VIDALIA, La. &045; With Bridge Creek, Okla., wearing black uniforms with blue numbers, it was hard to tell which team was the host on the opening day of the Vidalia Invitational.

The Vikings, who wore their royal blue jerseys, have a similar set to digs the Bobcats donned Thursday.

While the threads may have confused some, the play certainly made it clear which team was the superior club.

Vidalia (8-3) chalked up an eight-run third, which included a Jeffrey Anderson grand slam, and got another solid performance on the mound from Tony Hawkins to blank the Bobcats (1-3) 18-0.

&uot;I could see this coming. We practiced well this week, had a great BP (batting practice),&uot; Vikings head coach Johnny Lee Hoffpauir said. &uot;I told the kids I had a good feeling about tonight.&uot;

Anderson along with second baseman Mac Ware and catcher Chris Williams each posted 3-for-3 nights, as Anderson came within a triple of hitting for the cycle.

On the strength of his blast and a second-inning double, Anderson collected seven RBIs.

His opposite field home run with the bases loaded added insult to injury for a Bridge Creek team, which is in search for pitching.

&uot;(Vidalia) swung the bats real well,&uot; said Bobcats head coach Sonny Clay, who coached at both Huntington and Natchez High in the 1990s. &uot;They’re always a good hitting team and that showed tonight.&uot;

Already up 13-0, Anderson stepped into the batter’s box following four consecutive Viking singles, the last three of which collected RBIs for Reid Simpson, Williams and Hinson.

Williams had a pair of singles and a double to go with his four RBIs.

Behind in the count 1-2, Anderson extended his bat over the plate toward a pitch that was just outside of the black.

His strength muscled the ball the other way to deep right center and the slight breeze carried it over the tall blue fence, clearing the bases for a 17-0 lead.

&uot;I was coaching it over,&uot; Anderson said. &uot;I knew I had two strikes on me. I was thinking make contact all the way. I just wanted to stay down on it.&uot;

Anderson’s 2-run double in the second capped a six-run inning, as the Vikings batted around &045; the first of two occasions Thursday.

Ware’s second straight double in as many at-bats opened the floodgates in the second, as both Jeremy Butler and Jordan Brewer crossed home plate to make it 6-0.

Two batters later, Williams singled in another pair, spotting the Vikings a snowman, as Vidalia never let off on the accelerator.

&uot;Mac Ware had a good game and Brett Hinson came out of it as well.&uot; Hoffpauir said. &uot;These are guys we need to continue to do well because they’re keys to our success.&uot;

With a 10-0 cushion, Hawkins trotted back to the mound with enough confidence to go for the knockout punch.

He struck out the first two batters of the third, before errors at the corners in the infield started a mini-rally for the Bobcats.

However, Hawkins, who surrendered just four hits all night, remained composed and got Dylan Van Dostrum to ground out to Hinson to retire the side.

&uot;He’s got good control and good command of his breaking ball,&uot; Clay said of Hawkins. &uot;He kept us off balance. We knew he was that type of pitcher. As long as you’re around the plate, you can be effective.&uot;

Bridge Creek comes back today to face Camden-Fairview Ark., at 3 p.m. Camden is coached by former Adams County Christian head coach Greg Harris, who led the Rebels to 28 wins in 1996.

Cathedral, in its only game during the Invitational, faces Mangham at 5:30 p.m. The Vikings will again play the late game against Minden at 7:30 p.m.

&uot;Coach is always telling us he can handle a physical error, but he can’t stand a mental error,&uot; Anderson said. &uot;This is where we’ve gotta work those out.

&uot;We’ve had nights where the defense has be on and the hitting not, and other nights where we’ve hit OK and the defense has let us down.&uot;