In the first home match in a full year, men's rugby improved to 4-0 overall with a convincing 59-15 victory against Arkansas State in Mid-South Conference action Saturday evening at Hunter Stadium in St. Charles, Missouri.  

The play of the Lions was defined by a strong set piece, physical and patient defense, and skilled ball movement. The playmaking combination of Evan Williams and Richard Felton continued to pull the strings of a potent attack that valued territory and points above all.

Scoring started quickly with a Red Wolves knock-on in the fourth minute that signaled a scrum to Lindenwood.  The Lions pounced on the opportunity for set piece dominance and won a penalty, easily slotted through the posts by Evan Williams. 

Escaping the gravity of the set piece continued to be difficult for Arkansas State.  Just a couple minutes later, another knock-on led to another scrum penalty.  A kick to the corner, and a powerful line-out maul added another seven points to the Lindenwood ledger.

Starting tight head prop Sam Buckley was proud of the platform the Lions set piece provided.

"Coach Browne puts us through a lot in training," he said. "It feels good that we can stick our heads in there and win an opportunity to score points ourselves or let the backs have one every now and then."

Lindenwood confidence grew as the match continued.  The ball moved through hands more freely and the backline began to find opportunities to attack. Wings Cael Hodgson and Morgan Purcell scored two tries each as the eager beneficiaries of solid team play, but that same confidence coaxed some undisciplined play out of the Lions.  The perennially feisty Red Wolves pounced on those opportunities led by fullback Mazvita Nyamarebvu, who scored all of their points in the first half.  

Lions starting inside center Rhys Smith analyzed the attack.

"We went really well when we got the ball wide and started gaining ground," he said.  "To their credit, the Arkansas State defense forced us to play heads up rugby, get back to basics, and keep things simple." 

In the second half, the Red Wolves became intentional in trying to hold the ball under any circumstance.  Their high rate of passing side to side forced the Lindenwood tackle count higher and higher.  Crunching hits in the middle of the pitch along with patient defense on the edges by Stephen Alberts and Connor Burns eventually frustrated the Arkansas State attack and gave Lindenwood more opportunities.

Openside flanker Ayden Hurst spoke about maintaining high defensive standards throughout the match. 

"The work the boys have put into our defense in training and reviews is really paying dividends," he said.  "Full credit to the coaches for preparing us for whatever a team may throw at us. I for one know we haven't reached our peak yet defensively, as chemistry between the boys continues to grow each week. It's an exciting prospect."

In the waning moments of the match, themes from matches past would return as subs left an indelible imprint on the game. Coleson Warner, rather than nudging the ball into touch and ending the match, scooped up an errant pass from the Red Wolves and raced from near his own goal line to half-way where a chasing Morgan Purcell was all too happy to receive an offload, evade the never quitting Arkansas State chasing players, and dive in for a try to end the contest.

The Lions host two non-conference matches on March 13.  Marian University, a new program from Indianapolis, will face Lindenwood at the Lindenwood Track Complex at 3 p.m., then Central Washington University, the sixth ranked team in the D1A national rankings, will challenge the Lions at 7 p.m. in Hunter Stadium in St. Charles, Missouri.

Lindenwood Scoring Summary:
Tries: Spangenberg, Muchena, Hodgson (2), Buckley, Purcell (2), 
Penalty Try:  1
Conversions: Williams (6), Burns
Penalty Kicks: Williams