Following the first day, Dawson-Boyd’s Evan Mork individually leads the area after shooting a 77 behind a pair of birdies to sit in 21st place out of 88 golfers. Minneota’s Blayze Hulzebos and Owen Dalager sit nearly neck-and-neck with one another, carding a 78 and 79, respectively.

Lakeview’s Ledgen Javens and the Blackjacks’ Carson Stratmoen each shot a 79 as well, and they currently stand tied for 36th with Dalager and Hulzebos sits ahead in 29th as most of the competition is within a stroke of one another.

“It was alright. Not my best stuff, but it was fine,” Stratmoen said. “I had a few double bogeys, which kind of hurts, but I hit the ball decent and then made some longer putts, so that kind of helps, too. All around, it was alright.”

At the completion of day 1, the Minneota boys are in eighth place, of the eight competing teams, with a collective score of 331. Central Minnesota Christian leads the pack in first place with a score of 300.

Photo by Samantha Davis: Minneota's Blayze Hulzebos putts at the first day of the Class A State Tournament on Tuesday at Pebble Creek Golf Club in Becker.

Despite the higher-shooting performance, the trip to state marks the start of a new era for the Vikings’ golf program. Prior to this season, the only other time Minneota appeared at the state tournament was in 1984.

“It’s been a lot of fun. We went to Texas Roadhouse, and I’ve never been there before,” Randy Sorensen said of the experience so far, laughing about the team enjoying the dinner rolls.

Impressively, Minneota had to dethrone the four-time defending section champions in Lakeview to win the Section 3A Tournament to earn its state berth. The Vikings won the section championship with a 674 to the Lakers’ 683.

Additionally, Minneota’s team consists of all new players who joined the group this season, except for Dalager, who represented the Vikings at state last season as an individual and finished in seventh place as a freshman.

“It’s great [being here as a team]. I mean, last year was fun coming by myself, but with the team, it’s just so much better and so much more fun,” Dalager said.

Photo by Samantha Davis: Red Rock Central's Finn Batalden chips a shot at the first day of the Class A State Tournament on Tuesday at Pebble Creek Golf Club in Becker.

Jase Sorensen carded an 82 with two birdies, while Berkley and Easton Sheik followed with a 94 and 95, respectively. Randy Sorensen rounded out the Vikings’ lineup with a 101 to finish up the opening day.

“[Today] definitely was not the greatest, but you know, I can always get better tomorrow,” Randy Sorensen said. “If I shoot low tomorrow, I’ll be fine.”

Hulzebos and Dalager each recorded one birdie as well.

“It was alright throughout most of the day. I started with a bogey, and then got a bunch of pars through that. I mean, my driver was kind of off,” Dalager said. “On the last [three] holes, I was getting through it. On seven, I got a double, and then on eight I tripled.

This year also marks a unique state tournament experience for the Stratmoen’s, as all three siblings are competing. Carson’s sisters, Claire and Chloe, are on the Dawson-Boyd girls team, as the Blackjacks girls are hunting a third-straight title.

Photo by Samantha Davis: Minneota's Jase Sorensen takes a swing at the first day of the Class A State Tournament on Tuesday at Pebble Creek Golf Club in Becker.

Carson is a junior, while Claire is a sophomore and Chloe is in seventh grade. This is also Carson’s fourth trip to state.

“It’s pretty awesome for my family,” Carson said about competing at state with his sisters. “[Our] mom, dad, my grandpa, then a few of their friends, and then I think some family friends are here [to support], too.”

In terms of other area individuals following the first day, Canby junior Lane Citrowske shot an 80 with one birdie in his state-tournament debut.

“It was nice weather. Nice and foggy in the morning, no wind, the afternoon got a little windier, but it wasn’t nothing I couldn’t handle,” Citrowske said. “Today went OK, got off to a rough start on the back-9, struggled with my irons pulling it left, but I got a little better at coming at it up and stronger.”

Finn Batalden out of Red Rock Central also carded an 83 and Murray County Central’s Kaden Landsman followed a few strokes behind with an 89.

Photo by Samantha Davis: Dawson-Boyd's Carson Stratmoen takes a swing at the first day of the Class A State Tournament on Tuesday at Pebble Creek Golf Club in Becker.

To earn their spots in the state tournament as individuals, Javens and Mork each won their section as overall champions. Javens, an eighth grader, shot a 154 to claim the 3A title, while Mork, a senior, took first in 5A with a 149.

“[Today] went pretty good. I had some bad ones, some good holes, but shot pretty good … I like doing a lot of stuff on my own, and just figuring out on my own,” Javens said regarding competing at state individually this year for the Lakers.

Carson placed fourth in 5A, while Batalden, Landsman and Citrowske all finished in second, third and fifth, respectively, in 3A.

“My best shot, honestly, I think was on hole 2. I hit, it wasn’t on the green, but I had like a 230 big-old slinger just left to the green,” Citrowske noted regarding one of his favorite parts of the day. “That’s when I chipped up and missed that birdie, but yeah, that was my best shot of the day.”

The second and final day of the state tournament resumes again today, back at Pebble Creek. The boys will begin teeing off at 7:30 a.m.

Photo by Samantha Davis: Canby's Lane Citrowske takes a swing at the first day of the Class A State Tournament on Tuesday at Pebble Creek Golf Club in Becker.

Photo by Samantha Davis: Minneota's Owen Dalager putts at the first day of the Class A State Tournament on Tuesday at Pebble Creek Golf Club in Becker.