Bulldogs bow out at NJCAA Tourney after 3-2 loss

PHOTO BY KHANH NGUYEN/MGCCC

WICHITA, Kansas — Mississippi Gulf Coast knew it needed a win to stay alive in the NJCAA Division II Men's Soccer Championship.

And for nearly 55 minutes Tuesday, that looked like it might be in the cards. The Bulldogs led by a goal at halftime, but Parkland scored three times in the second half to win 3-2 at the Stryker Complex stadium field.

"I think we did all we could do and fought till the very end," said sophomore defender Chad Hudson, who scored both goals. "That's all you can ask for in a national championship. The teams are tough and we gave it our all."

Gulf Coast earned its trip to Wichita by winning the MACCC/Region 23 championship, its first conference title in 10 years. The trip to the national soccer tournament was the first in school history. MGCCC finished 11-7-2.

The ninth-seeded Bulldogs lost 1-0 to fourth-seeded Georgia Military 1-0 on Monday. The winner of Wednesday's Georgia Military-Parkland game will advance to Friday's semifinals.

Hudson put the Bulldogs up in the 41^st minute. The Bulldogs had a number of near-misses before that, but Ivan Gonzalez (Fr., Olive Branch/Center Hill) played a long ball into the box nearly down the center of the field. Parkland misplayed it to bring Hudson back onside, and he buried a low shot to beat the keeper.

"We came out determined with a plan," Gulf Coast coach Chris Handy said. "For the most part, it was working. We missed a couple of early chances and finally got the goal. We were feeling good about ourselves, but there's another half to play." 

Gulf Coast was playing its second game in as many days against a team playing its first game in the tournament. The Bulldogs started running low on gas in the second half. 

"It probably came faster than I thought it would," Handy said. "The set-piece we gave up kind of gave them some extra energy and took some wind out of our sails a little bit. Playing back to back is never easy; playing back to back against two national tournament teams is even harder."

Parkland (15-3-1) equalized on a brilliant free-kick from the left wing in the 55^th minute. Another long goal after a set-piece scramble in the 70^th minute gave the Cobras the lead, and it was 3-1 three minutes later.

Hudson (So., Gulfport/St. Patrick) scored his second with 26 seconds left off an assist by Hyungjoon Lee (Fr., Suwon, South Korea/Dongbuk).

"Eventually, we'll reflect back on this season as a special one," Handy said. "We'll look back on these sophomores as a group that started a long run of being in this tournament. They've set another foundation for this program to boost itself off of and build off of. I'm proud of those guys, and I'm happy for every single one that they've been able to accomplish so much. We're excited about all the freshmen returning. We're looking forward to getting back to work."

NJCAA Division II Men's Soccer Tournament

Wichita, Kansas

Stryker Complex

Pool D

Monday, Nov. 15

No. 4 Georgia Military 1, No. 9 Gulf Coast 0

Tuesday, Nov. 16

No. 5 Parkland 3, No. 9 Gulf Coast 2

Wednesday, Nov. 17

No. 4 Georgia Military vs. No. 5 Parkland, 6:30 p.m.

Semifinals

Friday, Nov. 19

Semifinal 1, 4 p.m.

Semifinal 2, 6:30 p.m.

Championship

Saturday, Nov. 20

Final, 4 p.m.

For more information on MGCCC's 10 intercollegiate athletic teams, follow @MGCCCBulldogs on Twitter and MGCCCBulldogs on Facebook, and go to mgcccbulldogs.com.