No. 5 Bulldogs teeing off Monday
PERKINSTON — Mississippi Gulf Coast rose from No. 8 to No. 5 from the preseason Bushnell Golfweek NJCAA Division II Coaches Poll to the first poll of the regular season without hitting a shot.
The Bulldogs will give the voters some actual data when they open play Monday in Cleveland, Miss., at the Derrall Foreman Invitational hosted by Delta State. Teams will play 36 holes the first day and conclude with 18 Tuesday.
"We have a lot of talent coming back from our sophomore class, and we're bringing in a lot of impact players coming in as freshmen," new Gulf Coast coach Brad Thornton said. "As we recover from our COVID year, we're happy to hopefully getting back to a normal routine and see how this talent translates on the course."
Thornton was named the new head coach in June, taking over the program after five years as an assistant under legendary coach Tommy Snell. Thornton was an All-American for Snell at Gulf Coast before playing at Delta State.
"I owe a lot to him," Thornton said. "He's done so much for this program, for this conference and for golf on the national stage. I'm really excited to stepping into this position."
The Bulldogs return four sophomores who have a different level of experience from typical returnees. They were part of a team which won the school's 12th region/district title in the last 13 years.
Matt Wilkinson (So., Madison/Madison Central) was about a stroke per 18 away from being named to the NJCAA Division II PING All-American First Team. That will be a goal to jump from making the Second Team as a freshman.
Reeves Johnson (So., Madison/Germantown) earned PING All-East Region honors after posting five top-five finishes in 11 events. Ethan Trouth (So., Sutton Coldfield, England/The Streetly Academy/) had four top-10 finishes, and Hayden Russell had one of his own.
"They endured a lot last year and didn't have the typical freshman year," Thornton said. "I look for them to play a huge part in our success this year. From top to bottom, they're highly competitive and I'm excited to see what they can do."
Gulf Coast has reloaded with a talented group of freshmen, led by South African Alessio Graziani (Fr., Johannesburg, South Africa/Beaulieu College). David Beard (Fr., Madison/Madison Central) is a former Mississippi state junior champion.
He and Spence Davis (Fr., Madison/Madison Central) are part of the talented Madison Central pipeline Gulf Coast has tapped into. A third of the Bulldogs roster is from that school, and Johnson lives in Madison and went to Germantown.
Chase Kaiser (Fr., Natchez/Cathedral) is a developing player expected to grow with experience, and Gabe Hudson (Fr., Diamondhead/Hancock) is a well-rounded player who will make an impact this year.
Gulf Coast won the District D title last year, but lost the MACCC tournament. Thornton would like to pick up two pieces of hardware next spring.
"Our conference has risen in terms of competitiveness," Thornton said. "I'm hoping we can take the step this year, and we can get back on top. We've got the talent to try to do that."
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