WATERVILLE, Maine – Castleton trailed by eight points midway through the second half, but finished the game on a 27-9 run to secure a 91-81 comeback victory over Thomas on Saturday afternoon. 

The Spartans shot 57.7 percent from the floor in the second half and went 22-for-31 from the charity stripe, including 13-for-17 in the final 20 minutes, to improve to 7-3 in the North Atlantic Conference and 9-7 overall. Castleton finished the game at 50.8 percent shooting while outrebounding the Terriers 46-28 and holding them to 42.0 percent shooting as they dropped to 6-4 in the NAC and 8-9 overall. 

Four players scored in double figures, led by impressive performances from Pavin Parrish and Chad Copeland. Parrish put in a career-high 23 points to go with seven rebounds, seven assists and two steals while Copeland bullied his way to 28 points and eight rebounds on 13-for-18 shooting from the floor. Carnelius Green registered a double-double with 10 points and 15 rebounds, including eight on the offensive end. 

Thomas also had four players in double figures, led by Eric Westbrooks with 16 points, nine rebounds and two assists. Adam Carlsen added 17 points and five triples while Levin Barnes scored 18 points off the bench. 

Castleton opened the game with an 11-8 advantage following a Copeland layup at 16:25. However, the Terriers came back to tie it up and pull in front 20-17 four minutes later. The two teams traded baskets over the next six minutes, until a 9-2 run by the Spartans gave them a 38-32 lead with 5:24 left in the half. Castleton maintained its advantage before a late 8-3 spurt by Thomas cut the deficit to 45-44 at the break. 

The Terriers scored the first eight points of the second half to pull in front 52-45 and then extended their lead to ten, 63-53, on back-to-back triples from Owen Brown and Barnes. Trailing 70-60 with 10:33 left, Doug Krouse drained a three to pull Castleton within seven. Four minutes later eight straight points by the Spartans tied the game 72-72. 

Barnes made a layup to take back the lead at 5:25, but Copeland followed with a tip-in to jumpstart a 10-2 run and give Castleton an 82-76 advantage. A pair of Barnes free throws cut it a four-point game with 1:54 left but the Spartans scored the next nine points, including seven free throws, to put the game away and earn the ten-point victory. 

Castleton returns to action on Tuesday when the team travels to face a tough Williams team at 7 pm.