The women’s basketball squad is off to a slow start this season. They go into the winter break at 4-5, boasting a couple of big wins over Albany Pharmacy and New England College. Unfortunately for the Spartans, though, a few games slipped from the their grasp.

The team played a close game with Middlebury, losing, 51-43. They also suffered a loss to Colby-Sawyer, whom they had a convincing win over a season ago.

I would say the team is really starting to miss the 2000 plus career points from Jessica Banks and Mary Nienow.

All is not lost, though, as the squad has returned key players inside and changed its game to close battles inside the paint.

The biggest thing the team has had trouble with all season long is consistency.

They average 41 percent shooting from the field in their four wins, and only about 26 percent in their five losses.

At this point in the season, I can’t comfortably say that I see the Spartan women making a serious run at a repeat for the North Atlantic Conference title.

I think some serious improvements to be made for next semester are not only becoming more consistent in the teams play on both sides of the ball, but also its overall confidence and team chemistry.

The team is young, with five new freshmen and a transfer student, so chemistry is going to play a big role next semester, especially going down the stretch.

Once the team starts clicking well together, and playing more like the team they can be, I think they can continue to build off their success.

The biggest game of the Spartans’ season will be against the team picked to win the NAC this year, Husson University.

That game will be hosted at the Spartan Athletic Complex on Jan. 22.

The Spartans will have four games once they return to work on Jan. 7 before the Husson game.

Those four games will be a tune up that will be vital to the Spartans’ success against the Eagles.

So, mark your calendars for the Husson game because it’s gonna be a good one.

While it certainly will not be the definitive moment for the remainder of Castleton’s season, it will certainly let the Spartans and their fans know how they are going to fare against the top teams of the NAC for the rest of the regular season and the postseason.