In Class A North action in Augusta Saturday night, the Lawrence High School boys knocked off Erskine Academy by a 53-38 score to advance past the quarterfinal round.
The Bulldogs led by just two, 22-20, after a back-and-forth first half, then scored the first eight points of the second half to grow the lead to 10.
Erskine whittled the advantage down to six points with 16.4 seconds remaining in the third, however, before Lawrence’s Nick Robertson buried a quarter-ending three-pointer, sending the Bulldogs to the fourth with a 35-26 lead, according to the Kennebec Journal’s Travis Barrett.
Robertson led Lawrence with 23 points, Barrett wrote.
The Bulldogs improved to 11-8 on the season, while the Eagles finish their season 12-7. Lawrence advances to the semifinal round, where it will play again at 8:30 p.m. Wednesday in Augusta.
Erskine, of South China, was eliminated in the quarterfinal round of the tournament last season, losing to Nokomis Regional High School, of Newport, by a 70-45 score. This is Lawrence’s first tournament appearance since 2016, when they were defeated in the quarterfinals by Medomak Valley High School of Waldoboro, 62-44. The Bulldogs last reached the semifinal round in 2013.