NEWELLTON, La. – It was a far cry from the Tuesday night meeting between these two, but the end result was the same, however, as one night after beating the Winnsboro Wildcats at home in easy fashion, the once beaten Vikings, only stayed that way by winning in gritty fashion, 63-60 in the first round of the Newellton High school Tournament.

&uot;Last night we were able to get a lot of points in transition, tonight we didn’t do that and it nearly cost us,&uot; a relieved Robert Sanders said. Tony Hawkins continued his stellar play for the Vikings by pouring in 19 points to help push the Vikings record to 13-1. Jessie Banks added 12, while both Josh Bush and Ajay Warner downloaded 11 each in the paint, for Vidalia, who could only manage a three-point lead at the halftime break.

VHS managed to extend to a five-spot in the nip and tuck affair, before the Wildcats made it interesting down the stretch.

Kenneth Miller paced the Winnsboro attack with 20 points. Davillion Gray chipped in with 12. Winnsboro girls 56, Vidalia 47 Just like the boys, this one was a bit more competitive than the previous night, yet the end result was the same. The Lady Vikings (4-8) penchant for slow starts continued, however, as WHS outscored them 19-3 in the opening quarter.

Katrina Singleton and Dominique Trimble each put in 15 points to lead Vidalia, who outscored the Lady ‘Cats in the second half by 13, to keep it competitive. Tonya Smith hit for 15 for Winnsboro.

Varsity girls Newellton Tournament Winnsboro 56, Vidalia 47

WHS 19 14 11 12 – 56 VHS 3 8 16 20 – 47

WHS: De De Loring 16, Tomya Smith 15, Amelia Martin 11, Edoni Pleasant 4, Sam Spears 4, Anna Rogers 4, Chrissi Lynch 2. VHS (4-8): Katrina Singleton 15, Dominque Trimble 15, Shemica Williams 8, Lashunda Mitchell 7, Tiffany Fleming 4, Latoya Burden 2, Kamona Washington 1.

Vidalia 63, Winnsboro 60 WHS 15 13 12 20 – 60 VHS 18 13 14 18 – 63

WHS: Kenneth Miller 20, Davillion Gray 12, Derek Ross 6, Michael Watts 4, Jermaine Reynolds 2, Montreal Miller 16. VHS: Tony Hawkins 19, Jessie Banks 12, AJay Warner 11, Josh Bush 11, Louis McNulty 8, Jessie Lyles 2.