Beattie named MACJC Player of the Week

PERKINSTON – Mississippi Gulf Coast forward James Beattie was named MACJC Offensive Player of the Week after his three-goal, one-assist outburst in two games last week.

The freshman from Glasgow, Scotland, had two goals and an assist in a 7-1 victory over Co-Lin, then turned around and netted another goal in the Bulldogs' 3-2 win at Jones County. Beattie is second in the MACJC with six goals and leads with four assists on the season.

Gulf Coast kicks off a week of home games Tuesday when Meridian visits at 7 p.m.

The Bulldogs (4-2, 2-1 MACJC South) are coming off a big 3-2 win at Jones County last week. They want to build momentum instead of resting on laurels.

"It's the last two South games in the first round, so you want to finish strong with two wins," Gulf Coast coach Chris Handy said. "It's kind of easy to shut down after a good win against Jones, but we've obviously got some work to do to set us up for the second round."

Meridian is winless in the South and 1-5 overall.

The Bulldogs are one of the best teams in the state offensively, but they've been prone to lapses defensively. Playing more consistently in front of their goal is a key this week and moving forward.

"We're good enough in spurts to win most games, but we've got big goals," Handy said. "We're always trying to strive to put the team that we want to line up against state rivals for a championship each game."