The Pike County Bulldogs took home the 2018 weightlifting championship at Elmore County High School.

It was the first Bulldog weightlifting state championship since 2009.

“The guys were doing a pretty good job in the weight room,” said head coach Fred Holland. “We had several guys that performed quite well. I am extremely proud of the guys for winning.”

The event consisted of different power lifting events that included squats, power cling and bench press. Each lift was separated into different weight classes. Each lifter had three lifts at each station. The top six lifters earn points and, at the end of the day, it was the Bulldogs who came out on top.

The Bulldogs roster includes Kevon Harris, Xavier Newson, Zion Scott, Germaine Foster, Darrick Myhand, Derrick Myhand, Zerathan McKinney, Dequavious Coleman, Rayshawn Reynolds, KP Penninton, Jeremiah Foster, Zy Simmons and Haronado Wheeler.

The Bulldogs roster includes members of all sports including football, basketball and track.

“Some of the guys play two sports and some of them play three sports,” Holland said. “It’s a combination of guys from our weight-lifting class.”

In the 132-pound weight class, Pennington finished in second with a combined weight of 595. Derrick Myhand took home third place in the 165-pound weight class with a combined weight of 765, while Germaine Foster took home third place in the 175-pound weight class by lifting a combined 875 pounds. Reynolds took home second place in the same weight class.

McKinney, Harris, Jeremiah Foster and Newson took home top-five honors. Scott took home first place after he lifted 1,000 combined pounds giving him the individual state championship. Scott also won an award for outstanding bench press when he lifted 330 pounds.

Since coming back after the Christmas break, the Bulldogs spent time preparing for the state meet.

“We started practice a little after Christmas,” Holland said. “The time was a little earlier than what we expected, but the guys performed quite well. They were really dedicated and I am extremely proud of the guys.”