DANBURY, Conn. – The Castleton University women's basketball team never trailed on Monday night as it cruised to a 74-38 road win against Western Connecticut State University in Little East Conference action.
The Spartans scored the first four points of the game and held the lead the entirety of the contest, improving to 13-6 overall and 6-4 in league play. WestConn drops to 12-7 overall and 5-6 against LEC opponents. The Spartans shot a season-best 50.0 percent from the floor, hitting 30-of-60 while making a season-high 45.5 percent from three (5-of-11). The Spartans made WestConn pay for its turnovers, outscoring the Wolves 21-2 in points off turnovers.
Kelly Vuz scored 21 points to lead all scorers, eclipsing the 20-point threshold for the fourth time this season.
Elise Magro added 19 points, six rebounds, five steals and four assists while
Liz Bailey chipped in 16 points and five rebounds.
Gwyn Tatton had four points and six rebounds while
Luna Perry-St. Peter and
Felicia Poirier added four points each off the bench.
Gabrielle Franks led WestConn with 14 points and six rebounds, while Nicole Vivian added 10 points for the Wolves. Nicole Peralta had three assists.
Leading 6-3 in the early portion of the first quarter, Vuz bookended a 10-0 Spartan run with a jumper to start it and a three-pointer to end it, helping push Castleton's lead to 16-3 with six minutes into play. A three-point play by WestConn stopped the run for Castleton before Vuz added two more. Castleton led 18-8 after 10 minutes.
Bailey scored the first four points of the second quarter to make it 22-8, and later baskets by Magro and Perry-St. Peter extended the lead to 28-12. Alternating scores the rest of the quarter made the score 37-23 at halftime.
Castleton began the third quarter on a 9-0 run, with Magro scoring six of the points during the span. A layup by WestConn was a blip on the radar before Castleton rattled off 10 more points unanswered. In total, the second half began with a 19-2 Spartan run that pushed the lead to 56-25. A late layup by Vuz pushed the lead to 58-27 going to the final quarter.
Maggie McKearin hit a three to open the fourth quarter with a bang, and Vuz hit one of her own to push the lead to 64-31. An 8-0 run later in the frame extended the lead to 74-35, capped by a layup by Perry-St. Peter. WestConn scored the final three points of the game on free throws to set the final score at 74-38.
Castleton is home on Wednesday night at 5:30 p.m. to take on Plymouth State.
