HELENA -- A new conference season is on the horizon for the Carroll College Saints men's soccer team. And one season after finishing 5-8 in conference, the Saints are entering the 2018 campaign with momentum and heightened expectations. 

With a home opener against Walla Walla on Friday, followed by a Sunday evening matinee against Eastern Oregon, the Saints are looking to leverage their home field into a 2-0 start. 

"It's going to be a lot of competition out there," senior forward Jose Porras said. "We know it, but that's why we're trying to work everyday and get a little bit better and just try to get that championship, get to the playoffs and make a run to nationals."

Porras, Kyle Thomson and Alessio Georgiades -- all seniors -- were voted as team captains of the 2018 team. Among a group of eight seniors, the Saints feel their unity and accountability are the forces that will propel them forward. 

"Those three guys have been leaders for us since their freshman year, really," Saints head coach Doug Mello said. "We're looking forward to them spreading the wealth of knowledge. We do have eight seniors, so we're looking for a broad base group of guys that can lead."

Beyond the seniors, the Saints feature a capable roster of juniors, sophomores and ready-to-play freshmen. 

"I think this year we have a lot of seniors, so we're seasoned players," Georgiades said. "We can look to the freshmen to bring some new stuff, so I think it will help us a lot."

The group is rightfully feeling good entering this weekend's matches. The Saints took down Whitworth 1-0 on Sunday to cap off a strong preseason that saw Carroll find success in games, exhibitions and scrimmages. 

The Saints know the usual suspects amongst the Cascade Collegiate Conference will once again be in contention. CCC competition currently ranked in the NAIA Top 25 include No. 9 Rocky Mountain College and No. 22 Corban.

"We're going to have a couple teams that are consistently at the top of the league," Thomson said. "Some are going to stay at the bottom, but for the most part it's going to be a tough matchup across the board."

For the opening weekend, it's all eyes on Walla Walla (0-5) and Eastern Oregon (2-1-1), two groups the Saints have had success against in the past -- save the past two seasons, when the Saints fell to the Mountaineers twice. It's a result the Saints will look to remedy on Sunday. 

The conference season kicks off on Friday against Walla Walla at 3 p.m. at Nelson Stadium.