CASTLETON, Vt. – The Spartans never let their lead slip below double digits in the second half as they earned a 63-47 victory over Albertus Magnus in the quarterfinals of the ECAC Tournament on Wednesday evening at Glenbrook Gym.

Top seed Castleton shot only 34.1 percent from the floor but held the Falcons to 24.1 percent shooting and forced 19 turnovers to improve to 27-2 on the year. Albertus Magnus was outrebounded by a 55-51 margin as the team concluded its season with a 20-8 record.

Stephanie Linder was dominant inside with 15 points and 11 rebounds for her first career double-double. The freshman also added three steals and four blocks without committing a turnover in 20 minutes of action. Alyssa Leonard was the only other Castleton player in double figures with 14 points, eight rebounds, four assists and three steals.

Lianna Carrero led the Falcons with 17 points and seven rebounds but shot just 5-for-16 from the floor. Senior Kendrea Walker added ten points, eight rebounds and three blocks. Annie Raucci chipped in with seven points, six rebounds and two blocks.

Meghan O'Sullivan led off the game with a jumper from the top of the key and the Spartans scored the first 11 points of the game in less than four minutes of action. Albertus Magnus responded with four straight, but Castleton pushed its lead back to 11, 19-8, with 11:03 remaining in the first half.

The two teams traded baskets over the next four minutes, with a Leonard jump shot making it 29-18. Walker responded with a layup of her own; however, a three-point play from Shelby LaBarge and a jump shot from Linder extended the advantage to 14, with 5:01 left. Castleton allowed Albertus Magnus just three points over the final five minutes to go into the break with a 40-24 advantage.

In the second half the Spartans stretched their lead to 18, though a 6-2 run by the Falcons cut their deficit to just 14, 46-32, with 16:14 left. Castleton locked down on defense and held Albertus Magnus to just a single basket over the next ten minutes while scoring 14 points to extend the team's lead to 26, 60-34. Nicole Acerra ended the run on a pair of free throws with 6:03 left. The Spartans bench played the final six minutes as the team finished with the 16-point victory.  

Kelly Conway was solid once again with four rebounds, four assists, four steals and two points. Shelby LaBarge added nine points, five rebounds and two blocks off the bench.

Castleton now advances to the ECAC semifinals. As the top seed they will host a pair of semifinal games on Saturday, with the winners playing on Sunday for the championship.