The Carroll soccer team plays its final game of the regular season today against the University of Great Falls at 1 p.m. in Nelson Stadium.

The Saints (10-6) have a lot to play for with the Frontier Conference regular season championship and homefield advantage during the unaffiliated playoffs to be determined by the outcome.

It will also be Senior Day for three graduating Saints: Bobbi Allard, Katie Joseph and Talya Lorenz.

If Carroll wins the game they will tie with Rocky Mountain College for the conference title, the Saints’ second in a row. The conference winner is supposed to hold the unaffiliated tournament, which determines entry into the NAIA national playoffs, with an opening round beginning on Nov. 22.

If it ends in a tie, then the host will be determined by the team with the more difficult schedule. Saints head coach Dave Thorvilson believes that rests with them.

Still, it means the seniors have to win to guarantee that this isn’t their last game at home.

“You just never know if there’s going to be a next game,” said Saints head coach Dave Thorvilson. “It’s Senior Day and we get to play our last regular season game at home.”

Since their arrival at the school, the seniors have amassed a 54-17-4 record and were apart of the program that has sent them to the quarterfinals of the NAIA tournament last year, Thorvilson said.

They beat UGF 3-0 earlier in the season.

Saturday’s game will also be the last opportunity for fans to bid on the pink-and-white Carroll jerseys the Saints wore last week in the “Help Carroll Kick Cancer” event. The auction ends at halftime.

The Carroll men’s basketball team is in their second game of the season and might already be facing one of the toughest teams all season.

The Saints (1-0) travel to NCAA Div. I Eastern Washington University today to face off with the Eagles in their season opener at 7 p.m.

Carroll is coming off a tough 83-76 win over a physical University of Regina team last week.

The physical play gave the Saints a bit of a surprise in their first game of the year.

“It really rocked us back on our heels and it took us a while to get used to it,” said head coach Gary Turcott. “That really threw off our timing and our spacing.”

The Saints suffered 10 turnovers in first half, but just five in the second as they adapted to the level of play.

“We expect the same kind of game when we go play these Division I teams,” he said.

The Eagles, under the tutelage of second-year coach Kirk Earlywine, were picked to finish seventh by the league coaches and eighth by the media in the Big Sky Conference. Returning starters are center Brandon Moore and guards Trey Gross and Gary Gibson.

Carroll was led by junior wing Chris Medina in their first game of the season. He finished with 20 points and three steals while senior point guard Chad Vaculin added 15 points and seven assists to just one turnover in the matchup.

The Saints did well from behind the 3-point arc, going 11-for-23, but needed extra help to get the ball down low.

“We played better on perimeter than we thought we would, but we didn’t play as well inside as we had hoped,” Turcott said.

Assistant Sports Editor

Jeff Windmueller: 447-4065 or jeff.windmueller@helenair.com