BANGOR, Maine – The Spartans trailed by 15 points after the first quarter but cut the deficit to two points in the fourth quarter before ultimately falling to Husson 58-49 in the North Atlantic Conference Championship on Saturday afternoon.
Castleton was outscored 24-9 in the first period but gave up just 21 points over the next two quarters to keep it close. The Spartans finished the game shooting just 28.1 percent from the floor and 6-for-24 from downtown. Husson, conversely shot 35.4 percent and connected on 6 of 18 attempts from beyond the arc while owning a 48-30 rebounding edge.
NAC All-Tournament selection Bryanna duPont led the Spartans with 14 points, eight rebounds and two steals. Lindsay Sabo added 11 points and two assists while NAC All-Tournament selectionMakayla Farrara had 11 points, three assists and two steals. Ashlie Fay came off the bench to chip in eight rebounds, six points, four steals and two assists.
Tournament MVP Kenzie Worcester paced the Eagles with 22 points, three rebounds and two steals while Chandler Guerrette chipped in 12 points eight rebounds and five assists. Victoria McIntyre added ten rebounds, six points and a block.
Husson connected on its opening three shots from downtown for a 9-3 lead over the first four minutes. A duPont layup cut the deficit to five but the Eagles pushed it to 16-7 with 2:38 left. duPont answered, but Husson scored the final six points of the period for a 24-9 lead.
In the second Castleton scored first, but couldn't trim the deficit any more as the Eagles stretched it to 28-13 two minutes later. The Spartans responded with an 8-2- run, cutting the lead to 30-21 on a duPont layup with 2:49 left. Castleton held the Eagles scoreless for the rest of the period but couldn't covert either, to go into the break down 30-21.
Husson extended its lead to 36-24 in the opening four minutes of the third, before Farrara ended the run with a triple. The Spartans countered with a run of their own and made it a 38-34 game on four straight points from Sabo with 2:11 left. However, a 7-2 run by the Eagles gave them a nine-point edge going into the fourth.
Castleton scored the first five points of the period to trim it to 45-41 on a corner three by Sabo with 7:13 remaining. The junior made it a two-point game less than a minute later, but a three-point play Worcester pushed it to five. The Spartans had to chances on its next possession but couldn't covert and Husson responded with five straight points for a 53-43 lead with 4:02 left.
Back-to-back triples from Farrara cut the deficit to just four points with 1:05 and she then recorded a steal on the inbound. However, Sabo's three was off the mark and Castleton was forced to foul. Husson made five free throws in the last minute to stave off the Spartans.
Castleton ends its season at 21-6, its fifth straight 20-win season. The senior class of Jade Desroches, Ali Jones and duPont finish their careers with an all-time record of 100-17, the second most wins by a single class in program history.