Castleton, VT – The Husson Eagles captured their second North Atlantic Conference Championship in three years after defeating the Castleton Spartans 4-2 in the championship game Monday, May 6 at Spartan Field.

Pat McEwen earned the win for Husson going seven strong innings, allowing two earned runs on six hits. Nate Swahn took the loss for Castleton, tossing five innings, allowing four earned runs on four hits. Matt Ravey threw three scoreless innings in relief to keep the Spartans in the game, but the top seed was unable to cash in.

Dylan Foster led Husson's offense, going 2-for-4 with an RBI and two runs scored. Shawn Smithand Brandon Gendreau each went 2-for-3 on the day for the Eagles. Castleton's Ryan Zielinski went 2-for-3 with a walk and a run scored, while Matt McNamee and Macyn Clifford each went 2-for-4 on the day.

Castleton struck first with a run in the top of the third inning. Tyler Lord drew a one-out walk and was brought around to score by a single off the bat of Joe Borowski. With the score, the Spartans took a 1-0 lead.

Husson responded with a run in the bottom of the fourth inning. With runners on second and third and one out, Josh Gaudette drove the ball deep to right field. Allen White made the catch, but the ball was hit far enough to drive in the runner from third, tying the game at 1-1.

The Spartans took a one-run lead again in the top of the fifth when Matt McNamee came through with a two-out hit. The designated hitter singled up the middle, driving in Ryan Zielinski from second base, giving the Spartans a 2-1 lead.

Husson tied the game in the bottom half of the inning. Brandon Gendreau led off with a double down the left field line, and was driven in a few batters later when Dylan Foster laced a two-out single to right field. The next batter, Shawn Smith drove in the go-ahead run on a single to center, making it 3-2 Husson. The Eagles cashed in for one more run when Foster came in to score on a wild pitch.

The Spartans threatened in the seventh, eighth, and ninth innings, but could not get a timely hit to drive in the runners. Over the course of the game, Castleton stranded a total of 15 runners on base.

Brandon Reilly came into the game for the Eagles in the ninth inning in an attempt to shut down the Spartans. McNamee laced a single to left field to give Castleton a glimmer of hope, and Macyn Clifford added a single to right center to put the tying run on base. The Spartans couldn't cash in however, as Reilly recorded two consecutive outs to close down the game and seal the championship for the Eagles.

Reilly was named the Tournament MVP after throwing a complete game in Husson's opener, a 1-0 shutout of Colby-Sawyer in game two of the tournament, and earning a save in the championship game. The freshman hurler was joined on the NAC All-Tournament team by teammates Dylan Foster and Josh Gaudette.

Castleton second baseman Ryan Zielinski was selected to the All-Tournament team after going 8-for-15 in the tournament. He was joined by shortstop Cameron Curler, who made some fantastic defensive plays to go along with his 6-for-12 performance from the plate. Derek Osborne was selected from the Spartans pitching staff after he earned two wins in 5.2 innings of relief. The hurler allowed just three hits in his two appearances.

Husson improves to 26-17 on the year with the victory, while Castleton falls to 28-13 on the year. Both teams will await their postseason fates, with their likely destination being the East Coast Athletic Conference (ECAC) championships, with the first round beginning Wednesday, May 8.

NAC All-Tournament Team

MVP - Brandon Reilly - Husson
Dylan Foster - Husson
Josh Gaudette - Husson
Ryan Zielinski - Castleton
Cameron Curler - Castleton
Derek Osborne - Castleton
Eric Sucy - Thomas
James McLamb - Thomas
Kevin Keith - Colby-Sawyer
Andy Lapple - Colby-Sawyer