The Hastings Raiders girls golf team continued its early season schedule Thursday, April 9, with a regular season team stroke play meet against Hill-Murray at Oak Glen Golf Course in Stillwater. The nine-hole competition began at 1 p.m. and matched the Raiders against a Hill-Murray squad that featured several low scoring rounds near the top of the individual standings. The meet provided an early season test for Hastings as the team worked to establish its varsity lineup and pace heading into a busy stretch of April competition.
Hill-Murray finished first with a team score of 18 over par, while Hastings placed second with a team score of 64 over across the nine-hole round. Junior Harmon Brown led the Raiders with a 10 over performance, finishing fifth overall in the individual standings. Brown’s steady round highlighted Hastings’ top effort of the afternoon and kept the Raiders within reach early in the scoring before Hill-Murray created separation later in the meet.
Sophomore Maddy Ritter and sophomore Anika Johnson each carded rounds of 17 over par, tying for eighth place overall. Their matching scores gave Hastings support in the middle of the lineup and helped stabilize the team total during the short format event. Senior Lauren Judge followed with a 20 over round, placing 10th overall, while senior Haylee Newton finished 11th with a score of 26 over. Freshman Laney Schwieger completed the varsity group with a 39 over round while gaining valuable experience in early season competition.
Hill-Murray’s Emma Fitzmorris earned medalist honors with a 1 under round to lead all golfers on the course. Teammates Ella Friedman and Lucy Metz also placed near the top of the standings, helping Hill-Murray secure the team victory in the dual meet format. Hastings continued to compete through the lineup and gained another full varsity scoring round as the season moves forward.
Hastings finished second as a team behind Hill-Murray, led by Brown’s fifth place individual finish. Ritter and Johnson tied for eighth place, followed by Judge in 10th, Newton in 11th, and Schwieger in 12th. The meet provided another early benchmark for the Raiders as they continue building consistency across the varsity group during the opening weeks of the spring season.
Hastings will return to action Thursday, April 16, at 3 p.m. against Mahtomedi at Hidden Greens Golf Course. The Raiders will then compete in a conference meet Tuesday, April 21, at noon at Goodrich Golf Course, followed by a 2:30 p.m. meet Tuesday, April 28, against North and Tartan at Goodrich Golf Course. Hastings closes the month Thursday, April 30, with a 3 p.m. meet against South St. Paul at Hidden Greens Golf Course as the team continues its April schedule.