CRANSTON — Narragansett’s Sebastian Carlsson and Coventry’s Sam Fuentes each had five birdies in their rounds on Day 1 of the RIIL Golf Championships, but someone made more.
Moses Brown freshman Adriana Eaton had a roller-coaster ride over her 18 holes, but rebounded after a tough start and finished with seven birdies for a 73 to lead the RIIL Girls Golf Championship by five shots.
“I’m feeling confident,” Eaton said. “I just have to stick to my game and continue [on Wednesday] the same way.”
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Carlsson and Fuentes were surprise leaders after the first round as both posted rounds of 1-under 70 to lead a crowded field that included Prout’s Mark Roberts at one stroke off the lead followed by Barrington’s AJ Colonna and North Kingstown’s Brayden Dickinson, who both posted 72s .
“I played well [on Tuesday]Carlsson said. “I left some out on the table so I think if I can come out [Wednesday] and clean up the mistakes. Hopefully, I’ll end up on top.”
“Previous to the tournament, I said to myself I wanted to be in the last group and see what it was like and how I could hold myself with all the attention around the group,” Fuentes said. “I’m pretty happy with that.”
Talent wasn’t what made the leaderboard a surprise. Two-time defending champion Max Jackson was the overwhelming favorite coming into the round, but the La Salle junior struggled to find the fairway off the tee and had limited opportunities to score.
Jackson finished with 75 but was more than ready to get to work on Wednesday.
“I don’t think I could have played any worse,” Jackson said. “I just have to figure some stuff out tonight.
“It gives me a reason to fire at pins and be kind of aggressive. I’m excited for it.”
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Eaton was ready to make her debut at the RIIL Girls Golf Tournament, which was taking place as part of a two-round event at Cranston Country Club instead of the one-day event it has been since its inception.
The Moses Brown freshman made a birdie on her second hole, but followed it with a quadruple bogey and another bogey to get off to a less-than-ideal start.
But Eaton didn’t let the start faze him. She chipped in for birdie on No. 5, followed with birdies on Nos. 6 and 9, then made four more on the back.
“After that, I was 4 over, so that gave me confidence,” said Eaton of the chip-in. “I knew I was still in it.”
Barrington’s Lily Dessel is in second place after her round of 78, followed by Moses Brown’s Kylie Eaton — Adriana’s older sister — who shot a 79. La Salle sophomore Olivia Williams, the defending state champ, shot 80 and is in fourth place.
“I struggled with a lot of things [Tuesday], but I know I can play better,” Williams said. “I’m just going to try to play better. There are a lot of things I can do differently mentally and just play smarter.”
Carlsson looked like he was going to hold a substantial lead as he played the back nine. The Narragansett senior made three straight birdies on holes No. 11-13. On No. 13, the par 5, his second shot was just off the green and he had no trouble getting up and down for a birdie to get to 3 under.
“The tee shots weren’t perfect, but I was putting it in positions where I can strike some good iron shots, which when I’m playing well is probably the strongest part of my game,” Carlsson said. “It really paid off and I had some losses in birdies.”
Fuentes was near the top of the leaderboard after shooting 1 under on the front. He gave two back with a double on No. 13, but back-to-back birdies on Nos. 16 and 17 got him to 2-under par before a bogey on No. 18
“It’s really just keeping calm and just worrying about the next shot, shot after shot,” Fuentes said. “I knew it was a good field and I just wanted to play my game.”
Carlsson made two bogeys to finish, leaving him tied for first with Fuentes. It also wasn’t necessarily a position he expected to be in.
“Before the round, you think Max is probably going to be up there and I have to post a good number to beat him,” Carlsson said. “But when you’re on the course, you’re just thinking about how I can hit the next shot well.”
Barrington, led by a 72 from Colonna and a 75 from Cole Vieira, leads the team tournament with a first-day score of 302. La Salle, the defending state champion, sits one shot back and East Greenwich and Moses Brown are each tied for third at 309.
As unpredictable as Day 1 was, the final day of play could be crazier.
“I’m just going to do what I’ve been doing,” Fuentes said. “Try and post a good score, aim middle green, and if putts go in, putts go in.”
“Just stick to the game plan, that’s about it,” Adriana Eaton said. “It’s just about what I can do. Don’t focus on the other competitors.”
“What can you do?” Carlsson said. “I’m tied with the lead with a chance.”
This article originally appeared on The Providence Journal: Three surprise leaders after Day 1 of state golf championships