WAVERLY — The bright lights of the Iowa Girls State Golf Tournament weren’t too much for Marshalltown sophomore Morgan Hilderbrand.

The Bobcat sophomore got out to a strong start and stands tied for 17th place in Class 4A after shooting a 10-over-par 80 in Thursday’s opening 18 holes at Waverly Municipal Golf Course.

Hilderbrand is just three strokes out of 10th place at the turn in pursuit of a medal in her state debut.

“A great start to the tournament for Morgan Hilderbrand,” said MHS head coach Lucas Johnson. “You never know how a player will react in their first state appearance, but she couldn’t have handled it better. She had a strong mindset and trusted her plan heading into the round.”

Bobcat senior Harper Wilson had one birdie to show for an otherwise bumpy day on the links in her second state meet appearance. Wilson was a part of Marshalltown’s 10th-place team in 2024 but couldn’t get the short game to match her long-drive mastery in Thursday’s first round.

Wilson shot 47-42–89 and is tied for 39th place after Day 1.

“Harper’s score didn’t reflect how well she was striking it,” said Johnson. “Her driver was dialed in and she was hitting it way past her playing partners. She put herself in great positions to attack pins, but it was one of those days where the short game wasn’t working.

“Chipping and putting was the strong suit of her game at regionals, so with more course familiarity going into tomorrow I fully anticipate her making a move up the leaderboard.”

Hilderbrand, who started on the 17th hole, shot a 5-over 39 on the front and a 5-over 41 on the back, carding three bogeys and one double bogey on both halves of the course.

“She’s only three shots outside a medal place and in excellent position to move up tomorrow if she can get some putts to drop,” Johnson said.

Wilson began her opening round on the 18th hole and had a 47 on the front before finding a groove at the turn, playing 1-over over a five-hole stretch that included her birdie on the par-4 11th.

Both Bobcat golfers tee off at 9:30 a.m. for Friday’s final round — Hilderbrand from the first tee and Wilson from the 10th.