Spartans Take Down NEC 64-58

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HENNIKER, N.H. - The Spartans went 4-for-6 from the foul line in the final 22 seconds to earn a hard fought 64-58 victory over North Atlantic Conference newcomer New England College on Thursday evening.

With Castleton leading 60-58 and 1:09 remaining, the teams traded empty possessions before the Pilgrims were forced to foul with just 22 seconds left. Tarryn Bolognani (Whitingham, Vt.) hit her first shot and missed her second, but senior Vanessa Powers (Marshfield, Vt.) grabbed the offensive board and was immediately fouled. She calmly hit both shots to make it a 63-58 contest with 19 ticks remaining.

The Spartans played tough defense without fouling as NEC failed to convert either of their two shot opportunities. Powers hit one more free throw with six seconds left to secure the victory as Castleton improved to 5-1 in the NAC and 8-4 overall. The loss was just the second of the season for NEC who dropped to 11-2 overall and 5-2 in conference play.

Powers finished with a team-high 21 points and added 11 rebounds for her second double-double of the season. The Spartans also got a boost from their bench as sophomore Heather Murdough (Hillsboro, N.H.) scored 11 points and grabbed nine rebounds while classmate Stephanie Bull (Milton, Vt.) added nine points, three assists and three steals. Sophomore Kelly Conway (Rutland, Vt.) dished out a team-high five assists while committing just one turnover.

The Pilgrims came out aggressive, playing their way to a 14-8 lead over the first 5:32 of the contest. Castleton responded with a 9-4 run over the next 4:21 to cut the deficit to 18-17. NEC built up another lead before seven straight points by the Spartans gave them their first lead at 30-29 with just over five minutes remaining. The final five minutes was all Pilgrims as they outscored Castleton 9-4 to take a 38-34 advantage into the break.

Trailing 40-36 four minutes into the second half, the Spartans got a layup from Powers and a three from Bull to go in front, 41-40. The lead continued to go back and forth, until a layup by Bull with 5:48 remaining gave Castleton the lead for the good, 65-63. The Spartans pushed their lead to four until a NEC bucket with 1:09 cut it to two.

Kayla Lawlor (Cocoa Beach, Fla.) led the Pilgrims with 14 points while Rachel Burgess (Randallstown, Md.) was right behind her with 13.

Castleton returns to action on Saturday when the Spartans host Colby-Sawyer at 3 p.m. in Glenbrook Gym.