Fredette nets 34 in win for Panthers

On small step for Alberton, one giant leap for Panther nation.

Standout junior forward Shea Fredette scored 34 points, including 17 in the pivotal third quarter as the Panthers picked up their second Western 13C conference win of the season, routing Victor 63-35 on the Pirates’ home court this past Thursday night. 

Fredette, who has emerged as a top-level player in the recently expanded conference, helped the Panthers to their second win overall in the young basketball season and their second of the year over Victor. 

Victor’s girls exacted a measure of revenge later in the evening when they used a big fourth quarter to break away from a close game with the Lady Panthers enroute to a 42-19 win in girls’ conference play, also in Victor. 

The Panthers got up early on the Pirates, emerging from the first quarter with a 12-6 lead.  The two teams battled back and forth in the second quarter during which Alberton outscored the home team 12-9.  Entering the halftime intermission, the Panthers were on top, 24-15. 

Then Fredette took over the third quarter, posting 17 points as part of a 29-point Panthers scoring binge that gave them a 53-22 with one quarter to play. 

The 6-3 Fredette, who often leads the Panthers in scoring and rebounding, sliced through the Pirates’ defense with seemingly relative ease.  Two other Panthers players, Devin Hill and Caiden Delany scored nine points each for Alberton, while guard Tam Dao added eight on the night. 

Victor managed to outscore Alberton 13-10 in the fourth quarter, but it was way too little, too late to affect the outcome of the 28-point Panthers’ victory. 

The win lifted Alberton’s conference record to 1-2 and their overall season mark to 2-6.   

Meanwhile, the Lady Panthers and Lady Pirates locked in a tight battle for the first two quarters of their game before pulling away from Alberton in the second half. 

Victor jumped out to a 10-4 lead after the first eight minutes of play, but the Lady Panthers fought back, outscoring the home team 9-6 in the second quarter to pull within three points, 16-13 at the half. 

The Lady Pirates got their offense rolling in the third quarter, outscoring Alberton 16-4 and taking a 32-17 lead heading into the final quarter. 

Victor continued its defensive pressure on the Lady Panthers in the final quarter, holding them to two points while scoring 10 of their own to produce the final 23-point margin of victory. 

The loss left the Lady Panthers still looking for their first win of the season as they fell to 0-5 on the year. 

The Panthers and Lady Panthers host St. Regis this Thursday (Jan 16) in a pair of home games.  They hit the road Saturday (Jan 18), traveling to Hot Springs for a pair of games against the Savage Heat and Lady Heat.