ST. PAUL, Minn. - The Royals put on a show today as the defeated the Hamline Pipers 52-0. The Royals defense had and impressive day holding Hamline to a mere 18 yard. In contrast the Royals put up 584 total yards of total offense, 219 of which came through the air and 365 yards on the ground. The Royals were able to dominate the time of possession in this game, holding on to the ball for over 40 minutes.

Quarterback Josh Aakre (Jr., Dawson, Minn.) got the scoring started for the Royals on a 3 yard run, scoring on Bethel's first possession of the game. Aakre then also ran it in for a 2 point conversion, putting Bethel up 8-0 with under 5 minutes off the clock in the first quarter.

With just under 5 minutes left in the first quarter freshman Jesse Phenow (Richfield, Minn.) scored from the 9 yard line. The Royals went for another 2 point conversion by Aakre making the score 16-0. Phenow had 9 attempts for a total of 29 yards on the day, while Aakre had 7 attempts netting 38 yards.

Getting the 2nd quarter under way the Royals transitioned to the air on a 53 yard touchdown pass from Aakre to Mitch Hallstrom (Fr., Eden Prairie, Minn.). The Royals went for 2 again on a pass from Aakre to Luke Duininck (Sr., Tulsa, Okla.) resulting in a score of 24-0 with 14:19 to play in the second quarter.

With 2:02 to go in the first half Kevin Lindh (So., Houston, Minn.) got his turn scoring on a 3 yard run. Lindh rushed 11 times for a total of 57 yards on the day, an average of 5.2 yards per carry.

In the second half the Royals scored on touchdowns from Logan Flannery (Sr., Lakeville, Minn.), Mitch Hallstrom, and Derek Waldbillig (So., Farmington, Minn.). Flannery was the top rushing back for the Royals on the day with a total of 199 yards on 26 attempts. Hallstrom lead the Royals receiving corps with a total of 123 yards and 2 touchdowns. Quarterback Josh Aakre threw 17 times completing 10 for a total of 152 yards and 2 touchdowns before Levi Shultz (Fr., Fergus Falls, Minn.) came in the game throwing 5-5 for 67 yards.

On the defensive side of the ball the Royals were led by Ross Petterson (Sr., Maple Grove, Minn.) who had 3.5 total tackles, one of which was an 11 yard sack. The defense completely prevented any possibility of a running game by the Pipers putting them in the whole for a total of -19 total rushing yards. In the air the Pipers were also stifled by the Bethel defense only gaining 37 yards. The Royals kept the Pipers to a mere 2 first downs and forced them to go 1 for 14 on third down conversions.

The 18th ranked Royals will close out the regular season next week at home against Augsburg College. Kickoff is scheduled for 1 p.m. at Royals Stadium in Arden Hills.