Since announcing they were returning to varsity sports in the Montana class B-C sports world, the Alberton Panthers boys and girls teams have not been treated very kindly.

But this past weekend’s games indicate a change may be emerging from Panthersville.

After getting kicked around by large margins twice early in the season, the Lady Panthers roundballers showed marked improvement this past weekend, although they still lost to Victor, 34-21

The boys, meanwhile, also showed they are improving, putting up 46 points against Victor’s boys in an 81-46 loss to the Pirates.

Both games were played in Alberton this past Thursday evening.

The girls shook off their losses in the first two games of the year and battled the Lady Pirates to the end but could not catch Victor down the stretch.

The Lady Panthers led 6-5 after the first quarter as they out-hustled the visitors and scrapped for every loose ball.

Victor outscored Alberton 10-5 in the second quarter to take a 17-11 halftime lead.

The Lady Pirates then expanded that lead in the third quarter and upped their advantage to 24-13 going into the final quarter of play.

But Alberton kept battling despite a full-court press from Victor but the Lady Panthers could not overcome the mid-game deficit. The loss dropped Alberton to 0-3 on the season, while Victor picked up its first win of the year.

The boys, who also entered their game 0-2 having lost a hard-fought game to Plains and then a 66-20 defeat to Drummond, also came out of the gate strong against the Pirates.

At the end of the first quarter, the Panthers held a 14-12 lead.

Victor shaved one point off the lead by outscoring Alberton 18-17 in the second period, creating a 31-30 halftime lead for the Panthers.

The wheels fell off the bus in the third quarter for Alberton, as the Pirates cranked up offensive and defensive pressure, outscoring the host team 25-3 to take a 55-34 lead heading into the final quarter.

The Pirates expanded their lead in the last eight minutes of play, adding another 14 points to reach the final 81-46 margin. Two players scored in double figures for the Panthers, with Jonah Renaud tallying 15 and Jaxson Zimmerman 12 points.

Both boys and girls teams play tonight (Dec 13) in Lincoln, then return home for Saturday night games versus Two Eagle River.