Men

PERKINSTON — For the fourth time in five years, the Mississippi Gulf Coast men’s soccer team is the MACCC Academic Team of the Year in its sport.

The Bulldogs compiled a 3.45 GPA for the 2023-24 academic year to top the 11 teams that compete in the sport. Coach Chris Handy‘s team also won the MACCC championship to sweep accolades in the sport.

“It’s a culture thing,” he said. “We have our responsibility as a staff to monitor grades. We have all the resources behind the scenes to help these kids succeed, but I think the most important pressure our kids feel are internal. It’s inside themselves as well as within the team.”

Handy’s teams have shown you can be successful in the classroom while at the same time, you’re being successful on the field. In the last five years, the Bulldogs have gone 57-25-5 overall and 41-11-3 in MACCC South Division or MACCC play. The Bulldogs have had two MACCC championships, one Region 23 championship and one NJCAA tournament appearance in that stretch.

The Bulldogs have long had the motto Two-Year School, Four-Year Program. Players come to Gulf Coast wanting to get scholarships to a four-year school to complete their degrees.

“That’s why they choose us,” Handy said. “When the kids get here, we make it clear they know that. No one gets that opportunity without at least a 3.0. All the motivation is there, the resources are there, and that leads to success. Between Gulf Coast having the resources to help them and the players having their self-motivation and motivating each other to do well in the classroom, it leads to success.”

The Gulf Coast eSports team was also named Academic Team of the Year for the second straight year. The Bulldogs are coached by Courtland Johnson.

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