Bangor, Maine – It wasn't pretty but Castleton got the job done, scoring the final 20 points of the game to finish with a 34-14 win over the Eagles on Saturday afternoon at the Winkin Complex in Bangor.
The win is the school-record sixth straight for Castleton, as the team improves to 6-0 in the Eastern Collegiate Football Conference and 7-2 for the season. The Spartans now play Mount Ida for the ECFC Championship next Saturday at Spartan Stadium, with the winner earning an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament.
Brandon Boyle continued his record-breaking junior season, catching nine passes for 221 yards and three scores, marking his third 200-yard receiving game of the season. Senior Shane Brozowski threw for over 300 yards once again, going 24-for-31 for 312 yards and two touchdowns.
Following a scoreless first quarter, Castleton took a 7-0 just 55 seconds into the second on a 10-yard touchdown pass from Brozowski to Boyle.
The Spartans made it 14-0 just over two minutes later as the Brozowski and Boyle hooked up for another scored, this one a 38-yard touchdown reception.
Neither team would score again until there was 3:34 left in the third quarter. After Castleton fumbled inside its own five-yard line, the Eagles' Kash Keezer scored on a rushing touchdown to cut the Spartan lead in half, 14-7.
Castleton turned the ball over on its next possession and Husson capitalized once again, scoring just 1:01 into the fourth quarter and tying the game 14-14.
However, the Spartans responded 46 seconds later with a 59-yard scoring strike from freshman George Busharis to Boyle to take back the lead, 21-14.
Castleton maintained the momentum, blocking a punt on Husson's next possession to set up a Dave Fox field goal. The Spartans then forced a fumble to set up another Fox field goal with 3:31 left, pushing the lead to 27-14.
Senior Tyler Carpenter provided the final scoring for Castleton, rushing into the endzone from four yards out with just 1:01 left in the contest.
Carpenter finished with 49 rushing yards and also caught six passes for 60 yards. Junior Zack Howe was also big in the passing game with five catches for 49 yards.
Senior Cameron Laundry led the Spartan defense with 14 tackles, including 11 solo and two sacks. Freshman Jay Morgan also had a sack, as well as 2.5 tackles for a loss.
The Spartans return to the friendly confines of Spartan Stadium on Saturday at 1 pm against Mount Ida for the right to represent the conference in the NCAA National Tournament.
