HELENA — Carroll College had no trouble in the first round of the NAIA national women's basketball tournament Friday.
The Saints, the No. 2 seed in the Cremer quadrant, blew out No. 15 Embry-Riddle (Ariz.) 89-49 at the PE Center to advance to the second round. The Saints, now 25-5, will play No. 7 seed Oregon Tech in a second-round matchup on Saturday at 7:30 p.m. at the PE Center.
The winner will advance to the round of 16 and the tournament's final site at the Tyson Events Center in Sioux City, Iowa.
Jamie Pickens scored 24 points on 10-of-13 shooting and grabbed eight rebounds to lead the Saints. Three others scored in double figures: Kyndall Keller had 13 points, Willa Albrecht scored 11 and had seven rebounds, and Maddie Geritz added 10 points.
The Saints shot 57% collectively (35 of 62) and made 8 of 16 3-point shots. Keller hit 3 of 4 from the arc. Carroll led 42-28 at halftime, then outscored the Eagles 27-5 in the third quarter.
Carroll scored 27 points off 18 Embry-Riddle turnovers, and outrebounded the Eagles 36-18 with 14 offensive boards. With Pickens leading the way, the Saints finished with 32 points in the paint.
