MEADVILLE — Franklin County had two fewer first downs, was outgained by 20 yards by Southeast Lauderdale and fumbled the ball five times. And somehow the Bulldogs came away with a win.

And that was thanks in large part to sophomore running back Chris Robinson, who had 141 yards and three touchdowns on 30 carries in leading Franklin County to a hard-fought 21-7 win over the Tigers Friday night in the first round of the MHSAA Class 3A South State playoffs.

Southeast Lauderdale, the No. 3 seed out of Region 5-3A, finished with 213 total yards while Region 7-3A runner-up Franklin County was held to 193 yards of total offense. The Tigers had 12 first downs to 10 for the Bulldogs.

But the Tigers could not keep Robinson out of the end zone as he scored on a run of 29 yards in the first quarter and a run of 3 yards late in the third quarter to give the Bulldogs the lead for good, and a run of 1 yard to ice the win early in the fourth quarter.

Franklin County (8-3) will hit the road for a second-round match-up against Region 6-3A and defending state champion Forest, currently ranked fifth in the Clarion-Ledger’s Class 3A poll, at 7 p.m. next Friday.

Wilkinson County 26,

Kemper County 18 (4 OTs)

DEKALB — Wilkinson County defied conventional wisdom and got a win despite having to travel across the state against Kemper County Friday night in the first round of the Class 3A South State Playoffs.

Not many people gave Region 7-3A No. 3 seed Wilkinson County much of a chance to win this game over Region 5-3A runner-up Kemper County (6-6). Especially after its upset loss at Prentiss to end the regular season. The Wildcats did not get the message. And their defense did a good job of keeping them in the game until the offense scored in the fourth overtime to keep their season going.

Wilkinson County (6-5) will take on Region 8-3A champion Seminary at 7 p.m. Friday. Wildcats head coach Kenneth Brown said they will likely be the home team.

Philadelphia 32,

Jefferson County 0

PHILADELPHIA — Jefferson County ran into a buzzsaw Friday night in the form of the Region 5-3A champion, undefeated and third-ranked Philadelphia Tornadoes as the Tigers were shut out and saw their season come to an abrupt end Friday night in a Class 3A South State first-round game.

Jefferson County, the No. 4 seed out of Region 7-3A, ended its disappointing season with a 3-9 overall record. Philadelphia improved to 12-0 with the victory.

WCCA 49,

Park Place Christian 0

WOODVILLE — Josh Gayle’s 89-yard opening kickoff return for a touchdown set the tone for Wilkinson County Christian Academy as the Rams defeated an overmatched Park Place Christian Academy team Friday night.

In this MAIS Class A South State first-round playoff game, District 3-A champion WCCA dominated Park Place Christian from start to finish. The Rams’ defense held the Crusaders to 12 yards of total offense. And that included minus-50 yards on 24 carries. Austin Goodfellow scored the game’s final touchdown on a 38-yard interception return nearly midway through the fourth quarter.

Duncan Ashley led the Rams’ ground game with 102 yards and a touchdown on just four carries. Tramel McKinsey had a pair of touchdowns and finished with 84 yards on 15 carries, and Quincy Thompson added 74 yards and a touchdown on seven carries.

The running game was so effective for WCCA that Taylor Prevost didn’t even have to throw the ball once. The one thing that did go wrong for the Rams was penalties — 12 of them for 100 yards.

WCCA, which set a school record with its 11th win of the season, improved to 11-1 and will host Riverfield Academy in a rematch of an early-season district game at 7 p.m. Friday.

Centreville 41,

Lamar School 21

CENTREVILLE — Cliff Hurst had three touchdown runs during a 28-point second quarter that put this MAIS Class AA first-round playoff game out of reach as the Tigers took care of the Lamar School Raiders Friday night.

The game got off to a crazy start as the Raiders drove deep in Centreville territory, only to miss a short field goal. The Tigers then scored on their first offensive possession on a 55-yard run by Travis.

Lamar tied the score at 7-7 before Centreville, the District 6-AA champions and ranked No. 2 in Class AA, scored 34 straight points. Hurst, who had 71 yards on eight carries, had touchdown runs of 20, 3 and 2 yards and Randy Bell added touchdown runs of 20 in the first quarter and 16 in the second quarter to give the Tigers a commanding 41-7 halftime lead.

Centreville (10-2) hosts Trinity at 7 p.m. Friday.