NORTHFIELD, Minn. – Twice in the previous three seasons, the Carleton College football team knocked off the nationally-ranked Bethel University program. This year there was to be no upset as the Royals scored 21 first-quarter points and rolled to a 42-7 victory in the conference opener for both teams. Jon Lien’s (So./Lindstrom, Minn./Chisago Lakes) seven-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter helped Carleton avoid the shutout.
Bethel running back Logan Flannery scored a pair of first-quarter touchdowns as he finished the day with 160 all-purpose yards. He reached the end zone on a 21-yard pass on the Royals’ first possession. Carleton (1-1, 0-1 MIAC) fumbled the ensuing kickoff, and Flannery ran it in from 19 yards out only two plays later.
The Royals (2-1, 1-0 MIAC) marched 62 yards on their next drive, and quarterback Josh Aakre scooted in from five yards away, pushing the visitors to a three-score lead less than 10 minutes into the contest.
The Carleton defense dug in and stopped the next five Bethel drives, as the Knights held on fourth down and recovered a pair of fumbles. The Carleton offense, however, never got into a rhythm, amassing 58 yards on eight first-half possessions.
Starting quarterback Vaughn Schmid (Mahtomedi, Minn.) finished the day 12-of-31 for 96 yards. Jacob Anderson (Jr./Ramsey, Minn./Anoka) came off the bench and orchestrated an eight-play, 71-yard touchdown drive in the fourth quarter. He completed both pass attempts on the drive, and Lien maneuvered in from seven yards as Carleton avoided the shutout.
Lien concluded the day with 47 rushing and 38 receiving yards.
For the game, Bethel rushed for 266 yards and accumulated 379 total yards of offense compared to only 162 for Carleton.
While Bethel reached the end zone six times, the Carleton defense was put in a difficult situation. Of those six scores, one was a fumble recovery that resulted in a touchdown and three others came on Royal drives of less than 30 yards.
Safety Neil Kolstad (Jr./Saint James, Minn.) had a game-high 13 tackles, including 11 solo stops. Both figures led all MIAC players for the week. He also had a pair of tackles for loss. Rookie defensive back Paul Hoffer (Plymouth, Minn./Wayzata) broke up a pass in the end zone and recovered two fumbles.
Next week Carleton travels to Macalester for the Battle for the Book of Knowledge, that contest will kickoff at 1 p.m.
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