CASTLETON, Vt. – The No. 4-seed Castleton University women's basketball team earned a 70-57 victory in the Little East Conference quarterfinals on Tuesday night, defeating the fifth-seeded University of Southern Maine at Glenbrook Gym.
Castleton advances to the LEC Semifinals with the win, taking on top-seeded Eastern Connecticut State on Thursday evening at 6 p.m. The Spartans sit at 17-9 overall this season with the win, while USM concludes the year with an 8-18 mark.
The Spartans hit 42.4 percent from the field in the game and knocked down eight threes, while Southern Maine shot 37.3 percent from the field with six threes. Both sides were efficient at the line, with Castleton hitting 12-of-16 and USM making 7-of-10.
Kelly Vuz hit five threes en route to a 22-point night, leading all scorers in the contest.
Elise Magro joined her in the 20-point club with 20 points, seven assists and five rebounds.
Liz Bailey chipped in 14 points and six boards while
Delaney Whitehead had seven points.
Maria Degifico had a team-best 16 points for USM while Franny Ramsdell added 15 points and five rebounds. Tamrah Gould had eight points.
Bailey got Castleton on the board first, but USM got hot quickly and posted a 7-4 lead midway through the first quarter. After a Magro layup, USM went on an 8-0 run to make it 15-6. Magro stopped the run with a pull-up jumper but Vanessa Vaughan added the points back for the Huskies to make it 17-8 with two minutes left in the frame. Magro dropped in a layup for a 17-10 scored before Vuz hit two triples in the final 45 seconds of the quarter to make it a one-point game after 10 minutes, 17-16.
Castleton regained the lead 19-18 after a Magro three early in the second, and Bailey tacked on a layup as well. USM battled back to a 25-24 lead after a layup and three. The two sides went back-and-forth before Castleton closed the half on a 10-2 run. Vuz again closed the quarter strong, making a layup and a three in the final minute and change for a 36-29 halftime lead.
Whitehead buried a corner three out of the locker room to put the Spartans ahead by 10, but both sides saw a flurry of free throws with no field goals made over the following two-plus minutes. Ramsdell broke the string for USM to make it 42-35 in favor of Castleton before Vuz and Ramsdell traded threes. Another three by Vuz and a late layup for
Emily Adams sent Castleton to the fourth quarter leading 52-42.
The lead grew beyond 10 points for the first time when Bailey dropped in a layup for a 57-46 edge, and a 6-0 run moments later made it 63-48. USM had a 5-0 burst to make it a 10-point game once more, but four straight points from Vuz made it 67-53. Castleton added three more free throws to its tally late while keeping the Huskies at bay to close the night on top 70-57.
The win is Castleton's second postseason victory since joining the LEC in 2018, the other coming in 2020 with a win over Keene State. Castleton's 17 wins are its most since 2017, when the team won 21 games in its final season in the North Atlantic Conference.
