The Pike County Bulldogs advanced to Class 3A semi-regionals Tuesday afternoon after defeating T.R. Miller 47-30.

Senior Jerrell Lawson led the way for the Bulldogs, with 11 points and 11 rebounds, while teammates Deshon Cowling finished with nine points and Kamari Jackson finished with 10.

“We were really balanced tonight,” said Bulldogs head coach Doug Holland. “We didn’t look up and see anyone with 20 points like we usually do. We were balanced tonight.”

The Bulldogs were able to go into halftime with a 19-11 lead after utilizing a strong defensive performance.

“The turning point of the game for us was playing defense,” Holland said. “Our trap was very good tonight. The coach told me we did some things that he didn’t expect us to do. We showed them some different looks and it confused them.”

The Bulldogs were able to stretch their lead out to 30-20 in the third quarter and were able to blow the game open in the fourth, thanks in large part to their ability to knock down free throws.

“We broke it open because they had to foul,” Holland said. “We got into the bonus early. We hit a lot of clutch free throws tonight.”

With the win, the Bulldogs now turn their sites to the semi-regionals in Dothan.

“We are very excited,” Holland said. “We preach to the guys about staying focused. You talk about it all year but there is a lot of added pressure for the players because you really want to be there. To be able to see it tonight, I was really proud of our team.”

Due to bad weather earlier in the week, the Bulldogs opponent and time of game will be announced at a later time.