PLYMOUTH, N.H. — The Castleton women's hockey team held off a late flurry from Plymouth State to claim a 1-0 victory in the Granite State Saturday afternoon.

Brooke Greenwood's second-period goal was the Spartans' (10-6-1, 7-3-0 NEHC) only tally with assists tabbed to Samantha Lawler and Alexandra Snow. The 21-save goaltending effort from Kirsten DiCicco resulted in the junior's third shutout of the year. Freshmen Rainey Lay and Meg Aiken each picked up two blocks in the defensive end. Aiken went 8-for-9 on faceoffs while Greenwood won 12 of 18, chalking up another successful day in the faceoff realm.

After an evenly-matched first stanza, the Spartans began to gain ground on the Panthers (2-15-0, 1-9-0 NEHC) with shot blocks and saves that turned into Castleton offense. In the eighth minute, Greenwood won a faceoff and kicked it to Snow who fired a shot saved by Amelia Julian. Lawler recovered the rebound, then connected with Greenwood who netted her ninth goal of the season. Neither side could find rhythm until a late Spartan power play, but six saved or blocked shots kept the Panthers within a score.

None of the Spartans' three man-up opportunities midway through the last period resulted in scores, setting up for a tense final seven minutes. Castleton did not log a shot on goal after the final power play, instead focusing on thwarting the Panther offense and controlling the tempo. A quartet of saves by DiCicco in as many minutes was followed by Plymouth State pulling their own goalie, but it almost proved costly as Isabella Borbridge scrambled to deflect shots by Moa Carlsson and Emery Bonner. A DiCicco save and Darby Palisi block in the final seconds secured the 1-0 victory and weekend sweep for Castleton.

Riding a four-game New England Hockey Conference win streak, the Spartans travel to New England College on Friday, January 20. Puck drop at Lee Clement Arena is scheduled for 6 p.m.