NEW ULM, Minn. - The Martin Luther College football team opened the 2015 season with a 35-0 win over Maranatha Baptist University on Saturday.

The win marked the first of new head coach Mark Stein's MLC tenure, and was also the first shutout by an MLC defense since September 5, 2009, when the Knights shutout MBU 44-0.

MLC took control of the game early with some trickery, as running back Eddie Endicott took an option pitch from quarterback Matt Olson, and then threw a 34-yard touchdown pass to a wide open Josh Rathje to cap a a 13-play, 68-yard opening drive.

The Knights added a pair of touchdowns in the second quarter, with Endicott scoring from three yards out, and Olson scoring from the Sabercats' seven-yard line to give MLC a 21-0 halftime lead.

The defense made sure that was more than enough, holding MBU to 141 total yards and harrassing the Sabercats with nine tackles behind the line of scrimmage in the game. Dan Schmidt (six tackles, 2.5 TFL), Paul Habermann (five tackles, one sack) and Ben Ewings (five tackles, 2.0 TFL) led the charge along the defensive line, while the linebackers and secondary made sure no plays could be made over the top.

The Knights continued to push the ball down the field in the second half, with Olson throwing touchdowns to Ben Balge (three yards) and Rathje (58 yards) to finish off the scoring.

MLC finished with 434 yards of total offense, 296 of which came on the ground. Tim Keller led the ground attack with 117 yards on 20 carries, while Olson also went over the century mark with 102 yards and one score.

Olson was also solid in the passing game, completing six of his ten attempts for 104 yards and two scores. Rathje led the MLC receivers with three catches for 99 yards and two touchdowns.

MLC will return to action on Saturday, September 12, when it hosts Eureka in the UMAC opener. That game is scheduled to start at 1 p.m.