CASTLETON, Vt. – Castleton swept the first two games of a four-game, home-and-home series this afternoon by capturing a pair of victories – 5-3 and 16-3 – over Colby-Sawyer at Kelsey Field.

The Spartans outhit the opposition 28-13 while recording eight extra-base hits, including a pair of home runs, in the two wins. Castleton now stands at 14-8 overall and 7-4 in the North Atlantic Conference, whereas the Chargers remain winless at 0-17 (0-8 NAC) overall. 

In game one, Luke Salerno tossed a gem by going seven strong innings with six strikeouts and just two earned runs to pick up his first win of the season. Mike Bowse, meanwhile, suffered the loss after throwing a complete game with ten hits and five earned runs.

Dan Errico led the Spartan attack by going 2-for-3 at the plate with three RBIs, whereas Tyler Lord and Nick Swim added a collective five hits and three runs scored. Connor Henry recorded a pair of RBIs for Colby-Sawyer with a two-run double. 

Castleton got off to a quick start, as Errico plated one of his three RBIs in the top of the first to give the away side an early lead. With one out, Swim doubled down the left field line to put a runner in scoring position. Errico then followed with an RBI single to left to give the Spartans a 1-0 lead. 

The junior was at it again in the top of the third when he singled home the second Castleton run of the ballgame. Taylor Vile lined out to start the inning before Lord singled to right. The senior outfielder then advanced to second on a wild pitch, and Errico brought him home later in the inning with a drive to right to make it 2-0 in favor of the visitors. 

Following a scoreless fourth, the Spartans tallied three runs in the top of the fifth to go out in front by five. With two on and one out, Lord stepped up to the plate and ripped a single to right that brought home Ferro and extended the Castleton lead to three. Later in the frame, Errico picked up his third RBI of the game, and Zach Bahan added another with an RBI single to give the away side a five-run advantage.

The Chargers got on the board in the bottom of the fifth inning when Henry plated a pair of runs. The freshman came up with two on and two out and delivered a bases-clearing double to right to cut the hosts' deficit back to three. 

Colby-Sawyer was able to get one back in the bottom of the seventh when Brendan Thurber scored on a balk, but the Spartans were able to hold off the late surge to secure a 5-3 victory. 

In game two, Castleton turned in an impressive performance, as the squad collected 18 hits, including seven extra-base knocks, to complete the doubleheader sweep with a 16-3 victory.

Matt Ravey improved to 3-1 on the season after tossing five innings of one-run baseball with three strikeouts, whereas TJ Fearon threw two scoreless innings of relief in his sixth appearance of the season. Michael Fazio, meanwhile, dropped to 0-3 overall after giving up six runs and five hits in three innings pitched. 

Jim Buckley had a career day at the plate, going 4-for-5 with two doubles, three runs scored and five RBIs. He's now hitting .319 this season with eight extra-base hits and 21 RBIs. Tyler Hoare went 2-for-4 in the game with a home run and four RBIs, while Errico provided a two-run home run and knocked in three total runs.

Nathan Frongillo collected three of the Chargers' seven hits with one RBI, whereas Thurban went 1-for-1 with one RBI and three walks.

The two teams traded a pair of runs in the first inning to start the game before Castleton's offense exploded with 12 runs spread out over the third and fourth innings.

With the bases loaded and one out in the top of the third, Bahan singled to left to bring home Vile. Buckley followed with a bases-clearing double, and Hoare capped off the scoring in the frame with a sacrifice fly to center, handing the away side a 6-1 lead.

The Spartans kept their bats alive in the top of the fourth, as Lord ripped a double to center with one out before Swim's single to right brought him home. Errico followed with a two-run home run, and two batters later, Buckley provided an RBI double to make it 10-1 in favor of Castleton. 

The visitors weren't done, however, as Hoare ripped a two-run homer to center later in the frame, and Lord delivered an RBI single to push the visitor's lead to 12.   

Colby-Sawyer was able to get one back in the bottom of the fourth after TJ Connor's single to right scored Justin Devoid. However, Castleton outscored the opposition 3-1 over the final three innings of play en route to a 16-3 victory.

These two squads are back in action tomorrow afternoon, as the Spartans host the Chargers at Spartan Field for the second doubleheader in the four-game series. The first game is slated to begin at 2 pm with the finale following shortly after.