Bulldogs bag 3rd straight shutout

PERKINSTON — Mississippi Gulf Coast cruised past Pensacola State 3-0 on Tuesday night at Bary Thrash Field, and it could have been a bigger margin with some more opportunistic finishing.

“I’m happy with another shutout and another three goals on the board,” Bulldogs coach Ryan Joiner said. “They’re a good team. I thought we were better than them in certain areas. We’re 3-0 and we’ll see where we go from here.”

Gulf Coast scored early when Laylah Johnson (Fr., Gulfport/Gulfport) scored from a sharp angle in the 11^th minute.

Jennifer Lopez (Fr., Gautier/Gautier) doubled the lead eight minutes before halftime with a breakaway, which was a recurring theme on the night. The Bulldogs were able to generate several of them as the Pirates had to press to score.

“We’ve got to do some work around the box finishing goals,” Joiner said. “I think we created probably 12 shots on goal, and in the second half we three or four 1v1s that we need to be putting away when it comes to conference play. They’re all things we can work on and improve in those areas.”

The Bulldogs were able to convert on the last one, with Kyla Smith (So., Hurley/East Central) sprinting in with just under three minutes to play.

While generating plenty of chances offensively, the third straight shutout to start the season was front of mind. Azlyn Dawson (So., Taylorsville/West Jones) was inserted in the starting lineup at the last minute, and she responded.

“Azlyn was elite at right back,” Joiner said. “She was unbeatable, defended well and attacked when we needed her to. I think 21 girls played tonight, so we’re happy to give people minutes.”

Gulf Coast has a couple of scrimmages against four-year schools next week. The next regular-season game will be the MACCC opener when East Central visits on Sept. 17.

For more information on MGCCC’s 12 intercollegiate athletic teams, follow @MGCCCBulldogs on Twitter and MGCCCBulldogs on Facebook, and go to mgcccbulldogs.com.