CASTLETON, Vt. – The Castleton softball team rode the power of 31 hits and 29 runs to a doubleheader sweep on Tuesday afternoon, taking both ends of a twin bill from Lyndon in a North Atlantic Conference showdown at Spartan Field.

Castleton took game one by a 13-0 final in five innings, before following up with a 16-1 victory over the Hornets—also in five innings. The Spartans improve to 17-7-1 on the season, including a 9-1 mark in NAC action. The Hornets drop to 0-14 overall and 0-6 in the NAC. The wins were Castleton's sixth and seventh consecutive wins, dating back to a 12-0 win over Southern Vermont last Thursday.

Kayla Wood tossed 4.0 shutout innings, allowing only an infield single while striking out eight batters en route to her sixth win of the season in the day's opener. Taylor Paquette followed up with a complete game win, allowing just a lone unearned run on her way to her 11th victory of the year. The junior set down five batters via strikeout, allowing just a pair of hits.

Timi Carone once again paced the Spartans' offensive attacks, going 5-for-6 in the doubleheader with three runs scored and four stolen bases. Karli Theberge and Tori Swaine racked up three hits apiece, while three other Spartans tallied two hits each. Swaine, Sami Carlo and Sara Baker also registered three runs apiece on the afternoon, while Baker drove in four runs.

Hannah Choiniere tallied the lone hit in game one for the Hornets, breaking up Wood's perfect game in the fourth inning with an infield single. Alexis Madore tallied a double in game two, and Erica Hayakawa singled in the second game to round out Lyndon's hits on the day. Madore tossed a combined 5.0 innings on the day, shouldering the loss in game two after allowing 11 runs, 10 earned, on 10 hits and six walks in 3.0 innings. She tossed a pair of innings in game one, allowing two unearned runs on three hits and a walk. Shelby Sheridan was the losing pitcher in the opener, working 2.0 innings and giving up 11 earned runs on 12 hits and two walks. Sheridan finished the second game in relief of Madore, allowing five more earned runs on six hits in an inning of work.

After Wood retired the side in order in the top of the first, the Spartans came to the plate looking to put up a big number in the home half of the frame. Carone led off with a single and a steal before advancing to third on a fly out by Baker. A base hit by Theberge scored Carone to make it 1-0, before an RBI single by Brooke Naylor doubled the lead to 2-0. A two-run single by McKinlie Carpenter pushed the gap to 4-0, before Briley Blackbird sent a base hit up the middle to score another run for the Spartans. Carone's second hit of the inning pushed across the sixth run for Castleton, before a sacrifice fly from Baker made it 7-0 in favor of the hosts.

Wood continued to impress in the second inning, striking out two more batters to remain perfect and bring her strikeout total to four after six batters. The Spartans came to the plate hungry for more runs as they extended their lead to 11-0 after the second inning. Swaine led off with a single before moving into scoring position on a wild pitch. Jordan Gouger capitalized, driving Swaine in with a single through the left side of the infield to make it 8-0. Four batters later, Carlo clubbed a double down the left field line to extend the lead to 10-0 after two runners scored on the play. Carlo came in to score on a fielder's choice groundout later in the inning.

Wood remained perfect through three innings, striking out the side in order to give the Spartan bats yet another opportunity for runs. Madore shut the offense down, however, as Castleton posted its only scoreless inning of the day in the home half of the third.

With two outs in the fourth inning, Choiniere hit a groundball into the hole at shortstop, narrowly beating out the throw from Baker to break up Wood's no-hitter and perfect game. Wood retired the next batter, keeping the shutout intact. The Spartans tacked on two more runs to their sizable lead, as Abby Ferrara kncked a two-run double to score a pair of runs, giving the game its final score of 13-0.

Karli Theberge worked a 1-2-3 fifth inning for the Spartans in the circle, striking out a pair of batters in her first conference action of the season.

Game two was more of the same for Castleton, as Paquette was on cruise control from the opening pitch. The junior needed just 46 pitches for a complete game, and was helped by early run support from her squad. After she retired the side in order to open the game, the Spartans pushed across a pair of runs for an early 2-0 lead. Carone again led off the game with a single, before stealing both second and third base. She came in to score on an errant throw by the catcher on her steal of third base, making it 1-0 Spartans. Kayley Fountain then singled and stole second base before Theberge drove her in with a single into center field. Madore limited the damage for Lyndon, inducing a bases-loaded groundout to end the inning.

The Hornets provided little resistance in the second inning, as Paquette breezed through a 1-2-3 frame with a pair of strikeouts. Carlo led off the bottom of the inning with a walk, before stealing second and advancing to third on a bunt single by Carone. Carone then notched her third steal of the game to move into scoring position, and both runners came in to score on a triple to the fence in right center by Baker, doubling the lead to 4-0. With two outs in the inning, Baker came in to score on a wild pitch, before Theberge ripped a triple down the right field line to score Blackbird—who was on base as a pinch runner—to make it 6-0.

Lyndon tallied its first hit of the game to lead off the third inning, as Madore floated a double down the left field line to give the Hornets their first runner in scoring position of the day. A groundout advanced Madore to third before she scored on a two-out error by the Spartans.

Castleton got that run back and then some, plating five more runs in the bottom half of the inning. Baker collected an RBI single, and Blackbird notched a two-run double down the right field line to make it 9-1. A double by Gouger into right field scored Blackbird, before Ferrara scored as a pinch runner on a costly error by the Hornets to make it 11-1 after three innings.

Paquette settled back in during the fourth inning, setting down Lyndon in order. The Spartans capped their offensive outburst with a five-run fourth inning to push the score to 16-1. Hunter Buxton ripped an RBI double into left field and Swaine followed with a triple into right center to score Buxton. Ferrara drove in Swaine with a base knock, before Emilee Teague drove in Ferrara on a fielder's choice groundout. Dani Forand finished the scoring with a rocket back up the middle, scoring Paquette with two outs in the inning.

A scoreless top of the fifth gave the Spartans their largest margin of victory on the season—15 runs—by closing the game with the 16-1 final. Castleton batted an impressive .517 as a team, while Lyndon managed only a .097 team batting average on the day. Castleton racked up 10 steals in the doubleheader, and outhit Lyndon 31-3 on the afternoon.

The Spartans host Husson on Saturday at noon to wrap up the NAC regular season.