VIDALIA — A patient approach at the plate and strong pitching from starter William Anderson proved the perfect combination for Vidalia High School Tuesday afternoon.

Vidalia beat Delhi Parish 12-1 in five innings, with the one Bear run coming off a botched rundown in the third inning. Anderson pitched all four innings, yielding just two hits, walking two and striking out eight.

Vidalia head coach Kale Davis said he made a point to tell his players that plate discipline would be key for them going forward, and he was pleased with how they responded.

“We’re just trying to get the kids more disciplined at the plate,” Davis said. “This past weekend, we had a rough weekend because we weren’t disciplined at the plate. One of the things we wanted to work on today was just coming up with a better approach.”

Davis also said it’s important not to swing at bad pitches and help the other team out.

“If you’re not (disciplined), you’re always going to help the other team out,” Davis said. “You’re going to leave runners aboard, stuff like that. It’s just some mental things that can’t be a part of the game, because it’s going to come back to bite you.”

A six-run first inning gave the Vikings an early lead and set the tone for the rest of the game. A bases-loaded single by Corey Williams scored Nathan Bozeman and Jamale Davis, then Stewart Mallory was hit by Delhi starter Jarvis Porter with the bases loaded, scoring Matt Souderes.

Dillon Gautreau walked with the bases loaded, sending home Williams, then Josh Foucher scored on a passed ball. Mallory came home on a fielder’s choice, giving the Vikings a 6-0 lead.

Vidalia added another run in the bottom of the second when Jamale Davis scored on a throwing error by Bears shortstop Octavious Washington, making it 7-0 Vidalia.

Javontae Washington got the Bears on the board in the top of the third when he took a big lead at third, only to be caught in a rundown after Anderson attempted to throw him out. After some back-and-forth between Souderes at catcher and Williams at third base, Javontae Washington scored on a bat throw as Washington attempted to return to third base.

“That’s something we’ll work on in practice,” Kale Davis said. “You have to have that worked out before the game, because when it arises in the game, you have to be mentally prepared.”

Davis also said overconfidence due to being ahead by so much may have played into the sloppy rundown attempt.

“We’re dealing with 15- and 16-year-olds, so sometimes that’s going to play a part, but it’s a play we should have made,” Davis said.

Vidalia soon made up for it, though, when Bozeman scored on a passed ball and Souderes scored on a single by Jamale Davis in the bottom of the third, making it 9-1 Vidalia.

In the bottom of the fourth, Bozeman singled in Mallory and Bozeman and Davis both scored on passed balls, giving Vidalia a 12-1 lead. Anderson closed things out for Vidalia in the top of the fifth, triggering the 10-runs-after-five mercy rule.

Bozeman finished the game going 2-for-3 with a triple. Porter took the loss, lasting two and one-thirds innings, giving up nine runs on four hits.

The Vikings (7-5) will host Sicily Island Thursday.