HELENA, Mont. - The Carroll College Football Team earned a hard-fought victory in week one, with a 16-10 win over No. 17 Montana Western on Saturday in Helena.

Months of anticipation and preparation came to a head this afternoon at Nelson Stadium for a week one showdown between the No. 17 ranked Bulldogs and the Fighting Saints. 

The energy and excitement around the game was palpable, with fans of both schools packing into Nelson Stadium for the opportunity to watch a good old-fashioned slugfest, between the two top teams in the conference.

Carroll won the coin-toss and elected to defer, giving a high-powered Western offense the first chance at points. 

Reigning Frontier Conference Offensive Player of the Year, Jon Jund, methodically moved the Bulldogs down the field, eventually setting up a red-zone opportunity. Things would change in a hurry though. Tucker Jones (Hamilton, Mont. / R-SO) managed to snag a ball that bounced off a Western Receiver's hands and rumble 63 yards the other direction to set the stage for the Carroll offense.

The Saints were not able to fully take advantage of the Western turnover, but after a series of runs by Duncan Kraft (Billings, Mont. / R-JR), Carroll Kicker Stephen Powell (Bremerton, Wash. / R-SR) split the uprights, giving the Saints a 3-0 lead.

The remainder of the first quarter saw both offenses struggle to move the ball down the field, unable to gain any momentum, and led to a series of punts by each school.

Special teams was a point of emphasis from the Carroll coaching staff, and would pay dividends. 

Early in the second quarter, Carroll forced the Bulldogs into another punt situation. Austin Bedke (Oakley, Idaho / R-JR) broke through the line and blocked a punt, swaying the field position in the Saints' favor.

Four plays later, Quarterback Jack Prka (Coeur d'Alene, Idaho / SO) flashed his arm strength. Prka's heave was hauled in by Tight End Tony Collins (Fort Worth, Texas / SR) for a 43 yard touchdown reception, Carroll's first of the year.

Following the touchdown Montana Western, aided by some untimely Carroll penalties, strung together an impressive 20 play, 81 yard drive. The drive chewed up over ten minutes of game time. Unable to punch it into the end zone, Western settled for a John Mears 26 yard field goal. Carroll would enter the break with a 10-3 lead.

Neither team was able to sustain any drives in the third quarter, and both teams would exchange multiple punts.

Western's Jund orchestrated another long drive late in the third quarter that would carry over into the fourth. The 12 play, 50 yard drive was capped off by a Jund pass to Blake Sentman, knotting the game at 10-10.

The Saints would respond. 

Prka moved the Saints down the field, with a drive that did not see one rushing attempt. Prka completed six passes on the drive, and set up Powell with a 31 yard FG attempt, which he made, to put Carroll back in front 13-10.

Carroll's defense made their presence felt at the end of the game. The Saints defensive unit stifled the bulldogs, forcing another punt. Carroll would once again drive down the field and add another three points off of a Powell FG, taking a 16-10 advantage.

After forcing the Bulldogs into a fourth-and-long situation on the ensuing drive, Thomas McGree (Butte, Mont / R-SO) would come up with a diving interception, with the Saints taking possession at midfield.

Western was able to stop the Saints, and got the ball back with under 30 seconds remaining. On second down, with just seconds left on the clock, Jund broke free and scrambled up the Saints sideline. Jund managed to break several tackles, and for a moment, appeared to have a shot at getting to the end zone. Fortunately for the Saints, Hunter Peck (Windsor, Colo. / SO) caught Jund from behind, and punched the ball free. McGree, again in the right place at the right time, jumped on the ball to secure the Saints win.

Jack Prka finished the game 15-26 for 148 yards and a touchdown, and Matthew Burgess (Junction City, Ore. / R-JR) finished with 39 yards rushing on 11 attempts to lead the Saints offensively.

Jon Jund finished the game 14-30, for 127 yards passing, one touchdown and two interceptions, to go with 91 yards rushing on the day for the Bulldogs

Carroll moves to 1-0 on the season and will shift their focus to a rivalry game next weekend in Butte, when they play Montana Tech in the two teams' only match-up on the year.