Hadley Carlson was oh so close.
The Roland-Story sophomore girls golfer has always looked up to her older sisters, Makenna and Brinley.
Makenna placed in the top 10 individually at the state meet four times from 2021-2024, taking ninth, fourth, fourth and 10th and helped the Norse claim the 2023 team championship. Brinley, a UNI commit, has placed seventh, sixth and seventh individually over the past three years while the team finished first, second and fifth from 2023-2025.
But though Hadley appreciates all the advice and encouragement her sisters have given over the years, she naturally wants to stand out on her own.
“My goal is always to beat Brinley,” Hadley said. “She always pushes me, so it’s always nice to have someone to fall back on and talk to because she’s out playing in the same weather as me.”
She almost pulled it off during the Heart of Iowa Conference girls golf meet on May 6 at the Lincoln Valley Golf Course in State Center.
Brinley was not happy with her performance right after finishing the conference meet.
“I didn’t have the best meet today,” Brinley said. “It was nice having her (Hadley’s) score come in low and I’m pretty sure Jenna (Birkland) is pretty low too. You know that on an off day, your other team(mates) can carry you.”
But considering the windy conditions and that it was pretty cold for a May afternoon, Brinley did just fine, winning the individual tournament by shooting a 9-over par 81 over 18 holes.
Hadley had to settle for being runner-up. She finished just one stroke behind her big sister, shooting an 82 with a 42 in and 40 out.
It was the back nine where Brinley made up the difference, shooting a 37 to Hadley’s 40.
“The two sisters are very competitive,” said Roland-Story coach Larry Ammerman. “They work very hard out there. They put in hours and hours of time out on the course. They earn everything they’re getting.”
Brinley’s goals coming into her senior season were pretty clear.
“Honestly, the big goal is to win state,” Brinley said. “As a team and individually.”
Brinley said she has been able to add more yardage on her clubs this season. It has taken her some time to adjust to her added swing power, but she currently leads 2A in average 9-hole score at 37.67 and ranks fourth in average 18-hole score at 78.
Her biggest competition for the individual crown will be Oelwein’s Grace Lewis, who placed second to four-time individual state champion Chloe Bolte of Sumner-Fredericksburg during last year’s state meet.
Lewis finished 1-over par and two strokes behind Bolte with a 145 and Brinley shot a 164. According to Varsity Bound, Burlington Notre Dame freshman Alexandria Booten has the top 18-hole average in 2A right now at 74.75 and Van Meter junior Josie Bemis is second at 77.33, with Lewis (77.5) Carlson and Clarinda’s Taylor Rasmussen right behind.
Brinley wants to win another team title just as much as the individual one.
She was not sure that would be possible after losing Brooke Thomson, a 12th-place individual scorer at the 2025 state meet, along with Isabel Hoskins and Eva Corcoran from last year’s team. But after Roland-Story rolled to victory in its first five events, she thinks the Norse have what it takes.
“Our first meet of the season, we were only a couple strokes off our school record, and I was like, ‘Wow, we can do something good this season,'” Brinley said. “Then they came out with the preseason rankings, and we were No. 1. That caught me off guard.”
This is where Hadley can be a big difference maker. She moved up from the team’s No. 3 golfer to No. 2 behind her sister this year.
Hadley has shaved nearly six strokes off her average 18-hole score from a year ago.
“I’ve definitely seen my scores drop drastically,” Hadley said. “Having to take on a new position is a bit odd, but when I don’t have a great day, they (my teammates) all have really good days.”
The main reason behind Hadley’s improvement is simple.
“My confidence,” Hadley said. “That’s always what I struggled with coming in.”
Morgan Thompson and Birkland have also stepped up their level of play to help make the Norse a contender. They helped Roland-Story cruise to the HOIC team championship by 30 strokes over Nevada (339 to 369).
Birkland is averaging a 104.33 over 18 holes and Thompson a 108.33. Birkland stepped up with an 83 at the HOIC meet to place third overall and Thompson took 10th with a 93.
Keely Oberender and Hannah Bates round out the varsity lineup.
“It’s just been a fun year to see them grow,” Ammerman said. “The weather hasn’t been real cooperative with us, so it’s been a challenging year for that. But they’ve really worked hard and fought through the weather.”
Hadley has not gotten the better of Brinley yet this season. Based on her performance at the HOIC meet, that could happen at any meet between now and the end of the season.
But even if big sister stays at the top of the mountain, Hadley could be the deciding factor in Roland-Story winning the whole thing at the American Legion Golf Course in Marshalltown on May 28-29.
That would make the whole Carlson family proud.
“We’ve just got to keep pushing,” Brinley said. “Get some good practices in and dream big.”
Joe Randleman covers high school sports for the Ames Tribune. Contact him at jrandleman@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter at @JoeRandleman
This article originally appeared on Ames Tribune: Carlson sisters want to lead Roland-Story girls golf to a state title
Reporting by Joe Randleman, Ames Tribune / Ames Tribune
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
