HELENA, Mont. -- In one of the biggest games in the NAIA early this season, the No. 7-ranked Carroll College women's basketball team hosts No. 14 The Master's in the PE Center on Friday. 

"They return all five starters and they got a 6-6 freshman who was a top 50 player in the country," Saints coach Rachelle Sayers said. "They definitely improved their roster. Her sister plays there. Both parents went there. The religious component was very important to them."  

The Master's (1-0) went 19-11 last season, but is bolstered by the addition of 6-foot-6 freshman Stephanie Soares.

The Saints (1-0) catch The Master's on the third and final game of their Montana road trip. The Master's earned a 79-73 win in Butte against Montana Tech and plays No. 18 University of Providence on Thursday night in Great Falls. 

"It's great for our league to have them out here because the more Top 25 teams that are playing each other and seeing each other and seeing the travel and the competitiveness of our league, the better for us," Sayers said.  

The Master's could be much better than their No. 14 rank suggests, too. Preseason Top 25s give those picked to win their conference the nod early on. The Master's play in the same conference as No. 1 Vanguard and No. 8 Westmont, the latter which the Saints face next week. 

And The Master's and the Saints have a bit of a history. After all, it was against The Master's when the Saints earned their first NAIA Tournament win under Sayers. 

Carroll and The Master's have met in the regular season, too. The Saints went down to Santa Clarita last season and fell to The Master's. Carroll earned a victory over The Master's in a Las Vegas tournament in 2015. 

"They're going to be very challenging to deal with and we're excited for the challenge," Sayers said.  

The Saints should certainly be up to a Top-15 battle after compiling a difficult exhibition schedule that included Montana, Montana State and Gonzaga. In the Saints' lone counter this season, Carroll crushed Calumet College of St. Joseph, 81-34. 

The game is scheduled to tipoff at 7 p.m. 

Live stats can be found here. 

A live stream can be seen here.