VIDALIA, La. — Vidalia High improved to 15-0 as the Vikings defeated Winnsboro 96-80 Tuesday.

&uot;Being undefeated at this particular point was not one of the goals we had in mind, so it’s a surprise,&uot; said Vidalia coach Robert Sanders.

The game was tied 14-14 after one quarter of play before the Vikings took a 41-34 lead at halftime.

&uot;We started off sluggish again and it took us time to get going,&uot; Sanders said. &uot;I don’t know if it’s the holiday atmosphere or what.&uot;

Vidalia outscored Winnsboro 26-16 in the third period to put the game all but out of reach.

&uot;We turned up our full court defense,&uot; Sanders said. &uot;Our half court defense wasn’t that bad, but we had to force some turnovers to get some steal and generate some offense.&uot;

Ronald Ellis led the Vikings with 27 points, while Jarvis Vaughn and Dariel Mays added 14 points each.

Andre Singleton and Kenny Warner added 13 and 11 points, respectively to give the Vikings five players in double figures.

Winnsboro was led by Treanders Morzell with 21 points.

Vidalia plays at Newellton Thursday before taking a break for the holidays and returning with a home game against Natchez Jan. 4.

&uot;The layoff may hurt us, so that’s why we have to get the best out of them that we can right now,&uot; Sanders said.