No. 2 Gulf Coast leads District field by 3

The first round of the NJCAA Gulf District Tournament hit a weather hiccup early, but No. 2 Mississippi Gulf Coast didn't let it affect them when they got back on the course.

About 10 minutes after its first group teed off, golfers were called off the course because of lightning and stayed off for 2.5 hours. Gulf Coast got back out there and finished with an opening round of 3-over for a three-shot lead over No. 6 Meridian.

"We had to deal with the weather," Gulf Coast coach Brad Thornton said, "but I thought our guys were locked in all day, all the way through the finish, and played really well."

All five Bulldog golfers finished within two shots of each other, led by David Beard (Fr., Madison/Madison Central) and Chase Kaiser (Fr., Natchez/Cathedral). They are tied with Meridian's Joseph Berry at even-par 72.

Reeves Johnson (So., Madison/Germantown) is tied for fourth a shot back, with Matt Wilkinson (So., Madison/Madison Central) and Ethan Trouth (So., Sutton Coldfield, England/The Streetly Academy) tied for sixth at 2-over. 

"There was consistency across the board," Thornton said. "That takes pressure off our players coming in because we know we've got some guys in the clubhouse with good scores. That paid off for us today."

Gulf Coast will try to close out its 13^th region/district championship in the last 14 events Tuesday when the final round is played.

The Bulldogs look well on their way to earning a berth in the NJCAA Division II Men's Golf Championship. The top two teams punch their tickets to head to Joplin, Mo., next month. Third-place Copiah-Lincoln is 12 shots back of Gulf Coast.

The Bulldogs' lead could have been bigger, but they dropped some shots coming down the stretch.

"The wind picked up and we had some rain move in as those last groups finished 17 and 18, so we dropped some shots coming in. but it was nothing I was displeased with," Thornton said. "Sometimes the weather kicks up at a bad time. They fought through it, and to head into tomorrow with a three-shot lead, we'll enjoy this afternoon. Come tomorrow, we'll be ready to go again."

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