ST. PAUL, Minn. – Goals from senior Casey McCloskey and junior Shea Bechtel in either half sent the regionally-ranked St. Olaf College men's soccer team to a 2-0 road victory over Hamline University on Saturday afternoon at Paterson Field.

McCloskey gave St. Olaf (7-3-1, 4-0-1 MIAC) the lead in the final four minutes of the first half and Bechtel added an insurance goal with 10 minutes remaining to guide the Oles to their fourth-straight victory in the series with Hamline (5-3-2, 1-3-2 MIAC). The win vaulted St. Olaf, which was ranked No. 5 in Region IX this week by the United Soccer Coaches, to the top of the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC) standings with 13 points, one point clear of second-place Carleton College.

The Oles held a 14-1 advantage in shots in the opening half but were forced to wait until McCloskey's 42nd-minute goal to break the deadlock. Following a short corner, sophomore Ben Beckman crossed the ball into the box from the right side and McCloskey was there to turn the ball in for his first goal of the season. The goal was the 18th of McCloskey's career.

The score remained 1-0 until Bechtel doubled St. Olaf's lead in the 80th minute with an unassisted goal. After getting by a Hamline defender on the left, the junior fired the ball into the top-right corner from an acute angle near the end line for his fifth goal of the season. The goal moved Bechtel into a four-way tie for eighth in program history with 25 for his career and pushed him into a tie for sixth in program history with 77 points.

St. Olaf owned a 26-3 cushion in shots in the game, including an 8-2 edge in shots on goal, and had 13 of the game's 14 corner kicks. Junior Peter Forseth collected his third shutout in four starts by stopping the only two shots on goal the Pipers mustered. Luke Rimington had six saves in the loss for the hosts.

Riding a seven-game unbeaten streak (6-0-1), St. Olaf heads to Mankato on Monday, Oct. 9 for a 7 p.m. non-conference game at Bethany Lutheran College.