CASTLETON, Vt. - The Castleton University fall athletic programs gathered at the Casella Theater on Wednesday night to celebrate the accomplishments of student-athletes both on and off the field.
 
The women's tennis program was awarded the President's Cup for Academic Excellence by Chief Academic Officer Cathy Kozlik. The award is given each season to the team with the highest cumulative grade point average. The team posted a GPA of 3.85. For the second year in a row, each of Castleton's 10 fall programs held a cumulative team GPA above 3.0.
 
Men's Cross Country
The men's cross country team was competitive in each of its races this fall, and posted a season-best second-place finish at the 2022 Castleton Invitational. Team MVP Jon Hendley posted a season-best 8k time of 28:51 at the Little East Conference Championship, finishing in the top half of the field at the event. He was also Castleton's fastest finisher in each of the team's race this season.
 
Women's Cross Country
The women's cross country program won its own meet this fall, taking first place at the Castleton Invitational to open the season. Team MVP Bethany Davis finished first for Castleton in six of the program's seven races this fall, including a top-25 finish at the LEC Championships and a second-place finish at the Castleton Invitational. Her fastest time of the season came at the UMass Dartmouth Invitational, where she clocked in with a time of 21:26.7
 
Field Hockey
The Castleton field hockey program had a stellar season, going from the seventh-ranked team in the league before the season to winning the first Little East Conference Championship of any program since Castleton's move to the league in 2018. Castleton had one of the highest-powered offenses in the region thanks in part to team MVP Kaitlin Bardellini, who racked up 50 points on 21 goals and eight assists. Bardellini scored four times and had an assists in the LEC Tournament to help Castleton to the title before assisting Emily Harris—the nation's leading scorer for each of the last two seasons—in Castleton's NCAA Tournament contest against No. 6 Tufts.
 
Football
The Castleton football team was once again in the hunt for the ECFC Championship in 2022, taking a second-place finish with a 4-2 record in league play and a 5-5 record overall. The Spartans are a tough matchup at home, going 4-1 at Dave Wolk Stadium with a pair of shutouts with help from the 20th-largest average attendance in Division III. Team MVP Kevin McDonough led the ECFC in tackles this season, racking up 87 stops in 10 games while picking off a pair of passes. One of his interceptions sealed a victory and prevented a comeback attempt by Maritime (N.Y.) after a late-game touchdown drive by Castleton.
 
Men's Golf
The men's golf program continued to assert itself as one of the premiere programs in the Little East Conference, taking a second-place finish at the 2022 LEC Championships. Castleton finished top-three as a team in four of its six tournaments this season and had a program-best score at the Ralph Mhyre Invitational hosted by Middlebury. Team MVP Nick Ojala led the team in scoring for the fourth time in his career, averaging 75.6 on the year. Ojala finished tied for third place, landing a spot on the LEC All-Conference team for his efforts. Castleton averaged 315.6 as a team, the second-best team average in program history.
 
Women's Rugby
The women's rugby team had one of its best seasons in program history, going 5-3 in the regular season while making the NIRA playoffs for the first time ever. Team MVP Katelynn Dunn racked up seven tries on the season, helping the Spartans to a four-match winning streak in the middle of the season with wins over NEC and Colby Sawyer before Castleton won back-to-back contests against Manhattanville.
 
Men's Soccer
The men's soccer team enjoyed their best season in four years, finishing 7-10-2  with a 3-4-1 conference record en route to their first home playoff game since joining the Little East. The Spartans tallied impressive wins over Southern Maine, Plymouth State, Albertus Magnus, and eventual LEC Champion UMass Boston in the regular season. Team MVP Andres Soto-Burgos made 14 starts between the posts in his senior season, finishing with career-best marks in goals allowed average (2.18), saves (98), and save percentage (.760).
 
Women's Soccer
The Castleton women's soccer team posted another strong season in 2022, ending the season 8-11-1 with a conference record of 4-3-1. The Spartans earned the No. 4 seed in the LEC Championship Tournament, besting Eastern Connecticut 2-1 in the opening round to make a third straight trip to the conference semifinals. Team MVP Maddie Lindgren served as a spark off the bench, tallying one assist on the season, and could always be heard cheering on her teammates even when she was not on the field.
 
Women's Tennis
The women's tennis team finished their 2022 season with a 3-9 record, including a 1-7 record in the LEC. They earned their first conference sweep since joining the LEC in a 9-0 victory over Southern Maine, and narrowly fell in matches against Western Connecticut and Salem State. Team MVP Stella Forte was a force in her freshman season, finishing 6-6 on the year and 4-4 in conference play. She posted an impressive 3-0 record on third singles while also compiling a 6-6 record in doubles play, including a 6-3 record on second doubles.
 
Women's Volleyball
Women's volleyball continued to build on its young foundation, posting a 5-20 record while nearly grabbing its first LEC victory in a thrilling five-set match at Glenbrook Gym. The team set a single-game record for digs in a five-set win over SUNY Cobleskill, racking up 112 in the contest. Team MVP Hailey Martinovich led the team in kills for the second year in a row, amassing 202 kills. She ranked second on the team with 216 digs and third on the team with 27 aces. She had the seventh-most kills in a single match against NVU-Johnson, becoming just the third different Spartan to record 20-plus kills in a single match when she notched 21 against the Badgers.