The thrill of victory almost made up for the agony of defeat.

After losing their first three games of the season, the Falcon varsity girls remembered how it feels to win last week when they won in the first round of the annual Port Townsend Tournament.

Unfortunately, a title game against the host team did not go so well, with the Falcons falling 56-46.

Up against a team from Vashon High School Dec. 20, the South Whidbey girls were far and away the better team.

Though their winning margin of 14 points on the 54-40 victory may not have seemed that large, the gap was larger earlier in the game.

Powered by two dozen points between senior Julie Robinson and sophomore post Mary McCune, and with another 10 points from Dannette Waterman, the Falcons were ahead by as much as 19 points during the game.

At the same time, defense was a big factor.

In the second quarter, the South Whidbey girls — led by freshman Catie Newman — were stingy, holding Vashon to just one point.

Falcon coach Howard Collier said the game was a good one for a number of reasons, including Robinson’s scoring performance. He said her 12 points against Vashon show the three-game shooting slump she was in is over.

That observation was confirmed in the tournament’s championship game the following night, though it didn’t help the Falcons’ chances. Robinson upped the ante with 13 points and junior Bronwyn Russell added 10 of her own, but a brutal, 29-18 scoring attack by Port Townsend in the second half negated the gains she made.

Also hampering the Falcons down the stretch was poor free-throw shooting. Just 6 of 18 from the line, the team lost in part on points it should have had, said coach Collier.

Still, he said, the game was a good one against a tough opponent.

“We gave them a battle,” he said.

The girls did get to celebrate one title from the tournament after the South Whidbey junior varsity team beat Forks for the JV championship.

The girls play next in a road game against Ingraham on Jan. 4.