PHOTO GALLERY by Geoffrey Mo ’19, JP Beatty ’19 and Hugh O’Connor ’20

NORTHFIELD, Minn. — After a hiatus due to flooding at Laird Stadium, the Carleton College football team returned home to take on Bethel University. The visiting Royals came out of the gates firing on all cylinders, scoring touchdowns on four of their first five possessions on their way to a 56-8 win.

Bethel (2-4, 2-2 MIAC) forced the Knights into a three and out on the first drive of the game, and scored quickly after when Jake Marsh connected with Drew Neuville for a 35-yard touchdown followed by a two-point conversion. Bethel extended its lead on the next possession as Gunnar Bloom scored the first of his four rushing touchdowns, this one from six yards away for an early 15-0 lead.

Carleton got on the scoreboard late in the first quarter following a methodical 10-play, 68-yard drive capped off by a 10-yard pass from Ethan Trujillo (Sr./Brighton, Colo./Brighton) to Zach Creighton (Sr./Lakeville, Minn./Lakeville North). Bethel responded quickly with a 60-yard touchdown pass from Marsh to Bryce Marquardt.

After an Andy Tangen (So./Minneapolis, Minn./Minnehaha Academy) punt pinned the Royals at their own three-yard line, the Knights defense added two points when Marcus Irrthum (Jr./Wanamingo, Minn./Kenyon-Wanamingo) sacked Marsh in the end zone, bringing the score to 22-8. Bethel added its final touchdown of the opening half, capping a 13-play, 87-yard drive with a Bloom one-yard plunge, bringing the score at intermission to 29-8.

Bethel added touchdowns on its final four drives of the second half, and the Knights drove to the Royals one-yard line in the final minute but elected to let the game clock run out.

Trujillo led the offense for the Knights, throwing 29-44 for 224 yards and the touchdown, as well as leading the Knights with 34 rushing yards. Defensively, Dylan Saline (Sr./Anoka, Minn./Champlin Park) and Spencer Francis (So./Hartland, Wis./Brookfield Academy) led the defense with 10 and eight tackles, respectively.

Next week, the Knights take on the Saint John’s University Johnnies in Collegeville, Minn. Kickoff is slated for 1 p.m. That game can be heard on Power 96 (KQCL 95.9 FM) in the Northfield/Faribault area and worldwide via Knights Online.

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