Castleton, Vt. - The Spartans used some stellar defense and a pair of dominant pitching performances to grind their way to a pair of victories over nearby Middlebury in a non-conference doubleheader on Sunday at Spartan field.

Sam Spencer and Matt Ravey each threw complete games for the Spartans, limiting the Middlebury bats to just 11 hits over the couse of the two games. Castleton generated just enough run support to get each of them the win, and made great defensive plays when it mattered most to keep the wins intact. 

Tyler Lord went 1-for-3 with an RBI, a run scored, and a stolen base in game one while Dan Errico drove in the only Castleton run in game two. Jason Lock went 3-for-6 on the day for Middlebury, scoring the team's only run.

Middlebury starters Dylan Kane and Logan Mobley combined for 10.2 innings pitched, allowing three earned runs on 10 hits. Mobley finished with four strikeouts, but also surrendered four walks. Each Panthers pitcher took a loss on Sunday. Jake Stalcup pitched 1.1 innings of perfect relief in game two and recorded a strikeout. 

Sam Spencer went the distance on the rubber in game one, tossing seven innings without allowing a run. The sophomore gave up just six hits, scattering them over the course of the game. He recorded a walk and a strikeout on the way to his fourth victory of the year.

The Spartans put up a pair of runs in the bottom of the fifth inning, stringing together four hits to manufacture a lead. Nate Swahn led off the inning with a single to center, followed by an infield single by Soren Pelz-Walsh that put runners on first and second. Tyler Lord ripped an RBI single to right field and came around to score on a single by Allen White, making it 2-0.

The limited run support was all the Spencer would need. The Spartans' hurler got himself into a pair of jams in the sixth and seventh with multiple baserunners in each inning, but worked his way out of both situations by keeping the Panthers off-balance. Spencer closed out the game by forcing Johnny Read to ground into a bases loaded fielder's choice, earning the win.

In game two, Castleton jumped out to an early lead and hung onto it the rest of the way as Matt Ravey worked efficiently, mowing through the Panthers' lineup. Ravey allowed one run on five hits, and recorded three strikeouts to earn his first win of the season. 

Tyler Lord and Allen White led off the bottom of the first inning with back-to-back singles for the Spartans. Joe Borowski drew a walk to load the bases, and Dan Errico drove in a run with a fielder's choice. Three batters later, White came around to score on a past ball to make it 2-0. 

On the mound, Ravey protected the Castleton lead, retiring 11 straight Middlebury batters from the first inning through the fourth inning. In the fifth, Jason Lock led off with a double for Middlebury, but was left stranded after Ravey earned a strikeout and two weak groundouts to end the inning. 

In the seventh, the Panthers finally got to the senior. After Ravey recorded the first two outs, Lock singled to right field to give Middlebury a chance to tie the game. The next batter, John Luke, doubled down the left field line to put runners on second and third with the winning run at the plate.

With the game on the line, Garrett Werner slapped a single to right field, where Castleton's Allen White came charging to field the ball. The senior scooped it up and fired a bullet to home plate where Nate Swahn swiped the tag on a sliding Luke to record the third out of the inning and shut down the Middlebury rally. Castleton earned the 2-1 win to extend their current winning streak to ten games. 

The Spartans are now 25-8 on the season and will play host to Plymouth St. on Tuesday for a nine-inning affair with the Panthers at 4:00pm.