Much like their previous game, the Lions opened up a comfortable lead in the first half and then coasted to a 59-12 victory over Air Force in the quarterfinal round of the USA Rugby D1A Collegiate Playoffs Saturday afternoon in El Paso Country, Colo. 

Sione Fangaiuiha started the scoring for Lindenwood with a try that was converted by Lunaile Tshuma 10 minutes into the contest.  That advantage was extended six minutes later when Sebastian Kalm offloaded to Gabe Farley who stepped and dove over the line to make it 14-0. The Lions recovered a kick in the 21^st minute, which put Alex Augsburg in space for an 80 meter run for another try and Mickey Bateman broke through the defensive line for an offload to Tamatasi Paogofie-Buyten, who fed another pass to Sebastian Kalm for a score and it was quickly 26-0 Lindenwood.  Tom O'Connor, Farley, Fangaiuiha, and Paogofie-Buyten would all find the zone before the end of the first half, giving the Lions a 54-0 lead at the break.

Wind and rain picked up in the second half, resulting in tougher field conditions for the offense, but the Zoomies used some good footwork to step inside and dot down between the posts at the 50 minute mark.  The shutout was broken, but Lindenwood still led 54-7.  The backline for the Lions answered with a string of passes that put Brad Foster in the corner for a 59-7 advantage.  Air Forces added a try in minute 75 for the final score.

With the win, Lindenwood improved to 9-5-1 overall, and set up a semifinal match against number one ranked and Mid-South Conference champion Life University on May 2.  The Running Eagles advanced with a 64-3 victory over Penn State.  The Lions lost the two regular season meetings against Life back in March, but only by four points on the road and three points at home.  The opening kickoff is scheduled for 12:30 p.m. Saturday afternoon in Marietta, Ga.