After a hard fought neutral-site victory against Mount St. Mary's earlier in the day, a younger men's rugby group took the field and claimed the annual Health Markets Cup match with a 41-11 win over the Volunteers Saturday afternoon at Tennessee Rugby Park in Knoxville, Tennessee.
How it Happened:
Despite the ultimate outcome, it was Tennessee that scored first. After some initial pressure from the Lions, the Volunteers shook off the head and drove deep into Lindenwood territory. Some slips in discipline gave Tennessee a penalty kick within range and it was converted for a 3-0 lead in the seventh minute.
The Lions bounced back with an immediate response. After pouncing on a kick return, Lindenwood only need a few phases to push down field. A perfectly weighted short pass from Nayan Sirwani to
Louis Woods at full speed powered him over the try line for a fantastic score! JP Reichel converted for a 7-3 Lions lead in the 10
th minute.
The Volunteers quickly answered with some more points. After stringing together another series of phases, they earned another penalty kick which was slotted to close to the gap to just one at 7-6 after 16 minutes.
The Lions offense started to find rhythm, executing some smooth, well-structured phases. That pressure forced a Volunteers mistake and a penalty. Max Orefice took a quick tap and stormed over the line for his first try of the season to extend the Lindenwood lead to 12-6 in the 17
th minute.
The Lions offensive pressure kept building, and another Tennessee penalty handed Lindenwood a perfect opportunity to launch a set piece 10-minutes later. Reichel booted it for touch to set up a powerful lineout. The Lions executed a perfect lineout maul and
Jaydyn Bartels went over for a score. With another Reichel conversion, Lindenwood increased the margin to 19-6.
After building a nice lead, the Lions shot themselves in the foot with two yellow cards, forcing them to play shorthanded, but that didn't stop them from sticking to their structure and staying disciplined. They fought through it, won a penalty, and went straight for the poles. Reichel stepped up and slotted it over as the half ended for a 22-6 Lindenwood lead at the break.
Both teams entered the second half with a calmer vibe but were still focused on the strategies discussed at halftime. As the clock approached the 47-minute mark, Lindenwood found some space off a scrum launch play. With Bentley orchestrating the attack, Reichel delivered a final pass to
Hassan Lin who turned on the afterburners to power into the zone to extend the advantage to 27-6.
The Volunteers continued to play with intense defensive pressure, but the Lions offense was able to handle it. As the match headed towards the final 15-minutes, Lindenwood earned a penalty deep in Tennessee territory. Malan Graham quickly tapped, catching the defense napping but came up just short of the line.
Laurie Thomson picked it up from the ruck and dotted the ball down in the 65
th minute. Reichel added the extra points to make it 34-6.
With momentum on their side, the Lions unleashed a perfect training-ground move. After a scrum was awarded,
Aiden Kalmar caught the ball at full speed and stormed over scoring his first try of the season. Reichel added the conversion for a 41-6 advantage with 10-minutes remaining.
Despite trailing by 35-points, the Volunteers still had some fight. They earned a penalty and put together a few solid phases and eventually scored their first try of the game in the final seconds.
Coach Quote:
Head Coach
Josh Macy: "Tennessee has become such a physical team over the last year and change. Their staff is doing a great job and they put our young Lions under a lot of pressure early in the match. Once we took a breath and went to work, that younger group played some serious rugby."
Player Quote:
Freshman Maximum Orefice: "To be able to play in my home state and in front of family meant the world to me. It was a great experience for me being able to play on the field I have been playing on since middle school. It was just overall great day of rugby for Lindenwood."
What's Next:
Men's Rugby will be tested by long-time rival Life University February 15 at home. The opening kickoff is scheduled for 2 p.m. Saturday afternoon at Hunter Stadium in St. Charles, Missouri. The second XV squads will face each other earlier in the day at 11 a.m. at the Lindenwood Track Complex.
Scoring Summary:
7' University of Tennessee Penalty Kick 0-3
9:30' Lindenwood try
Louis Woods 3-5
10' Lindenwood Conversion JP Reichel 3-7
16' University of Tennessee Penalty Kick 6-7
17' Lindenwood try
Maximus Orefice 6-12
27' Lindenwood try
Joaquin Gonzalez Fontan 6-17
28' Lindenwood conversion JP Reichel 6-19
40' Lindenwood Penalty kick JP Reichel 6-22
47' Lindenwood Try
Hassan Lin 6-27
65' Lindenwood try
Laurie Thomson 6-32
66' Lindenwood Conversion JP Reichel 6-34
69' Lindenwood Try
Aiden Kalmar 6-39
70' Lindenwood Conversion JP Reichel 6-41
79' University of Tennessee try 11-41
