ST. PAUL, Minn. - The Carleton College football team took an early lead over the Hamline University Pipers and never looked back en route to a 24-14 victory. Jack Curtis threw for 240 yards and two touchdowns, and Jaden Coleman rushed for a career-high 88 yards and a touchdown. 

"It was a total team win," said Carleton head coach Tom Journell. "I'm very proud of our coaches developing a solid game plan and the execution of our team. You must be able to run the ball and stop the run if you want to be a championship team and we were able to do that today."

The Knights (2-1, 1-0 MIAC) stifled the Pipers (2-1, 0-1 MIAC) on their first two drives, and on Carleton's second drive they marched down the field in under three minutes. The Knights took it across midfield with a 30-yard gain on a pass from Curtis to Tyler Dimond. Two plays later, Curtis found Nathan Streiff for a 25-yard touchdown pass to give the Knights a 7-0 lead with 3:53 to go in the first quarter. 

Having held the Pipers to just two first downs to this point, the Knights looked to capitalize on a drive that started at midfield with 12:08 to play in the second quarter. On a 3rd and 12, Curtis scrambled out of trouble and lobbed it to Streiff in the end zone for his second touchdown of the day, giving the Knights a 14-0 advantage with 7:58 remaining in the opening half. 

The Pipers were able to piece together a scoring drive, marching 81 yards down the field, capped off by a three-yard touchdown pass to Dawson Schaffer, as the Pipers now trailed 14-7 with 1:56 to play in the half.

After a quick stop, the Knights were in a position to get on the board one last time with time winding down in the first half. The seven-play drive started on their own 47-yard line with 53 seconds left on the clock; and ended with a 39-yard field goal by Marcus Merkelbach with one tick remaining to give the Knights a 17-7 lead heading into the break. 

The Pipers found the end zone quickly to start the second half after stopping the Knights on their opening drive. With 10:37 to play in the third quarter, Alejandro Villanueva found Schaffer in the end zone from eight yards out, pushing the Pipers closer, now trailing just 17-14. 

The Knights answered, putting together a 12-play, 75-yard drive that ended in a Coleman four-yard rushing touchdown, the second of his career, giving the Knights a 24-14 lead with 6:17 to play in the third.

On the next drive, the Pipers were poised to score, sitting on the Carleton 17-yard line before Villanueva's pass was intercepted by Eric Lail. The Knights' defense added a second interception when Henry Detmer picked off a Piper pass with 3:15 remaining in the game. Henry Detmer also led the defense in tackles with eight on the day.

Streiff led all Knights receivers with 93 yards and two touchdowns on his six receptions. Streiff's career total for receiving yards now stands at 1,520, moving him up to 15th all-time in Carleton football history. Obono hauled in nine receptions for 67 yards bringing his career total to 1,534 yards, just ahead of his teammate at 14th all-time in the record books.

Up Next for the Knights
Carleton returns to Laird Stadium for Homecoming as the Knights take on Concordia College on Saturday, Oct. 7.
Kickoff is set for 1 p.m.