CARMEL
Since her freshman year, Bridget Marshall has been dreaming about playing at the IHSAA girls golf state finals.
After three years of coming close to making the cut, the Seymour senior finally made the cut in her final year of high school competition.
And she didn’t waste it.
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With a strong finish on the front nine, Marshall finished the second round of the state finals with a 13-over-par 85 and a 177 two-day cumulative score.
She was the top finisher in her final grouping.
Though they weren’t her best two days of golf, and at points she wasn’t pleased with her performance, Marshall was still happy to get the chance to end her high school career at Prairie View Golf Club.
"I finally reached my goal," Marshall said. "Going back to my freshman year, I had some chances to get [here].
"It’s a dream come true."
Saturday’s second round was a far cry from the first in more ways than one.
Friday’s opening round saw 50-degree temperatures and wet greens and fairways that grabbed balls and kept them from rolling. The second round wasn’t nearly as hot as it has been this season, but it was familiar conditions for the players.
"Yesterday I had a whole other layer of clothes, so it was hard to swing the club," Marshall said. "The ball wouldn’t roll out very far as opposed to today where you could hit the ball and it would roll out 10 yards, 20 yards."
Marshall used the pleasant weather to her advantage, cut seven strokes off her Friday score and finished tied for 63rd overall.
The course, at times, was frustrating for Marshall, who said there were points where she wasn’t sure where to drive the ball and would just step up to the tee box and strike the ball with all of her might.
That happened a lot during her final nine holes of the tournament, but it resulted in a net positive for Marshall.
"On the front nine, I was able to get my swing right and be aggressive," she said. "There are some holes I like and some holes I don’t, but it depends on your tee shot. Sometimes you step up there to the tee and you don’t have any clue, but I was able to get it figured out."
On the Par-5 No. 3, Marshall was able to string together one of her better holes of the tournament and grab her second birdie.
She got her first on No. 17 on Friday.
Going beyond the scorecard, Marshall pointed out all of the support she had with her and how much it helped over the two-day test.
In addition to her family and Seymour coach Jim Hoffman, longtime friend and teammate Laken Waskom walked the course with Marshall.
"It’s really nice that I have a family that will make the drive," Marshall said. "They were here yesterday too, and it just lets me know that they love me and care for me."
Looking ahead, Marshall wouldn’t say if she was going to try and play golf at the next level, but did say she’s had some communication with college coaches if she wants to pursue the opportunity.
That all will come at a later time; for now, it’s time to decompress and relish in realized dreams.