No. 1 MGCCC rallies to win in Gulf Shores
No. 1 Mississippi Gulf Coast made the turn in the final round of the Lioneer Invitational needing to make up some ground.
The Bulldogs trailed No. 9 Central Alabama by six shots at the Gulf Shores Golf Club. Nine holes later, the results were exactly what they needed. They surged past Central Alabama to win by two.
"We really stepped it up and finished well today," Gulf Coast coach Brad Thornton said. "We had lost some ground on the front nine, which we struggled on all week. The guys were able to clutch up. I think we played the back nine 2-under-par, which was a 10-shot swing to the nearest competitor."
The Bulldogs finished at 8-over to beat CACC by two shots. John Mark Mills (Fr., Pontotoc/Mike Bender Golf Academy) shot a 1-under 70 and finished one shot behind Central Alabama's Gunnar Green.
Gulf Coast had three golfers in the top eight, with Will Burnham (So., Jackson/Jackson Prep) finishing at 1-over tied for third. Jackson Wise (So., Pontotoc/North Pontotoc) shot 2-over Tuesday to finish tied for fifth another shot back.
Mills proved he was a team player coming down the stretch. He was within striking distance of Green on the final hole, but instead of going for the green in two, he laid up to keep from putting a big number on the board if his tee shot went wayward.
"That says a lot about him to put the team first even with the chance to win the tournament to keep our streak alive," Thornton said. "John Mark has been grinding his tail off ever since he got here in August. It finally all came together for him. He hit the ball extremely well. I can't speak enough about his unselfishness."
The Bulldogs have six straight tournaments. They'll have a little break from competition, with their next event starting March 11 at GlenLakes Golf Club. The 36-hole event is in Foley, Ala., the site of the school's 2018 national championship.
The team hopes a performance like Monday augurs well for them in tougher tournaments this season.
"That was ultimately the difference in the golf tournament," Thornton said. "These guys were able to the swings down the stretch and make the putts down the stretch that got us the win."
Full results: https://smartgolf.online/tournament_access/the-lioneer-invitational-89f9dcee
Team scores |
|
| Team | Score |
|---|---|
| 1. Gulf Coast | 286-290—576 (+8) |
| 2. Central Alabama | 285-293—578 (+10) |
| 3. Eastern Florida State | 291-296—587 (+19) |
| 4. Wallace State | 291-301—592 (+24) |
| 5. Jefferson State | 305-301—606 (+38) |
| 6. Roane State | 309-307—616 (+48) |
| 7. Enterprise State | 301-317—618 (+50) |
| 8. Andrew | 313-306—619 (+51) |
| 9. Calhoun | 305-317—622 (+54) |
| 10. Coastal Alabama-South | 306-325—634 (+66) |
| T11. Shelton State | 301-335—636 (+68) |
| T11. Southern Union | 316-320—636 (+68) |
| 13. Snead State | 307-332—639 (+71) |
| 14. Cleveland State | 319-321—640 (+72) |
| 15. Spartanburg Methodist | 327-324—651 (+83) |
| 16. Coastal Alabama-North | 332-323—655 (+87) |
| 17. Lurleen B. Wallace | 318-345—663 (+95) |
| 18. Northeast Alabama | 330-337—667 (+99) |
MGCCC scores |
|
| Player | Score |
|---|---|
| 2. John Mark Mills | 71-70—141 (E) |
| T3. Will Burnham | 70-73—143 (+1) |
| T5. Jackson Wise | 71-73—144 (+2) |
| T15. Peyton Russell | 74-74—148 (+6) |
| T34. Stanley Campbell | 78-76—155 (+13) |
For more information on MGCCC's 11 intercollegiate athletic teams, follow @MGCCCBulldogs on Twitter and MGCCCBulldogs on Facebook, and go to mgcccbulldogs.com.
