In a battle against the elements as much as the opponent, men's rugby earned its second Mid-South Conference victory in as many games 24-5 over Arkansas State Saturday afternoon in Jonesboro, Arkansas.  Playing on a muddy pitch, the competitors had to battle wind and cold as well. 

The match began with multiple changes of possession and a long phase of continuous play as both teams established a high level of physical play.  Lindenwood slowly developed a field position advantage thanks to the great kicking skills of flyhalf Nick Feakes and centers Andreas Livadaris and JP Aguirre.  That territorial advantage combined with dominance in the scrum eventually led to the first score as the Lions touched down through a pick and drive from prop Corey Harmann.  Feakes slotted the conversion for a 7-0 Lindenwood lead.

Flanker Michael de Waal, voted Man-of-the-Match by his teammates, noted how quickly they had to adjust to the elements.

"We definitely changed our mindset for the better with the conditions being so bad," he said.  "After the first scrum, I think everyone knew all of us were up for the challenge."

The match continued to be hard-fought on both sides.  Lineouts proved tricky due to the rain and wind, but the Red Wolves were able to find some success while Lindenwood found it difficult to provide a clean, attacking ball, but handling mistakes also led to more forward play and the ensuing scrums benefitted the Lions. 

Strong play from de Waal and fellow flanker Tom O'Connor led to a turnover.  Feakes pinned the Red Wolves deep where their fullback attempted to clear their lines.  This gave 8-man Wesley White an opportunity to counterattack.  He found a gap and was off to the races for the second Lions try.  Feakes converted for a 14-0 Lindenwood advantage, one that was carried into the halftime break.

The second half was similar to the first with physical play, a sloppy ball, and the Lions dominating the scrum.  The two teams traded possession and territory constantly without either finding a foothold until the 60th minute. Arkansas State entered a breakdown from the side in the red zone and Feakes slotted the penalty kick to make it 17-0.

Lindenwood started committing both breakdown and offsides penalties and the Red Wolves were rewarded with a five- meter penalty. Their tighthead prop tapped it and dove in for a try in the 71^st minute to make it 17-5.  The Arkansas State sideline believed it might be a turning point in the match, but the Lions reasserted physical dominance through de Waal and replacement prop, Chance Wenglewski.

Lindenwood worked its way into the Red Wolves zone where Wenglewski made an open-field tackle. De Waal poached the ball and, moments later, took a crash ball and plunged into the try zone. Feakes converted again to give the Lions a 24-5 lead, which is where the score stayed until the final whistle.   

Feakes assessed the play of the team after the game.

"I was very proud of how well our forward pack played," he said.  "They played perfectly in the conditions and were the reason we won this game. Our defense allowed us to create turnovers and we rode that momentum throughout the game."

The victory improved Lindenwood to 10-0 in collegiate competition this season and to 2-0 in Mid-South play.  The Lions head right back on the road to face conference nemesis Life University February 17 in Marietta, Georgia.  The opening kickoff is set for 1 p.m. Saturday afternoon.