Cameron Reed scored the first try for Lindenwood just six minutes into the game and the Lions never looked back as they ran past Colorado State 69-12 in the opening round of the USA Rugby D1A Playoffs Saturday afternoon at the Lindenwood Track in St. Charles, Mo.

Giovanni Falco dotted over for the second Lions try seven minutes later to expand the lead to 12-0 and John Holden scored off a pick-and-go for a 19-0 advantage.  Lindenwood continued to click on offense and the Rams had trouble slowing the onslaught.  Gabe Farley scored twice, and Tom O'Connor and Mickey Bateman each dotted down once in the remaining 20 minutes and the Lions went to halftime ahead 45-0.

After another Lindenwood try early in the second half, Colorado State was able to break the shutout, but Bateman danced around the backline to open up a nice hole for himself and he trotted over to make the score 57-5.  With 13 minutes remaining, the Rams added a try and conversion for their 12^th point, but Sebastian Kalm and Kolton Nelson dotted down for the Lions to complete the 57 point victory.

With the win, Lindenwood advanced to the D1A quarterfinals and will face the Air Force Academy on the road in El Paso County, Colorado.  The Zoomies are ranked 10^th in the Canterbury D1A Top 20 and earned a first round bye for finishing first in the West Conference with a 6-1 record.  They outscored their opponents 361-149.  The game is scheduled for 1 p.m. Saturday afternoon.