Bulldogs win their tournament by 7 shots
SAUCIER — No. 5 Mississippi Gulf Coast's depth was on full display at its MGCCC Fall Invitational. The Bulldogs' Chase Kaiser ran away with medalist honors, and Gulf Coast beat Meridian by seven shots for its first MACCC title of the season.
Kaiser was the No. 5 golfer on coach Brad Thornton's squad coming into the 36-hole event at Windance Country Club.
"We have a lot of depth on this team," he said. "I've been telling them that all year. There's a couple of guys who have been going back and forth getting wins, and Chase threw his name right in there. That's a blessing for me as a coach to have five guys capable of winning every time we tee it up."
Kaiser beat Meridian's Diego Leslie by four shots. They were the only two golfers below par.
"It was just the putting," the freshman from Natchez Cathedral said. "I made a lot of much-needed putts today. It was two different rounds, two different ways. I scored a little better today, but I hit the ball better yesterday."
David Beard (Fr., Madison/Madison Central) joined Kaiser on the All-Tournament Team by finishing fifth at 3-over.
Alessio Graziani (Fr., Johannesburg, South Africa/Beaulieu College) carded his second straight 75 to finish seventh, with Matt Wilkinson (So., Madison/Madison Central), Ethan Trouth (So., Sutton Coldfield, England/The Streetly Academy) and Hayden Russell (So., Gautier/Gautier) tied for eighth. Trouth and Russell were playing as individuals.
Reeves Johnson (So., Madison/Germantown) bounced back from a rough first round to shoot 74 and move up to 13th.
Gulf Coast, which is ranked first in the Golfstat computer ratings, followed up a dominating performance at the NJCAA Tournament Preview last week in Missouri with another victory.
"The course was in great shape and played very tough," Thornton said. "They handled business, and I thought we ended the fall on a really high note."
Team scores |
|
| School | Score |
|---|---|
| 1. Gulf Coast | 293-291—584 (+8) |
| 2. Meridian | 295-296—591 (+15) |
| 3. Northeast Mississippi | 306-313—619 (+43) |
| 4. Copiah-Lincoln | 315-306—621 (+45) |
| 5. Itawamba | 320-323—643 (+67) |
| 6. Rend Lake | 323-321—644 (+68) |
| 7. East Central | 331-322—653 (+77) |
| 8. Southwest Mississippi | 350-334—684 (+108) |
| 9. Hinds | 348-353—701 (+125) |
| 10. East Mississippi | 360-349—709 (+133) |
MGCCC scores |
|
| Player | Score |
|---|---|
| 1. Chase Kaiser | 70-69—139 (-5) |
| 4. David Beard | 74-73—147 (+3) |
| 7. Alessio Graziani | 75-75—150 (+6) |
| T8. Matt Wilkinson | 74-79—153 (+9) |
| T8. Ethan Trouth* | 72-81—153 (+9) |
| T8. Hayden Russell* | 75-78—153 (+9) |
| T13. Reeves Johnson | 80-74—154 (+10) |
| 21. Spence Davis* | 77-80—157 (+13) |
| T23. Gabe Hudson* | 79-80—159 (+15) |
| *—Playing as individual | |
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