PHOTO BY ERIC PRATT/FORT DODGE MESSENGER - Marshalltown’s Eli Polley hits off the 10th tee during Tuesday’s first half of the Iowa Alliance Conference North Division golf meet at Fort Dodge Country Club. Polley’s round of 88 contributed to the Bobcats’ leading team score of 329.

FORT DODGE — Six weeks from now, the Marshalltown boys’ golf team will have a chance to seal Tuesday’s deal on its home course.

The Bobcats emerged with a two-stroke advantage over Ames after the first 18 holes of the Iowa Alliance Conference’s North Division meet, shooting a 329 total to lead the five-team league on Tuesday at Fort Dodge Country Club.

Ames stands in second as the only team within legitimate striking distance of the Bobcats, shooting a 331. Mason City (361), Waterloo East (374) and Fort Dodge (374) make up the chase pack.

Marshalltown will host the second half of the IAC North meet on Sept. 27 at the American Legion Memorial Golf Course.

“We’ve put ourselves into a solid position heading into the second round of conference,” said MHS head coach Lucas Johnson. “We’re fortunate to host at American Legion during the last meet of our regular season, which should give us a nice home course advantage.”

Cael Sandvick led Marshalltown in its first completed meet of the season, shooting a 7-over-par 78 to stand in second place by one stroke. Bowen Flemming of Ames shot a 77 for the individual medalist honors.

Sandvick closed the round with consecutive birdies on Nos. 17 and 18, shooting 39-39 to lead the Bobcats.

“Cael Sandvick had an outstanding round that was punctuated by back-to-back birdies on 17 and 18, which are both demanding finishing holes,” Johnson said.

Ty Faltys finished in with an 80 to take fourth place, while Jacob Thiessen (83), Ryan Schmitt (88) and Eli Polley (88) finished in positions 9-11. Brecken Payne stands 13th after his round of 89.

“As a team, we played strong on the front side and struggled on the back,” Johnson said. “That’s understandable given the fact that most of our guys have played nine-hole duels on the front in previous years but were much less experienced with the other side of the course. There are some holes out there where out of bounds and water hazards can lead to big numbers.”

The Bobcats weren’t immune to those, but they did limit the damage. Faltys carded an 8 on the par-4 16th to spoil a stellar round on the back side that nearly saw him score the low round, and Polley put down an 8 on the par-5 10th hole. Otherwise, Marshalltown only posted a pair of sevens and put up a steady team score.

“Ty Faltys had a great day and played lights-out on the back nine,” Johnson said. “He was actually leading the tournament going into his final hole and had one bad swing off the tee that led to a quadruple-bogey finish at 16. As a newcomer to varsity, however, those are learning moments that he’ll grow from. Like Cael, he’s still in a nice spot on the leaderboard with a chance to make a move during round two.”

Marshalltown, which had its season opener at home washed out by rain last week, heads to Galena, Ill., on Thursday for an 18-team tournament at Eagle Ridge Golf Course.

Iowa Alliance Conference North Division meet

Fort Dodge Country Club, par 71

Team Standings — 1. Marshalltown 329, 2. Ames 331, 3. Mason City 361, 4. Waterloo East 374, 5. Fort Dodge 374.

Individual (top 10) — 1. Bowen Flemming, AMES, 77; 2. Cael Sandvick, MHS, 78; 3. Michael Solberg, MC, 79; 4. Ty Faltys, MHS, 80; 5. Drew DeGabrielle, MC, 81; 6. Elliott Stenberg, AMES, 82; 7. Jackson Kepley, AMES, 82; 8. Riley Travis, FD, 83; 9. Jacob Thiessen, MHS, 83; 10. Ryan Schmitt, MHS, 88.

MARSHALLTOWN (329) — Sandvick 78, Faltys 80, Thiessen 83, Schmitt 88, Eli Polley 88, Brecken Payne 89.

AMES (331) — Flemming 77, Stenberg 82, Kepley 82, Ashton Richie 90, Sutton Battles 92, Nick Alexander 93.

MASON CITY (361) — Solberg 79, DeGabrielle 81, Brendan Berkley 92, Noah Honn 109, Cam Bjugan 124, Will Schissel 128.

WATERLOO EAST (374) — Ethan Yu 89, Jonah Helmrichs 94, Eric Yu 95, Keegan Aitchison 96, Bryce Borseth 97, Manny Villa 127.

FORT DODGE (374) — Travis 83, Carson Werning 95, Nathan Beekman 97, Evan Pratt 99, Grant Hepp 106, Jaxson Dencklau 111.