HELENA, Mont. - The No. 18 Carroll College Women's Basketball team proved too much to handle in the second half this afternoon, pulling away from Montana Tech for a 72-46 win.

The Fighting Saints (16-5, 7-1) came into the day looking to maintain their place at the top of the Frontier standings, and did just that. Carroll beat Montana Tech 72-46 to improve to 7-1 in league play.

The energy was high in a jam-packed Carroll College PE Center, and both teams fed off of the crowd in a competitive first quarter. The Saints would score the final 10 points of the first quarter, and carry a 19-10 advantage after one. Maddie Geritz (Boise, Idaho / R-SR) scored eight of her team-high 14 points in the opening period.

Montana Tech would not back down, however, and the Orediggers would manage to outscore the Saints by one in the second quarter, 18-17. Carroll would take a 36-28 lead into the halftime break. Aubrie Rademacher led the way for the Diggers, scoring seven in the frame.

The second half would belong to the Saints. Carroll jumped all over the Orediggers in the third quarter, outscoring Montana Tech 20-11, and extending their lead to 17 points heading into the final quarter of play.

Erica Nessan (Spokane, Wash. / SR) scored six points off of the bench in the fourth quarter, and a collection of Carroll reserves closed out the 72-46 win.

The win marked 19-consecutive over Montana Tech for the Fighting Saints, dating back to 2018.

Five Saints would post double-digit points on the evening, led by the front court tandem of Maddie Geritz (14) and Jamie Pickens' (Helena, Mont. / SR) 12 points. 

Carroll finished the game shooting 46.6 percent from the field as a team, while Montana Tech finished 30.8 percent as a team.

Tavia Rooney led the Orediggers with 14 points and five rebounds in the loss.

Carroll will shift focus towards a home tilt with fellow conference-leader, Rocky Mountain College, next Thursday at the Carroll College PE Center at 5 p.m.

Visit www.carrollathletics.com for a preview of that game, and to stay up to date with everything going on in Carroll Athletics.