HELENA, Mont. -- The No. 20-ranked Carroll College Fighting Saints women's basketball team powered by Valley City State University 69-32 on Friday night in the PE Center as part of the Thanksgiving Classic.

The Saints (4-0) surged to a big first quarter lead and never looked back. The Saints charged out to an 18-4 lead after one quarter, and built their lead up to a 44-13 advantage at halftime.

"I think the kids played hard," Saints coach Rachelle Sayers said. "We need to shoot the ball better and we also need to know when the three is not going so that we settle into our offense. I thought we defended well. I thought we rebounded well. And I do think we got into the paint well."

Nearly every stat in the book favored the Saints.

Field goal percentage: Carroll 41%, Valley City 20%

Rebounds: Carroll 55, Valley City 31.

Points in the paint: Carroll 42, Valley City 12.

And on the list goes.

It was an evening for the Saints to display their depth. The Saints had 11 scorers contribute, led by sophomore Jamie Pickens' game-high 19 points. Joining her in double figures were Kamden Hilborn with 11 points and Sienna Swannack with 10.

Senior Danielle Wagner pulled down a game-high 11 rebounds.

Allie Critchley led the Vikings (1-2) with six points. The Saints held VCSU's leading scorer Macey Kvilvang to three points.

It's a quick turnaround for Carroll, as the Saints will face former Frontier Conference foe Lewis-Clark State College (RV) on Saturday at 2 p.m.

NOTES: Earlier in the day, LCSC defeated Montana State-Northern 75-66… No fans are allowed at the Thanksgiving Classic… To view the games, visit Carroll College Athletics' YouTube Page…