The Andalusia Lady Bulldogs (5-3) used a big second-half effort to knock off the Class 6A Dothan Lady Tigers 48-40 Thursday night in Andalusia.

“I was really pleased with the effort that we put in,” Lady Bulldogs’ head coach Brad Garner said. “We have shown improvement every game and that is all I can ask from them.”

The Lady Bulldogs started off the contest strong and went on top 8-4 at the end of the first period.

Merikal McCaskill led the way for the Lady Bulldogs with a strong 4-point effort in the opening period. Alex Crittenden and Shay Thomas each added 2 points in the first.

Dothan came out in the second period and picked up a quick basket from Kyra McGlon to trim the Bulldog lead down to 8-6.

The Lady Bulldogs got a free throw from Taz Sheridan, but the Lady Tigers responded with back-to-back baskets from McGlon and Iveonna Turner to give Dothan a 10-9 lead.

Andalusia knotted the game back up at 10-10 when Taylor Walker hit on 1-of-2 free throws.

After Dothan went up 12-10, Aaliyah Lawrence broke through the Lady Tigers’ press and found Walker under the basket for an easy layup to tie the game.

The Lady Bulldogs forced a miss on the other end of the court and Crittenden picked up the ball taking it all the way to the basket for a layup to give Andalusia a 14-12 lead.

Dothan tied the contest back up on a basket from McGlon, but the Lady Bulldogs took the lead right back when Sheridan converted a layup after a strong drive through the lane.

McGlon got hot for the Lady Tigers late in the second period and gave Dothan a 20-18 lead with just 20 seconds left before halftime.

McCaskill hit the front end of a one-and-one opportunity, but the Lady Bulldogs trailed 20-19 at halftime.

The Lady Tigers got a quick bucket to start the third period, but then two-straight baskets from Crittenden put Andalusia up 23-22.

Andalusia continued playing strong for the next few minutes, and with baskets from Thomas and Kimberly Landrum, the Lady Bulldogs held a 27-22 advantage.

The Lady Tigers then went on a small run to regain the lead at 28-27 with two minutes left in the third period.

After Andalusia regained the lead, McCaskill hauled in an offensive rebound and immediately put it back in to give the Lady Bulldogs a 31-28 lead.

Crittenden converted a layup a short while later to put Andalusia up 33-28 heading into the final period.

Thomas started the scoring in the final period with a free throw and then a layup from Destene Shakespeare put the Lady Bulldogs up 36-30.

Thomas then connected with a pair of free throws to go on top 38-30.

A few minutes later, Thomas came up with a steal and converted the layup to put Andalusia on top 40-34.

Dothan followed with a quick score and then Lawrence tossed in the dagger with a 3-pointer to put the Lady Bulldogs up 44-36.

Thomas hit a two more free throws with McCaskill and Lawrence each making one to give the Lady Bulldogs a 48-40 win.

Crittenden led the Lady Bulldogs with 12 points and Thomas finished the night with 11 points.

“We seem to be getting better execution, which is leading to better shots and a higher shooting percentage,” Garner said. “We did a good job cutting down our turnovers in the second. Now we just have to continue to improve with each game.”

The Lady Bulldogs will back in action tonight when the take on the Pleasant Home Lady Eagles in Andalusia.