In one of the strongest tests of the year, men's rugby was outmatched by the Glendale Raptors 48-12 Saturday afternoon at Infinity Stadium in Denver, Colo.

The Lions were shut down in the first half, finding themselves trailing 27-0 after the first 40 minutes.  Glendale increased its lead to 34-0 before Lindenwood notched its first score of the game at the 55 minute mark.  After some quality phase play, Tom O'Connor dotted down under the sticks and Lunaile Tshuma added the conversion to make it 34-7.

The Raptors countered eight minutes later with another try, but the Lions kept battling.  An excellent pass from Gabe Farley put Alex Augsburg in space in the 72^nd minute, leading to another pass to Tshuma, who finished the drive in the corner to cut the margin to 41-12, but that was the end of the offense for Lindenwood.  Glendale dotted over in the final seconds of the game for the final score.

Despite the tough loss, the experience was a valuable challenge before the final Mid-South Conference game of the season.  The Lions face Davenport on the road Saturday afternoon in Grand Rapids, Mich.  The opening kickoff is set for 3 p.m.  It's the final action on the schedule before the USA Rugby D1A playoffs begin in mid-April.