Courtesy Middlebury Sports Informationn

The Middlebury Men’s Basketball team steamed past Northern Vermont University-Johnson 83-37 On Tuesday night while the Panther Women roared over Castleton University 74-30.
Detailed stories on each game follow …

MIDDLEBURY — Middlebury placed five players in double figures on its way to an 83-37 win over Northern Vermont University-Johnson (0-4) on Tuesday night in Pepin Gym. The 17th-ranked Panthers (2-0) return to action on Sunday when they host Endicott at 2:00 p.m., while the Badgers entertain Green Mountain on November 28.

Middlebury jumped out to a 13-2 run behind three from long range by Joey Leighton. Leading 20-10, a 7-0 spurt, capped by a three from Perry DeLorenzo, gave the hosts a 27-10 lead with 8:51 remaining in the first half. The Panthers closed the opening 20 minutes with a 9-1 run, taking a 44-20 advantage into the break.

Leading 54-27 with 14:28 left to play, Middlebury scored the game’s next 22 points to go ahead by 49 (76-27) at the 8:07 mark. The Panthers maintained a substantial lead for the remainder of the game, cruising to the victory.

Leighton led Middlebury with 15 points, while Alex Sobel scored 14 with 11 boards on 7-7 shooting from the floor, tying the school mark for field-goal percentage in a game. Jack Farrell added 11 points, seven rebounds and five assists, Max Bosco netted 10 with four helpers, while Ryan Cahill added 10 points.

Robert Dubose led all scorers with 16 points for the Badgers.

Middlebury possessed a 55-27 rebounding advantage in the contest, led by Sobel’s 11.

CASTLETON —- Middlebury scored the game’s first nine points and was never challenged during a 74-30 road victory at Castleton on Tuesday evening. The Panthers (3-0) return to action on November 27 at MCLA for a 6:00 p.m. contest, while the Spartans (4-1) host Plymouth State on November 28.

The Panthers jumped out to an 18-4 lead on a jumper by Colleen Caveney with 1:28 left in the opening quarter. Caveney produced 10 points during the run on 5-7 shooting from the floor. The teams traded buckets over the final minute, giving the visitors a 20-6 edge after the initial stanza.

Castleton cut the deficit to 14 (24-10) on a layup from Anna Iannotti with 6:09 left in the second quarter. Middlebury put six quick points together for a 30-10 edge with just under four minutes remaining. That lead grew to as many as 24 at 37-13 on layup by Catherine Harrison just before the halftime intermission.

Out of the locker room, Middlebury continued to grow its lead, scoring the first 18 points of the third quarter for a 55-13 advantage on a layup by Michaela Sullivan with 2:48 left. The Panther defense held the hosts without a point for a span of 10:09 wrapped around the halftime break. Middlebury outscored the Spartans by an 18-2 count in the frame for a 55-15 edge entering the fourth stanza.

The Panthers were never challenged in the final quarter, growing their lead to as many as 47 (72-25) on a pair of free throws from Vanessa Young with 1:42 left in the contest.

A total of 12 Panthers found the scoring column in the win, paced by Caveney with 16 points on 8-11 shooting. Betsy Knox and Harrison both finished with 11 points, while Harrison pulled down a team-best eight rebounds. Maya Davis chipped in with eight points.

Iannotti led the Spartans with 12 points off the bench, while Katlyn Toomey yanked down seven rebounds for Castleton.

The Panther defense limited the Spartans to just 30 points on 30.4 percent from the floor (14-46), and just 18.2 percent (2-11) from beyond the arc. Middlebury held a 44-22 rebounding advantage, a 40-20 edge in points in the paint and scored 22 points off of 14 Castleton turnovers.