Panthers fight hard in state playoff game
<p>Junior Panther Keir Sanzano caught a tourchdown pass for Alberton.</p>
ALBERTON - The Alberton Panther football team hosted Valier on Saturday in the first round of the District C six-man playoffs.
It was a slow start for the Panthers in the first quarter and Valier used a balanced attack to pull ahead 22-0.
Alberton’s offense surged back in the second quarter led by the tough running of senior Todd Mrystol.
Myrstol found the end zone twice on the ground and once as a receiver to get Alberton back in the mix. However Valier continued to push the ball down field and responded to each and every Panther touchdown with one of their own.
At the end of the second quarter, Valier was up 51-20.
In the fourth quarter, the Panthers once again surged on offense and scored a trio of touchdowns. Sophomore Jack Lehl threw two of them and found Mrystol for a 61-yard strike and junior Keir Sanzano for a 45 yarder.
The fourth quarter effort was not enough to edge out Valier and the Panthers lost 65-41.
Alberton finished their season with a record of 6-3.