CASTLETON, Vt. – Top-seeded Castleton opened each half with a sustained run, and clamped down on Westfield State to ensure its first-ever trip to the Eastern Collegiate Athletic Conference (ECAC) New England Women's Basketball Championship Final with a 53-43 win over the fifth-seeded Owls.

The Spartans placed three players in double figures, led by freshman Stephanie Linder and junior Alyssa Leonard who each scored a game-high 14. Jade Desroches chipped in a dozen off the bench and Leonard added seven boards to her stat line.

Westfield State struggled to find a scoring rhythm against the nation's fifth-ranked defense. Gabby Felix was the lone Owl in double-figures with 11 points on 5-for-11 shooting and Jenny Bell added eight.

The Spartans scored the first nine points of the contest and led 13-4 with just over 11 minutes remaining in the opening half, but a five-minute scoring drought allowed the Owls to climb back into contest. A pair of Briana Kelly free throws brought Westfield State within one at 13-12 with 7:37 remaining in the opening half, but a Linder three-pointer ignited an 8-2 run that pushed the lead back to eight at 21-14.

Leading 21-16 after intermission, Castleton opened the second stanza on a 15-2 run over the opening six minutes of play to push its lead to a high-water mark at 36-18. Leonard and Linder keyed the run, each scored five points during the surge, with the latter coming up with a pretty steal and assist on a Desroches trifecta that elicited an Owl timeout.

The Owls clawed their way back within 10 on a number of occasions, but couldn't get it under double-digits the rest of the way.

Castleton never trailed in the contest and converted 20 Westfield State turnovers into 22 points to key the win.

The Spartans (28-2) advance to the ECAC Final against Suffolk. Game time is slated for 1 p.m. Sunday.