HELENA -- A trip up north awaits the Carroll College volleyball team this weekend. 

The Saints head to the University of Providence and then Montana State-Northern for a pair of conference road contests. 

"This is big," Saints head coach Moe Boyle said. "Great Falls is always a tough one. I think we have to get off the bus ready to play and not try to figure out what kind of day it's going to be when we get on the court. Great Falls always plays us tough. It seems like they bring their best volleyball against us." 

The Saints (13-7, 1-1 Frontier) opened up their conference season with a win on the road. Riding a five-game winning streak, the Saints faced a reality check against No. 6 Rocky Mountain College, falling 3-1 in the PE Center. 

That game, especially, helped the Saints to look inward and focus more on their own play. 

"We have to play our game," Boyle said. "We have to focus on our side of the net and our job all the time. We talk about that a lot, but this week it has been a very serious focus."

Carroll enters the game as the No. 3 team in the NAIA in total blocks (154). A large part of that is Brielle Bumgarner, who is No. 4 in the NAIA in total blocks with 75. She averages 1.2 blocks her game. 

Up first on Friday is a contest against Providence (10-5, 2-1). The Argonauts bring in an offense that is second in the conference in kills per set at 12.8 and assists per set at 11.8 per set. Providence is also ranked No. 12 in the NAIA in total blocks (131.5)

The Saints are accustomed to playing at Providence after posting a 4-0 record in McLaughlin Gym during a non-conference tournament a few weeks ago. 

"It's a really loud gym," Boyle said. "We like that. It's always a good matchup."

After that, the Saints head to MSU-N (1-14, 0-3) on Saturday. 

Friday's match against Providence is set for a 7 p.m. start time.