Men's rugby clinched its first Mid-South Conference (MSC) title with a 43-6 win over Davenport Saturday afternoon at the Lindenwood Track Complex in St. Charles, Missouri. In a match that was controlled by the Lions from the opening kickoff, seven different players scored tries for Lindenwood to not only get the victory, but the needed bonus point to win the MSC. 
 
How it Happened: 
Lindenwood opened the match with the mindset to score four tries and win the match. After the opening kickoff from the Panthers, Lindenwood aggressively played the ball from their own end and worked down the field for a Kayleb O'Donoghue score off a driving maul to go up 5-0. 
 
Immediately on the next possession, the Lions went back to playing out of their own territory and refused to give the Panthers much opportunity on attack. After again covering the distance of the pitch, Cian Darling dotted down and Evan Williams split the post on the conversion to give Lindenwood a 12-0 lead after 10 minutes. 
 
As play continued, Davenport was able to steal a few possessions, but the Lions defense stopped any forward movement in the opposition attack. Clarence Ekoume-Bienes and Tyren Al-Jiboori led the way defensively and continually pushed the Panthers gain line back. The first Panthers points actually came when they hit their first of two penalty kicks in the game to cut the deficit to 12-3.  
 
As Lindenwood countered, Alejandro Martinez Tapia received a well-timed offload and showed his footwork to get by the defense and put in a 40-meter try for a 17-3 Lions lead.  
 
After the second Davenport penalty kick made it 17-6, Lindenwood went back to work to find a fourth try to secure the bonus point in the MSC standings. With a five-meter scrum set up, props Gabriel Kettering and Samuel Buckley engaged the visiting front row and started the drive over the try line. Evan Conlon picked the ball off the back of the scrum and scored to give Lindenwood the needed fourth try. The conversion made it 24-6 in favor of the Lions and that score remained on the board until halftime. 
 
As the second half began, Lindenwood knew that with four tries already scored, winning the game would seal the MSC title. Captain Marnus Spangenberg scored off another Lion maul to open the second half and extend the advantage to 29-6. 
 
Later in the half, the Lions took possession just five meters out from scoring where they delivered numerous punishing runs that softened the Panthers defense just enough for Alejo Gallego Boniello to grab the ball and score uncontested for a 36-6 lead after a Williams conversion.   
 
Lindenwood scored one more time when reserve props Beorn Graham and Blake Knight led a 10-meter scrum that was driven all the way across the try line where eight-man Ekoume-Bienes fell on the ball for five points. Another Williams conversion kick created the final score 43-6 in favor of the Lions.  
 
Player Thoughts: 
Captain Marnus Spangenberg: "The mindset for the match was made clear by the coaching staff all week for what we needed to accomplish to win the conference. We not only reached our goal early, but we also excelled at the game plan for the full 80-minutes of the match which was amazing to see." 
 
Clarence Ekoume-Bienes: "My greatest pride today was that we were able to repeat a great defensive performance by not conceding any tries. It's an aspect of the game that we keep working on during the week and it's really reassuring to see that we can apply it on game day, especially now looking into the future as some big matches await us." 
 
What's Next: 
With the victory, Lindenwood improved to 5-0 in the Mid-South Conference. The Lions have one more MSC match to play to determine seedings for the upcoming national tournament against long-time rival Life University March 26. The opening kickoff is scheduled for 3:30 p.m. at Hunter Stadium in St. Charles, Missouri.   
 
Other Action: 
In a three round, sevens series, Lindenwood hosted the University of Missouri March 19 and swept the Tigers with finals of 17-5, 48-0, and 37-10. Daniel Komorowski scored numerous long tries in the first match, and Kyle Liebenberg was electric off the edge, scoring twice and setting up another try in second match. 
 
 
Lindenwood vs. Davenport Box Score:  
6' Lindenwood Try Kayleb O'Donoghue 5-0  
11' Lindenwood Try Cian Darling 10-0  
12' Lindenwood Conversion Evan Williams 12-0  
16' Davenport Penalty Kick 12-3  
20' Lindenwood Try Alejandro Martinez Tapia 17-3  
23' Davenport Penalty Kick 17-6 
29' Lindenwood Try Evan Conlon 22-6 
29' Lindenwood Conversion Evan Williams 24-6 
54' Lindenwood Try Marnus Spangenberg 29-6 
69' Lindenwood Try Alejo Gallego Boniello 34-6 
69' Lindenwood Conversion Evan Williams 36-6 
78' Lindenwood try Clarence Ekoume-Bienes 41-6 
79' Lindenwood Conversion Evan Williams 43-6 
 
 
Lineup:   
1. Gabriel Kettering– Gabriel Kettering 57'    
2. Kayleb O'Donoghue – Christopher Wallace  57'    
3. Samuel Buckley – Blake Knight 50''    
4. Alejandro Martinez Tapia  
5. William Whiteside - Duncan Krige  48'  
6. Marnus Spangenberg  - Eduan van Heerden 62'   
7. Cian Darling - Juan Mota Sanchez 37'   
8. Clarence Ekoume-Bienes    
9. Evan Conlon – Alejo Gallego Boniello 50'   
10. Evan Williams 
11. Tyren Al-Jiboori    
12. Rhys Smith    
13. Stephen Alberts 
14. Nick Hardrict, II    
15. Shiven Dukhande  - Jake Jacobson 60'