No. 4 Bulldogs tee things up this weekend

PERKINSTON — Mississippi Gulf Coast's golf team had a record-breaking year in 2022-23, which means this new group of Bulldogs has some big shoes to fill.

That squad finished swept through the MACCC undefeated and finished fifth at the NJCAA Championship. This year's squad has a lot of players to plug in and make another run, and they'll start the season ranked fourth in the Bushnell Golfweek NJCAA Division II Coaches Poll.

"I think we may have one of the deeper teams we've ever assembled," Gulf Coast coach Brad Thornton said. "We're letting the freshmen acclimate a little bit before we figure out exactly what we have with them, but I'm very excited 1 through 10 on this team. Everybody on this roster can really help us out. We'll see once we get this fall season going."

Gulf Coast opens the year this weekend with a long trip to Michigan. The Bulldogs will play in the prestigious Folds of Honor Challenge in Grand Rapids, a 54-hole event featuring a top field.

Thornton's team won a school-record 11 events last year, and Phil Mickelson Award-winner Will Burnham (So., Jackson/Jackson Prep) returns after being named the nation's top freshman. He earned NJCAA All-American honors after winning three times and has signed with Southern Miss.

Andrew Zielinski (So., Ocean Springs/Ocean Springs) was on the First Team All-MACCC squad after eight top-10 finishes. Jackson Wise (So., Pontotoc/North Pontotoc) had five top-10s and was on the All-MACCC Second Team.

Kyle Davidson (So., Kyalami, South Africa/St. Peter's College) played in the district and national tournaments, and Mateo Jimenez (So., Diamondhead/Hancock) traveled last year.

"A lot of what I attribute last year's success to was this freshman class coming in and being very responsible and accountable," Thornton said. "There were very disciplined, which allowed us to focus on golf and what our goals were. We had great sophomore leadership, but these freshmen really made it easy to focus on what we wanted to get done on the course. They were focused academically, taking care of business on campus. They're making that same impact as sophomores."

The freshmen they'll be leading are talented, too. Ludvig Behring (Fr., Sollentuna, Sweden/Osterakers Gymnasium) and Stanley Campbell (Fr., London, England/Essex Golf College) are settling in to their new country.

"They've had some of the quickest acclimation periods I've seen from international kids, especially with this heat and weather," said Thornton. 

The in-state golfers have strong resumes. John Mark Mills (Fr., Pontotoc/Mike Bender Golf Academy) is a former Mississippi Junior Amateur champion. Peyton Russell (Fr., Gautier/Gautier) had an outstanding career at Gautier High, and Garner Seymour (Fr., Biloxi/Biloxi) is fully committed to golf after splitting time with baseball through high school.

"They're great golfers by all measuring sticks, with great junior careers," Thornton said, "but we've got great people on the roster."

The Bulldogs didn't lose a round to MACCC competition all year, which means they'll have a target on their golf bags. They will be skipping the first conference event to play in the national tournament preview in Joplin, Mo., a week after the Michigan trip.

Those trips help provide a measuring stick against national competition. They also get the players showcased in front of coaches from four-year schools on the national scene.

When they get back, they'll focus on resuming their stellar MACCC play.

"We like to compete every round to stay at the top," Thornton said. "We want to see improvements in our conference, but we want to remain the guys everybody wants to beat when they tee it up."

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