Women's Basketball | 03/07/23 | 12:20 PM

HELENA, Mont. - The Carroll College Women's basketball team will begin their quest for a National Title this evening when they host Rochester University (Mich.) in the first round of the 2023 NAIA Women's Basketball Championship - Presented by Ballogy at 7 p.m. inside the Carroll College PE Center.

The No. 11-ranked Fighting Saints (25-5, 14-1) were awarded a No. 2-seed, the highest-such seed in program history, for the 2023 NAIA Women's Basketball Championship. In addition to the favorable bracket position, Carroll was named as one of 16 first and second round host sites around the nation. The No. 2-seed, and home court advantage should pay dividends when Carroll takes on No. 15-seed Rochester (21-10, 16-4) to kick off their tournament.

Carroll enters the 2023 NAIA Women's Basketball Championship as one of the hottest teams in the nation. The Saints won both the 2022-23 Frontier Conference regular season and tournament championships, and have won 21 of their last 23 games, many by a wide margin. Over Carroll's season-ending 13-game win streak, their average margin of victory has been 16.4 points per game. After a sluggish start to the season against some of the NAIA's top-ranked schools, Carroll has righted the ship and have been on a roll over the last three months.

The Saints have four all-conference selections in their starting five; Jamie Pickens (Helena, Mont. / SR), Kyndall Keller (Havre, Mont. / JR), Sienna Swannack (Nine Mile Falls, Wash. / GR) and Kamden Hilborn (Clancy, Mont. / GR). The formidable four have given opponents headaches all season long, and have only improved as a unit throughout the year. 

Jamie Pickens was named a 2022-23 Frontier Conference Player of the Year selection, and the Senior forward has been nearly impossible to slow down. Pickens has averaged 17.1 points per game on 54.5 percent shooting up to this point. In addition, the senior has pulled down an average of 7.3 rebounds per game en route to four Frontier Conference Player of the Week Selections. 

Kamden Hilborn has established herself as one of the nation's best ball distributors, and Carroll's all-time best on that front. Hilborn is No. 3 in the NAIA in assists per game (6.4) and recently became the sole player in Carroll program history to eclipse the 550 assist plateau.

Defense has become a hallmark of Head Coach Rachelle Sayers' Saints teams, and this year's Carroll team is one of the best in the country on the defensive end of the floor. The Saints are No. 3 in the nation in points allowed per game (51.2) and No. 2 in the NAIA in rebounds allowed per game (25.6).

The Rochester Warriors (21-10, 16-4), from Rochester Hills, Mich. will be Carroll's first round opponent. The Warriors secured an automatic berth into the NAIA Women's Basketball Championship by winning the Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Conference tournament, defeating No. 16 Indiana Tech in the championship game.

The Warriors are an interesting draw for the Saints, and will play a fast paced style that Carroll has not faced much this season. The Warriors are led by a pair of senior guards from Flint, Mich., Krystal Rice and Jacara Thompson. Rice and Thompson are the two leading scorers (11.2 and 10.9 points per game, respectively), and both shoot better than 40 percent from the floor. 

Rochester averages 40.2 rebounds per game, and are one of the nation's best at forcing turnovers (17.4 turnovers per game). The Warriors' press defense creates many issues for opponents, and they average nearly 14 steals per game.

Carroll will look to slow the game down, get into their half court sets, and neutralize the strengths of the Warriors this evening.

Carroll vs. Rochester is not the only game of the night, however. No. 7-seed Jamestown (21-8, 16-6) will take on No. 10-seed Indiana University - South Bend (28-2, 18-2) in the early portion of tonight's event, with a tip-off time slated for 5:05 p.m. The winners of tonight's two contests will face off tomorrow night at 7 p.m. to decide the pod champion and who will advance to the round of 16 and beyond in Sioux City, Iowa next week.

Tickets for tonight include entrance to both contests, and may be purchased online in advance HERE, or at the door.

Both of tonight's games will be broadcast live on Montana SWX channels, and the feed will be streamed live on the Fighting Saints Network: Presented by Point S Tire & Auto Service. Those unable to attend can catch Voice of the Saints, Nick Dietzen, and Gary Turcott call the action live on Rewind 94.9 FM, or online HERE. Live stats can be followed along HERE. 

Be sure to visit www.carrollathletics.com tonight for a full recap of the action, and to stay up to date with everything going on in Carroll Athletics.