Men's rugby came up short against No. 2 ranked Life University, falling to the Running Eagles 22-18 Saturday afternoon in a Mid-South Conference match-up in Marietta, Georgia. 

It was a closely played affair from the beginning.  Lindenwood challenged the always-stout Life defense, found some success, and gained some ground on the pitch, but ultimately came up short of finding pay dirt.  Positive, assertive running from prop Corey Harmann and 8-man Wesley White helped move the ball into scoring territory, but a Running Eagles penalty changed the drive.  Flyhalf Nick Feakes cashed in the penalty kick for a 3-0 Lions lead.

Moments later, Life mounted their own aggressive and organized attack, putting Lindenwood under pressure.  That pressure forced a Lindenwood penalty and the Running Eagles successfully converted the ensuing kick to tie the match at three. 

The two teams alternated possession, territory, and penalties again and both kicks were slotted to tie the game 6-6. 

The Lions started another drive, but lost the ball about 40 meters from their own try line.  Life grinded through six phases and found some space on the wing.  A nice exchange between backs resulted in five points under the posts for the Running Eagles and the only try of the game.  A successful conversion gave Life a 13-6 advantage.

Lindenwood immediately responded with more pressure.  Flanker Michael de Waal proved to be quite a nuisance for the opposition, as he earned turnovers at both breakdowns and mauls and started a Lions counter-attack.  The ball swung wide to wing Samuel Chapman, who ran it deep into Running Eagles territory, but once again, Life committed a penalty.  The penalty kick gave Lindenwood three points, but left the team behind 13-9 at halftime.

Center JP Aguirre summed up the first half.

"I think we played a really physical game, and they couldn't stop us," he said.  "But, mistakes in little details matter a lot in tight matches.  Not being able to keep possession was one of those details that led to the Life try in the first 45 minutes."

In the second half, the Lions continued to play a style they wanted.  Strong runs from Gabriel Romero, White, and Chance Wenglewski kept the team moving in the right direction.  Great territorial kicking from Feakes, fullback Christian Rodriguez, and reserve flyhalf Andreas Livadaras also helped the Lindenwood cause.  The positive play resulted in two more successful penalty kicks from the foot of Feakes in the first 10 minutes, giving the Lions a 15-13 lead. 

Both side continued to play very physically, and most of it was well within the confines of the rulebook, but there were a few exceptions.  Some Running Eagles tackles edged up toward the shoulders and heads of the Lindenwood players, and that eventually resulted in a red card, forcing Life to play with only 14 the remainder of the game.

The Running Eagles were up to the task, though.  They continued playing an aggressive style of defense, taking advantage of any Lions mistakes.  Still, possession switched back-and-forth, and each team was able to capitalize on a penalty kick.  With just under 15 minutes left in the game, Lindenwood held an 18-16 advantage.

It was at this critical point in the contest that the Lions started committing some unnecessary penalties.  That allowed Life to march down the field and boot two more penalty kicks for a 22-18 lead. 

Despite the deficit, Lindenwood kept creating some scoring chances.  Some brilliant back play from Rodriguez, wing Deion Mikesell, and reserve center Connor Burns almost led to a try, but an errant pass did not find the hands of Tom O'Connor, and the drive stalled.

???????Lindenwood Head Coach Josh Macy summed up the match.

"We pushed the Running Eagles to their limits, but didn't quite seize the day," he said.  "With that much action and that many lead changes, this had to be one of the best college games of the year.  Despite the disappointing outcome, we have a clear path to move forward in the second half of the season."

Romero was proud of the effort of his team.

"I thought the boys were up for the challenge and did very well," he said.  "It was a tough game from both sides, neither giving an inch on offense."

The Lindenwood players voted Chance Wenglewski as Man-of-the-Match for his strong carrying, physical defense, and impressive work in the scrum.  He now heads to South America to represent the USA Eagles in the Americas Rugby Championship.

The loss to Life dropped the Lions to 10-1 overall in collegiate play and 2-1 in the Mid-South.  They will try to rebound against another conference opponent when they host Clemson February 24 in St. Charles, Missouri.  Lindenwood bounced the Tigers 62-10 earlier in the season in South Carolina. The opening kickoff is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. Saturday evening at Hunter Stadium.