LONGMONT, Colo. -- A 14-year-old girl was stabbed seven times in a crowded hallway at Silver Creek High School as her classmates watched in horror.

The girl, who has not been identified, was transported to Longmont United Hospital with minor, non-life-threatening injuries.

Students and staff members who witnessed the incident subdued a 14-year-old boy until police arrived at the scene. He is currently in police custody, facing charges of attempted first-degree murder, attempted first-degree assault and second-degree assault.

The victim was trying to get into her locker Thursday morning when the boy came up behind her with a pair of scissors in his hand and began stabbing her in the upper back, police said. Even as she ran down the crowded hallway, he kept stabbing at her and chasing her, police said.

"At the end of the hallway, the victim fell to the floor and the suspect threw the scissors into the wall near where the victim collapsed," Longmont police said in a news release.

The boy tried to run away but was stopped by other students and a school resource officer, investigators said.

The incident occurred at about 10:40 a.m. in an upstairs hallway of the "D" wing during a passing period between classes. About 40 to 50 students were in the hallway at the time of the attack. Longmont police Cmdr. Craig Earhart commended those who intervened, saying they prevented a much more serious attack.

Doctors at Longmont United Hospital determined that the victim had been stabbed seven times, six in the upper back and once in the left arm. All of the wounds were determined to be non-life-threatening, and the girl was released.

Both the boy and girl are ninth-grade students at the school, but investigators said it does not appear that the victim knew her attacker or that there was any issues or exchanges between the two.

According to a report on TimesCall.com, a rescuer asked the girl if she knew why the other teen attacked her and she was overheard saying, "I have no idea. I've never seen him before."

Students described the boy as "quiet" and "formal" and said not many students knew him.

"It's really surprising that it was him," said Gabriella Pina, a student at Silver Creek who knows the suspect. "He would talk to us. But we really couldn't understand him because he would talk in, like, really big words and then he would change his voice."

A district spokesman said the boy is new to the school and may have started taking classes there only in recent weeks.

Investigators don't know the boy's motive for the crime, but the investigation is ongoing.

"It is unusual and it seems to be a random act of violence for some reason. We're not sure why it happened," Earhart said.

Classes resumed afterward, although school officials rearranged some classes around police officers who were processing the crime scene along Upper D hallway, the newspaper reported. Several crisis counselors were on hand to help Silver Creek students work through their emotions.

The school was never placed under lockdown because the school resource officer was able to disarm and arrest the boy quickly.

Parents were notified of the incident by telephone, e-mail and a notice on the school's district's Web site, said a spokesman for the St. Vrain Valley School District. Several students who witnessed the incident were taken to the police station to be interviewed by investigators.

The assistant principal at Silver Creek had asked the girl's parents if they would want her to be home schooled. They apparently said no, that the 1,100-student school was where she belonged.

The boy was transported to the Longmont Police Department for booking and will be transferred to the Boulder County Juvenile Detention facility in Boulder, Colo. 7NEWS is not releasing his name because he is a juvenile.

Silver Creek is part of the St. Vrain Valley School District. Silver Creek also is the host building for the Universal High School program.