest in fishing for the invasive Chesapeake channa (northern snakehead).

“Snakehead fishing has always interested me because of where they live, the different techniques used to catch them, and how hard you have to set the hook,” said Tucciarella.

“My most recent snakehead was 29.5 inches long, and I hope to catch one that is 30 inches or larger for my next FishMaryland species award.”

The second largest fish out of the newest Master Angler’s 10 qualifying catches was an invasive blue catfish that was 44 inches in length. The exact weight of the fish was unknown because Tucciarella’s scale maxed out at 50 pounds.

“It was an awesome fight that lasted over 10 minutes, and I caught it on 20-pound test braided line,” Tucciarella said.

His final qualifying fish was a 25.75-inch chain pickerel. “The coolest thing about my last fish is that I actually caught two trophy pickerel over 24 inches that same day,” he said.

Tucciarella noted that the hardest fish to catch was the northern pike, “My dad said he didn’t think I would catch a pike, let alone one that was over 38 inches long. I’ve been trying to catch a pike for the last four years.”

FishMaryland is Maryland’s recreational fishing award program and is a fun way to explore year-round recreational fishing and enjoy affordable, accessible, diverse, and high-quality fishing opportunities.