No. 2 Bulldogs make a run, finish 2nd at MACCCs

After a disastrous first round at the MACCC Championship, No. 2 Mississippi Gulf Coast got a hole-in-one from Chase Kaiser to put a scare into No. 5 Meridian on Saturday.

The Bulldogs cut an 18-shot deficit all the way to four early on the back nine but had to settle for second place. Meridian won by 10 shots.

"We got off to a great start but couldn't quite maintain down the stretch," Gulf Coast coach Brad Thornton said. "I'm looking forward to the District in two weeks, getting our big shot at them."

Kaiser (Fr., Natchez/Cathedral) shot a tournament-best 4-under 68. He charged 12 spots up the leaderboard to finish fourth and earn All-Tournament honors. He also won a place on the All-MACCC First Team for his season-long efforts.

"I hit it terrible on the range this morning, and I tried to just slow everything down," he said. "I focused on tempo because the drivers been giving me trouble."

He birdied the first hole and made good pars on the next two holes. He had a 9-iron in his hand at the fourth tee, looking slightly downhill and downwind at 166 yards to the pin.

"I hit it really good," Kaiser said. "Ethan Trouth was watching me, and as soon as I hit it, he was telling it to go in. It never left the flag. It landed just short of the flag, took a bounce and disappeared."

He high-fived and hugged Trouth in his shocked state. Kaiser had three holes-in-one during his sixth-grade summer, but had never had one in competition or from the back tees.

He had three straight birdies early on the back-nine to get to 6-under but gave a couple back late.

"He birdied two of the hardest holes on the course, 11 and 13," Thornton said. "That's an outstanding round. That's typical Chase in my opinion."

Kaiser finished the tournament at 7-over, five behind Ethan Dyess from Meridian.

Alessio Graziani (Fr., Johannesburg, South Africa/Beaulieu College) was seventh at 12-over, with David Beard (Fr., Madison/Madison Central) tied for eight another shot back.

Beard joined Kaiser on the All-MACCC First Team, with Reeves Johnson (So., Madison/Germantown) on the second team.

Gulf Coast qualified easily for the NJCAA District D Championship later this month in Brandon. The top five teams made the cut, with Northeast Mississippi, Copiah-Lincoln and Pearl River also in the field.

The top two teams at Castlewood plus the next five individuals will play in the NJCAA Division II Men's Golf Championship next month in Joplin, Mo.

"The guys are in a good spot mentally heading into district," Thornton said. "That was the goal. To get to the national championship, you have to get to the district first. We did that. I think we'll be very well motivated the next two weeks."

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