ERIE — Daniel Gray has been there, done that.

And he will keep doing it while chasing the ultimate prize.

Gray, 47, of Butler, won The Bass Federation’s Mid-Atlantic Divisional Championship last week on Lake Erie. One of 12 anglers representing the Washington, D.C. team, he caught 11 bass over a three-day period, weighing a combined 42 pounds, eight ounces.

He edged out Corey Cook of Delbarton, W.Va., by a single ounce to win the overall championship while besting a field of 84 anglers.

Pennsylvania, West Virginia, New Jersey, Delaware, Virginia, Maryland and the District of Columbia were represented at the Mid-Atlantic Divisional.

“It’s the top 12 fishermen from each state who make the divisional,” Gray said. “I was Angler of the Year for Washington D.C. last year as that team’s No. 1 fisherman.”

This year marked the 17th Mid-Atlantic Divisional Gray has competed in. He’s represented Pennsylvania 13 times, Maryland and D.C. twice each.

“I still live in Butler, but I get tired of fishing the same waters all of the time,” he said. “I wanted to try the Potomac River the past couple of years.”

This year, Gray is back swimming for Pennsylvania.

He will try to qualify as one of the 12 Pa. anglers at next year’s Mid-Atlantic Divisional when he competes at Raystown Lake in Huntingdon this weekend.

By winning this year’s divisional, Gray has qualified to compete at the TBF Nationals on Grand Lake in Oklahoma next April.

Last year, he competed in the B.A.S.S. National Championship in Louisiana after winning the B.A.S.S. Mid-Atlantic Divisional in Virginia.

“TBF and B.A.S.S. are the two biggest organizations for bass fishing,” Gray said. “I may be the only guy to qualify for a national in each in successive years.”

Next April will mark Gray’s fifth national tournament. He’s finished as high as fifth at nationals, doing so last November.

“I’ve always been right up there at nationals,” he said. “I’d be short by a pound, a half-pound, a few ounces, whatever. But I’ve been up there each time.”

The Mid-Atlantic Divisional was held Wednesday through Friday of last week.

Practice for the event was Sunday through Tuesday.

The weekend before that, Gray and Scott Sirokus of Houston (Pa.) won the Keystone Bass Buddy Circuit (KBBC) championship on Lake Erie, beating out 39 other teams.

“All of those guys beat up that area of the lake pretty good, caught all the fish,” Gray said. “(For the divisional) I knew some other spots where the fish were biting and took advantage of them.”

The 84 anglers at the Mid-Atlantic Divisional combined to catch 561 fish weighing 1,729 pounds. Fishing began at 7 a.m. each day with weigh-ins taking place at 3 p.m. Anglers could weigh in no more than four fish per day.

“You spend the day tossing smaller fish you’ve caught back in, hoping to catch bigger ones,” Gray said.

Gray first joined the B.A.S.S. Club in 1998 and has been a competitive angler since. He grew up in Center Township.

“My grandmother lived in Hilliards and my aunt’s place was right down the road from her,” Gray said. “She had a beautiful pond my dad and uncle helped build.

“Whenever we went to visit, I brought a fishing pole with me for something to do. That’s where I learned to fish, how to trick ‘em with artificial bait.

“I’ve loved it ever since. I just want to keep going,” he added.