Third time's a charm:

The winning fish wasn't the biggest fish that has come out of Saratoga Lake, but with a score of 35, it was the winner for this year. Tammy Guerra, of Parker, Colo., could be the first woman in the 33-year history of the fishing derby to win the tournament.

The chamber has records back to 1993, and the only woman to place in the top three was Encampment's Maureen Zeiger, who won third place in 2012.

Not only does Guerra have a $2,000 check to take home, she has a pretty good fish story to go with it.

"It was an ornery fish," Guerra said. She pulled it out of the hole and when she turned, it slid back in. She pulled it out again, and it slid into another hole. Fortunately, it was still on the line and she was able to pull it out.

When asked if she screamed when she pulled the fish out, she replied "Close ... actually, I think I did."

This is her first year fishing in Wyoming, but she has ice fished twice before in Colorado.

Guerra's boyfriend, Manuel Gallegos, told her about the derby. He and some friends from work come to the fishing derby every year.

"I out fished them all," Guerra said laughing.

She said she would use to the money to help pay for the trip and the couple plans to have massages. Other than that, she wasn't making any big plans for the money just yet.

Catching the fish first thing Saturday morning, she had to wait for the rest of the tournament to see if she really was going to take home the $2,000.

The closest one was Gerald James, of Saratoga, whose fish scored a 33. His fish had the same girth as Gurerra's but was two inches shorter. He took home a $1,000 cash prize.

Christina Joder, of Fort Collins, Colo., took third place with her fish, which had a score of 31.5. It was 21 inches long and had a girth of 10.5 inches.

Jayce Borghi, of Ogallala, Neb., was pretty excited with his catch. He netted first place in the small fry. Just 7 years old, he pulled in a 21.5 inch fish with a 10 inch girth. He won $200 and a new fishing pole.

The crowd was down from last year, but up from 2014, Stacy Crimmins said. She is the chief executive officer for the Saratoga/Platte Valley Chamber of Commerce which sponsors the annual event and has run the event for 12 years.

Last year, when the big trophy fish for $20,000, $10,000 and $5,000 were re-introduced for the first time in years, the attendance spiked to 869. This year there were 738 people registered, 661 adults and 77 small fry. The volunteers or "O-Fish-ALs," weighed 142 fish for 112 adults and 30 small fry.

The three bounty fish were caught before noon on Saturday, which Crimmins said was not unusual. Alice Keck, of Loveland, Colo., brought in the first bounty fish, which earned her $500. Lori Henderson, of Evanston, Wyo., had the second bounty fish, while Rene Rivera, of Loveland, Colo., caught the third bounty fish for a $75 cash prize.

Michael Hughes, of Laramie, won best hut. He has bragging rights for the next year. Jennifer Wilcox, of Wheatland, Wyo., brought in the biggest fish of the hour when Bigfoot 99 sponsored the 11 a.m. hour Saturday morning, which earned her an extra $200 on top of the $100 hourly prize.

Chris Scharrer, of Broomfield, Colo., earned an extra $100, when he brought in the biggest fish the final hour. That money was donated by Engineering Associates.

The fish were biting on Saturday, but the catching slowed down considerably on Sunday.

Fortunately for Guerra, no one outfished her and she was able to take home the $2,000.