CASTLETON, Vt. - Spartans' Alyssa Leonard (Amherst, Mass.) led three players in double figures as Castleton State College looked sharp in their first game of the season, beating visiting Simmons 81-53 in Glenbrook Gymnasium on Friday evening in the Rutland Tip-Off Tournament.

Leonard was an impressive 10-for-11 from the field with eight rebounds, including five on the offensive end, and five steals to pace Castleton. Senior Vanessa Powers (Marshfield, Vt.) was right behind her with 18 points and dished five assists from her forward position.

The Spartans moved the ball well, totaling 25 assists on 33 field goals. They also crashed the boards for the 44-33 advantage, highlighted by 16 offensive rebounds. Defensively, they held the Sharks to just 17-for-47 shooting and forced 24 turnovers while recording 15 steals.

Castleton opened the contest on a 20-5 run over the game's first eight minutes. Simmons wouldn't get any closer and the Spartans were able to push the lead up to 49-19 just 17 minutes in. However, 8-0 flurry by the Sharks over the final three minutes of the half made it 49-28 at the break.

The second half was much of the same as Simmons sunk important baskets but were unable to catch up. The Spartans pushed the lead past 30 on multiple occasions before finishing with the 81-53 victory.

Junior Spartan Tarryn Bolognani (Whitingham, Vt.) was the third Castleton player in double figures, scoring 14 points and recording three steals. Freshman Alyssa Moore (Rutland, Vt.) dished out a team-high six assists to go with her eight points, while classmate Jade Desroches (Enosburg, Vt.) hit three shots from downtown for nine points.

Simmons junior Liz O'Connor (Milton, Mass.) led the Simmons attack with 18 points on the evening and pulled down a team-high eight rebounds. Sophomore Hannah May (Hamden, Conn.) was second on the team with eight points and added four rebounds in the losing effort.

The Spartans improve to 1-0 with the victory while Simmons drops to 0-2. Castleton advances to the finals of Rutland Herald Tip-Off Tournament where they will take on St. Joseph's of Maine Saturday at 3 p.m. The Monks defeated Elms 92-60 in the second game of the evening. The Sharks will tip-off against the Blazers of Elms College at 1 p.m. on Saturday.