CASTLETON, Vt. – The Castleton University women's basketball team dropped a non-conference matchup to nationally-ranked Smith College Monday night, falling by a final score of 78-57 to the No. 23 team in the country.
Castleton (1-1) was held to just 28.1 percent (18-of-64) from the field and 27.3 percent (6-of-22) from three, while Smith shot 49.2 percent (30-of-61) from the floor and 45.0 percent (9-of-20) from three. Castleton knocked down 15-of-20 free throws and Smith made 9-of-13 at the line. The Pioneers outrebounded Castleton 46-35, though Smith turned the ball over 19 times to Castleton's 15.
Elise Magro led the charge for Castleton on offense, scoring 23 points—14 of which came after halftime. The junior shot 8-of-21 from the floor and 6-of-8 from the free-throw line.
Kelly Vuz added 11 points, and
Jordan Levesque scored 10 points in just 15 minutes off the bench. Levesque was 3-of-5 from three-point range and grabbed three rebounds.
Olivia Perry led all Spartans with seven rebounds on the night.
Smith had four players in double figures scoring, led by Bobi Mack's 17 points off the bench. She shot 5-of-7 from the field and 3-of-5 from three while making all four free-throw attempts. Katelyn Pickunka notched a double-double with 15 points and 10 rebounds, while Ally Yamada scored 12 points with seven assists and Elle Jo Whalen chipped in 10 points. Yamada and Whalen were also two of four Smith players with four rebounds in the game.
The Pioneers dominated the first quarter, taking a 30-8 lead after just 10 minutes of play. Castleton buckled down in the second stanza, keeping pace with the Pioneers throughout. After Smith scored to open the quarter,
Delaney Whitehead nailed a three and Magro hit a jumper to give Castleton five unanswered points. The two teams alternated scoring the remainder of the quarter, with Smith taking a 45-23 lead into halftime.
After the Pioneers extended their lead to 69-38 through three quarters, Castleton came on strong in the fourth, outscoring Smith 19-9 in the final 10 minutes. Perry made a layup and Magro followed with a three. Minutes later, Levesque buried threes on back-to-back possessions to start a 10-0 Castleton run. Vuz capped the scoring in the game with a layup to put the final score at 78-57.
The Spartans return to action this weekend for the Spartan Classic where they will host former North Atlantic Conference opponents UMaine Farmington, Thomas College and New England College. The Spartans play UMF on Saturday at 4 p.m. Thomas and NEC will play at 6 p.m. in Glenbrook Gym.
