Kaiser’s 66 pushes No. 2 MGCCC to big lead

PHOTO BY RICHARD GLEBER/PRCC

No. 2 Mississippi Gulf Coast put its practice to good use Monday in the opening round of the Pearl River Invitational, roaring out to a 19-shot lead in the first MACCC event of the spring.

The Bulldogs got a lot of time on The Oaks Golf Club last week in preparation, and they shot a 2-under 290 to put some distance between them and Copiah-Lincoln.

Chase Kaiser (So., Natchez/Cathedral) shot a sizzling 6-under 66 to lead by three shots.

"We played better than you would expect playing early in February," Gulf Coast coach Brad Thornton said. "We took advantage of the practicing and getting familiar with the course. The guys have worked really hard, and you saw the results today."

Gulf Coast had six of the top 14 golfers, with Will Burnham (Fr., Jackson/Jackson Prep) also finishing in red at 1-under. Andrew Zielinski (Fr., Ocean Springs/Ocean Springs) is tied for sixth at 4-over, and Alessio Graziani (So., Johannesburg, South Africa/Beaulieu College) is another shot back tied for eighth.

Jackson Wise (Fr., Pontotoc/North Pontotoc) and Kyle Davidson (Fr., Kyalami, South Africa/St. Peter's College) are tied for 10^th. Davidson is playing as an individual.

Chase is three ahead of Co-Lin's Navid Mousavi. He was even on the front nine, then surged to the top of the leaderboard by shooting 30 on the back.

"He kept his head down and did what he does," Thornton said. "He just makes putts when he needs to. He was very prepared mentally today, and I think that benefited him greatly. It was tough conditions with some wind that picked up later in the afternoon. He got hot at the right time and made the putts when it counted."

Gulf Coast goals won't change in the second and final round Tuesday. The Bulldogs are trying to win their fourth MACCC event out of four this year, and it's a day-by-day process for them.

"Our goal each conference event is to win each round, not to drop any rounds to conference opponents," Thornton said. "Every time we step out, we try to do all the little things right and typically it takes care of itself. We're not worried about anybody else. Handling our business is priority No. 1."

For more information on MGCCC's 11 intercollegiate athletic teams, follow @MGCCCBulldogs on Twitter and MGCCCBulldogs on Facebook, and go to mgcccbulldogs.com.