ARDEN HILLS, Minn. — Hamline lost to Bethel 77-0 on Saturday. The Pipers were held to three first downs while finishing with 24 rushing yards and 61 passing yards.
The Pipers' defense stopped the Royals' opening possession in the red zone, with
Chris Kujawa breaking up a second-down pass before
Elijah Gingras intercepted Cooper Drews at the Pipers' 4-yard line and returned it 13 yards to the 17. The offense picked up its lone first down of the first quarter on Royals penalties and moved near midfield, but the drive ended with a punt, and the Royals used the short field to score on Drews' 4-yard pass to Albert Rundell at 6:55 for a 7-0 lead. The Pipers' next series stalled after two
Elijah Stepp runs and a short
Daylen Cummings completion to
Aiden Herz, and the Royals followed with a 12-play, 65-yard drive capped by Taye Manns' 1-yard touchdown run at :46. The ensuing kickoff went out of bounds to give the Pipers the ball at their 48, but they could not move it before the first quarter ended with the Royals ahead 14-0.
In the second quarter, after the Pipers' opening punt, the Royals drove from their 12 to the end zone, using Cooper Drews' 40-yard completion to Kaleb Yunker to reach the Pipers' 21 before Drews hit Albert Rundell for a 21-yard touchdown and a 21-0 score at 12:26. The Pipers' next series went backward on a sack, and the Royals added a special-teams touchdown when Jake Borman blocked the punt and Taylor Glynn recovered and returned it 8 yards for a score that made it 28-0. Cummings connected with
Tristan Falkowski for 22 yards on the Pipers' next possession, but the drive stalled after an intentional grounding penalty, and the Royals followed with David Geebli's 57-yard touchdown run for a 35-0 lead at 6:31.
Kieran Barrientos converted a fourth down with a 15-yard run later in the second quarter, but the Royals added Taye Manns' 54-yard touchdown run and Borman's 21-yard interception return for a touchdown, closing the second quarter ahead 49-0.
The Pipers' first snap of the third quarter was intercepted by Nick Colyer at the Royals' 40, and the Royals turned the possession into an eight-play, 60-yard drive capped by David Geebli's 2-yard touchdown run at 12:37 and Zach Bengston's kick for a 56-0 score. After the Pipers punted on their next series, the Royals went 66 yards in eight plays, using a 15-yard Logan Butler completion to Miles Gish to reach the 1 before Gish scored from there at 7:56 to make it 63-0. The Pipers forced a punt on the next Royals possession after
Thomas Ikens and
Gabriel Maes combined for a tackle for loss, but the Royals later added a 40-yard Butler touchdown pass to Ty Haring at 3:05 and led 70-0 after the third quarter.
After a Royals punt opened the fourth quarter, the Pipers' first possession stalled when
Joseph McCarthy was sacked for a 6-yard loss and a false start pushed the ensuing punt back to the Pipers' 8. The Royals took over at the Pipers' 43 and went 43 yards in eight plays, with Cole Gerrell running for a third-down conversion before scoring on a 14-yard rush at 9:25, and Zach Bengston's kick made it 77-0. The Pipers got a 7-yard completion from McCarthy to
DeAndre Smith on their next series, but an illegal-motion penalty preceded another punt, and the Royals used the final drive to reach the Pipers' 11 before kneeling out a 77-0 final.
Sincere Casarez McCampbell led the Pipers with eight tackles. Gingras recorded three tackles and intercepted a pass, returning it 13 yards.
Max Mills finished with two tackles and the Pipers' lone sack.
Eliyas Dart added seven tackles.
The Pipers are 1-2 overall and 0-2 in conference play. The Royals are 2-1 overall and 2-0 in conference play.
Up next, the Pipers host Macalester at 1 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 3, 2026, at Klas Field in St. Paul, Minn. for homecoming weekend at Hamline!
