Castleton, Vt. – Trailing by three at the half, Norwich outscored the Spartans 24-0 over the final 30 minutes of action to conclude with a 31-13 victory at Spartan Stadium and claim the Maple Sap Bucket Trophy. 

The Cadets churned out 204 yards of offense in the second half after the Spartan defense held them to 153 yard and just seven points in the opening 30 minutes. Norwich was also helped out by three second-half interceptions, including a pair by junior Andy Mangin, both of which were both returned back for touchdowns. 

Overall, Castleton finished with 344 yards of total offense compared to 357 for the Cadets. Higley completed 20 passes but threw four interceptions on the day, finishing the afternoon with 208 yards passing. His primary target on the afternoon was Kevin Alberque, who caught six passes for 69 yards, while Soren Pelz-Walsh was second on the team with five receptions for 44 yards. Michael Toczko was the team's leading rusher, going for 67 yards on 14 carries. 

The Spartans held Norwich quarterback Keyen Foley to just 6-for-15 passing for 46 yards, but Foley burned the defense with 159 yards rushing on 22 attempts and one touchdown. Al Georgio added 112 yards on 24 carries and a score while Mike Cavanaugh was the only Cadet to catch more than one pass, finishing with two receptions and 15 receiving yards. 

Defensively, Andy Mangin was a menace for Norwich, finishing second on the team with 11 tackles and totaling two sacks to go along with a pair of interception returns for a touchdown. Matt LeFevre led the squad with 15 tackles and 1.5 tackles for a loss. 

Playing in his final game, Todd Carr led the Spartans with a team-high 13 tackles, giving him a program-record 308 for his career. Leo Audy had a team-best 1.5 sacks, 12 tackles and a fumble recovery while Nick Romeo also added 12 tackles. 

Norwich received the opening kickoff and marched methodically down the field, needing just five plays to go 68 yards. Georgio capped off the drive with the four-yard rush for the score as the Cadets went in front 7-0 just 1:43 into the game. 

Neither team was able to generate offense on its next drive, though Castleton was given new life on its second drive of the game as the Cadets were whistled for offsides on fourth down, extending the possession. The Spartans mixed the run and pass to move to the Norwich five-yard line, but the drive stalled there. Robert Lineberger came on for the 22-yard field goal and made it with 5:28 left in the quarter for the 7-3 score. 

The Castleton defense kept Norwich at bay for the remainder of the quarter. In the second the Cadets were driving, but they botched a handoff at the six-yard line and Leo Audy pounced on the ball to give the Spartans the ball on their own six. Castleton moved down the field with Higley completing passes of 11 yards, 24 yards, and then found Elias LaCount for a 23-yard catch-and-run down to the Norwich two-yard line. LaCount went for one yard on the next play before Higley scored on the keeper to give Castleton a 10-7 lead with 7:21 left in the half. 

The Spartans got the ball back with 2:11 left in the half at their own 34 and moved all the way down to the five-yard line with less than 30 seconds remaining. On first and goal from the ten, Higley toss three straight incompletions, with the last two glancing off wideout's hands. Castleton settled for the 27-yard field goal from Lineberger to make it 13-7 with just seven seconds in the half. 

In the second Castleton was unable to score on its opening drive. Norwich, however, went 43 yards in ten plays to set up a 28-yard field goal by Wesley Medeiros to make it 13-10 Spartans with 10:11 left. 

Two plays into Castleton's next drive, Higley's pass was picked off at the Norwich 42-yard line by Dan Grogan and he returned it to the Castleton 37-yard line. Five rushes later, Foley put the Cadets in front 17-13 with 7:16 left in the quarter. 

In the fourth, both teams missed field goals and Castleton took over possession at its own 23-yard line with 6:04 left, trailing by four. On first down Higley dropped back and attempted to hit Alberque on a slant, however, Mangin stepped in front of the pass and took it 27-yards to the endzone to make it 24-13 Cadet. 

The Spartans started their next drive on the 28-yard line and on third down, Mangin read Higley again, stepping in front of the intended receiver and going 37 yards down the far sideline for the score. 

Castleton managed one more drive in the game, but was denied on fourth down inside the Norwich ten-yard line. Norwich took over possession with 2:09 left and ran out the clock to secure the victory. 

The Spartans conclude their season with a 1-9 record, including a 0-7 mark in the Eastern Collegiate Football Conference. Norwich improves to 7-3 and finishes tied atop the ECFC standings with Gallaudet, who lost to SUNY Maritime on Saturday.