The Southside Panthers couldn’t get it going against one of the state’s best, as they fell 11-0 to the No. 5 Bibb County Choctaws Friday at Bloch Park in an area game.

John Solomon, head coach of the Panthers (1-4, 0-2), said Southside lost to a good team, but he saw some improvement from his young players.

“We played a real good team. They hit the ball really well,” Solomon said. “We’re getting better, though. We didn’t have any errors this game. We just walked too many people. Other than that, I think we played a good ball game.”

The Choctaws (18-8, ranked No. 5 in Class 4A) got going right from the beginning, scoring four runs in the top of the first including an RBI double by Jobe Watkins.

Southside couldn’t produce on offense, but Bibb County added to its total in the top of the third, as the Choctaws knocked in two runs and watched the Panthers walk in one with the bases loaded and another on a wild pitch to make it an 8-0 game after three.

The Choctaws added two more runs in the top of the fourth — one on a sac fly and another on a bases-loaded walk — to push their lead to 10-0.

Bibb County added one more run in the top of the fifth inning.

Jhalandius Sullivan had a hit for Southside, while Brandon Oliver and Chris Raymond also had hits for the Panthers.

Solomon said his team, which is made up mostly of underclassmen as well as a few eighth graders, is improving on the basics with each game it plays.

“They’re’ getting better with the baseball knowhow, they know where to go, they know what to do with the ball when they have it,” Solomon said. “Also, with the batting, they’re doing much better. They’re more aggressive, which I like. I’d rather them go down swinging than looking.”

The Panthers will take the field again, Tuesday, April 3 when they’ll play the Jemison Panthers at Bloch Park in an area game starting at 5 p.m.