Castleton, VT - Marissa Bonitatibus stopped 10 shots and Michelle Thompson scored six goals to lead the fourth-seeded Western New England College to a 16-8 win over third-seed Castleton State College Sunday afternoon in the 2009 ECAC Division III New England Women's Lacrosse Championship. Bonitatibus's play in between the pipes earned her Most Outstanding Player honors as the Golden Bears won their second-consecutive ECAC Crown.

Castleton's Marie VanDerKar scored just 32 seconds into the contest, firing home an unassisted tally to give the Spartans the early advantage. Lindsey Fenton evened the game at 1-1 on a free position tally, just 1:33 later. Stephanie Pearce answered for Castleton, converting an Angelica Mazzola assist into a 2-1 lead for the Spartans.

Western New England then reeled off the next nine goals, including two with a player-advantage to grab a lead they never relinquished. Thompson keyed the run, scoring five goals during the surge. Stephanie Paproski scored a pair of goals with Castleton on the player-advantage, cutting the lead to 10-4 with 28 seconds remaining before halftime, but a Fenton tally with just four seconds left, pushed the lead back to seven heading into the intermission.

Nicole Poli keyed a very solid Western New England defense and transition, causing eight turnovers, and forcing Castleton to earn each clear. Poli also scored four goals, corralled five ground balls and had one draw control. Also key to the Golden Bear defense was Veronica Miano, shadowing Castleton's leading scorer and offensive cornerstone, Nicole Adams. Miano held Adams to just one shot, on an eight-meter free position attempt.

VanDerKar led Castleton with four goals and one assist. The sophomore midfielder ends a solid campaign with a Castleton-record 77 goals, giving her 123 on her career, also a Spartan best.

The Spartans, who lead the nation in scoring at 21 goals pre game, could muster just 22 shots to Western New England's 37. The Golden Bears also held a distinct 19-7 advantage in draw controls, led by draw specialist, Marisa Hebert's seven.

Francesca Mazzola stopped six shots in the loss, as Castleton's season ends at 15-4 overall. The 15 wins breaks the previous record for wins in a season of 10, set in 2008.

Western New England finishes its season with a 12-8 overall record.