The Pike County Bulldogs put nine days of practice to good use on when they took on Luverne in their 2016 spring game.

The varsity squad played the opening three quarters of the game and the junior varsity closed out the final quarter as the Bulldogs walked away with a 29-26 win.

“We played well at times and sometimes we didn’t play as well as we wanted to,” said Bulldogs head coach Fred Holland. “We had a lot of turnovers in the game, but we played good with just nine days of practice.”

Holland said the Bulldogs played a balance game on both sides of the ball, minus the turnovers.

“We all played well at times,” Holland said. “The biggest problem we had was turnovers. I don’t think there was big improvement on offense over defense. Overall I am proud of the kids for working hard.”

Holland said the game was a chance for coaches to evaluate the team’s progress.

“It’s a measuring to stick for us to find out what we have to do both offensively and defensively,” Holland said. “It gives some of younger guys an opportunity for the very first time.”

The Bulldogs lost a total of 13 seniors from the 2015 9-2 squad.

“I thought they grew quite a bit,” Holland said. “They learned some of the things that we wanted to teach them. We just have to keep working that’s the big thing we need to focus on during the off season. We need them to keep getting builder, stronger and faster.”

The Bulldogs will now focus on summer workouts and start the long process of preparing for the 2016 season that begins Sept.19 with a home game against rival Charles Henderson.