CASTLETON, Vt – The Castleton University women's basketball team got back in the win column Thursday night, defeating Plymouth State 49-38 in a defensive battle at Glenbrook Gym in Little East Conference action.

The Spartans move above the .500 mark once again at 7-6, and now sit at 2-2 in LEC play. Plymouth State falls to 3-8 on the year and 0-4 in conference action. The Spartans controlled the glass, winning the rebounding battle 50-26 on the night. Castleton hauled in 20 offensive rebounds, leading to 11 second-chance points. Castleton shot 32.8 percent as a team (19-of-58) and made just 1-of-15 (6.7 percent) from three-point range. The Panthers were just 13-of-47 from the floor (27.7 percent), but made 7-of-18 from three (38.9 percent).

Emilee Bose led the Spartans in scoring for the second straight game, dropping 18 points on 9-of-16 shooting. She added seven rebounds and three assists in the win. Brooke Raiche notched a double-double with 10 points and 10 boards, making 3-of-9 from the field and 3-of-4 free throws in addition to three steals. Kylie Wright also reached the double-digit plateau, scoring 10 points and hauling in eight rebounds off the bench. Katlyn Toomey hauled in nine rebounds.

Alessia Salzillo was the only double-digit scorer for the Panthers, tallying 12 points on 4-of-11 shooting. Three others added five points apiece, as Jalen Cook, Autumn Nelson and Isabella Earle reached the mark. Nelson led the team with six boards, while Cook and Chenysse Hill had four steals each.

The first quarter was a back-and-forth battle as no lead was greater than four points in the frame. The Panthers went ahead 8-4 early on after an old-fashioned three-point play from Elizabeth McLaughlin, but a 6-0 run by Castleton gave the Spartans a 10-8 lead after a pair of Wright free throws. After the Panthers drew level at 10-10, Wright and Olivia Perry each added layups to make it 14-10 in favor of the home side. Ricard drew Plymouth State within two at the end of the quarter, 14-12, with a layup of her own in the waning seconds.

The second quarter saw Castleton add to its narrow lead as the Spartans opened the frame on an 8-0 run to go ahead 22-12 with 5:01 to play. The Panthers held Castleton scoreless the rest of the way until halftime, using a 5-0 run to cut the lead to 22-17 at the half.

Castleton pulled away in the third quarter, holding Plymouth scoreless for the first five minutes of the second half. Castleton outscored the Panthers 14-4 in the frame, holding Plymouth to just one field goal in the entire quarter. Castleton opened the half on a 7-0 run, highlighted by a three from Raiche, before Plymouth got on the board with a three from Salzillo. It was the only field goal of the frame for the Panthers, as the Castleton defense stymied the PSU offense to the tune of 7.1 percent shooting (1-of-14) in the frame.

The Panthers mounted a brief comeback in the fourth quarter, outscoring Castleton 17-13, but it was too-little, too-late as Castleton had amassed a 15-point lead entering the frame. An 8-0 run in the final two minutes pulled the Panthers within eight, 45-37, but Castleton pulled away once more with free throws to seal the home-court victory.

Castleton returns to action Saturday at 1 p.m. at home against Southern Maine.