Women's rugby finished fifth as the only collegiate team in the Elite Women's bracket at the Las Vegas Sevens Invitational Tournament February 28 and March 1 in Las Vegas. 
 
Having played in different divisions in previous years, the Lions entered the event without knowing much about the competition they would face, but expected it to be the strongest field they would face in the short history of the tournament.  They were not disappointed.
 
Day one kicked off on Thursday with Lindenwood facing one of the best teams in the field, CCIG Life West, with a roster that included several current and former Team USA Sevens capped Eagles.  The Lions had a rough first half and fell behind 24-5, but with a 'never quit' attitude, they played much better in the second half.  Some stout defense slowed CCIG and Lindenwood only gave up a converted try while scoring one for a 31-10 loss.

 
Head Coach Billy Nicholas noted the slow start, but better second half.
 
"We need to be able to fire out of the gate quickly in our first match on tournament days," he said.   "That's still a work on for us, but there's no doubt a different team came out for half two.  We understood that we could hang with them.  We did have some great breaks half one, but we were a bit slow in support and just couldn't finish.  I'm proud of the way we stuck together for the second half to finish off that game."
 
The Lions rebounded nicely the rest of the day, posting two shutouts in pool play with a 41-0 victory against Rogue Samurai, and a 26-0 win over the Utah Vipers.   
 
'The goal I had for us going into the weekend in a 16 team, Elite bracket competition, was to make the Cup quarterfinals, and we were able to achieve that," Coach Nicholas continued.  "Combine that with the gradual team improvement match to match and we were happy with the results of day one." 
 
Lindenwood started day two against a familiar foe in the provincial women's select side of Quebec, Canada. The Lions lacked execution in the match, and the resulting lack of possession left them short on the scoreboard in a 20-10 loss. 
 
"We knew Quebec was going to be a very physical side, but we need to be able to maintain possession to win against them and we weren't able to do it that match," Coach Nicholas commented.  "It's one I think all of us would like to have again, but that's the game of sevens.  The team did do a nice job of post-match critique and refocused on the next job ahead, so it was a growing moment for sure."
 
The Lions faced the STARS Rugby Sevens squad, another familiar foe, in their second match of day in the Plate semifinal. Lindenwood faces STARS Rugby in an annual fall 15's match each year and several former Lions have suited up with the side.  The STARS Rugby team in Las Vegas boasted a strong roster with a mixture of players from several countries including Fijian Seven Olympian Timi Ravisa.  Coach Nicholas opted for a youthful starting lineup, and it paid dividends as the Lions did a great job of holding their own against a tough opponent.  Lindenwood was able to empty the bench in the second half and finish with a 15-12 win and a trip to the Plate Championship.   
 

That match was scheduled just over an hour later, and against the Northeast Olympic Development Academy, a side that included several All-Americans, Falcons, and national team caliber athletes, so the Lions would be tested both physically and mentally. Things did not look good initially, as they gave up two tries and 10 points in the first half to trail 10-0, but it was a different attitude in the second half with Lindenwood scoring 17 unanswered points for a 17-10 final and Plate Championship, giving the Lions a fifth place overall finish out of the 16 Elite division teams. 
 

"Going into the last match of the day with only a 60 minute turn-around was definitely a challenge for us," Coach Nicholas recounted.  "They put the first two scores on us in the match and you saw the team come in at halftime and just decide that's not how it was going to end.  They came out with a spark and came from behind and finished it."   
 
Nicholas summarized the weekend of expectations and competition.
 
"Of course, each player wanted to go out with the goal of playing in the Stadium and winning every match, but we all understood that wasn't our main focus of the weekend," he said.  "Our main focus was to grow each match and develop chemistry towards the collegiate season, and there is no doubt we checked both those off the list and had a blast doing it. The byproduct of the players and staff we had on hand and everyone's hard work is that we ended up fifth out of 16 teams. I do think it surpassed the expectations of several onlookers being the only collegiate side in the bracket, but not ours.  We hold high expectations of ourselves and know we can hang with anyone out there. We have a ton of fun competing and will look to pick up where we'll leave off after focusing back to 15's for the playoff run ahead." 
 
Freshman Morgan Freeman put the weekend into perspective.
 
"I thoroughly enjoyed my first sevens tournament as a Lindenwood Lion, especially playing up against such skilled teams," she said.  "Our goal was to get better each game and we definitely did that. I personally feel like this weekend has been such a great learning curve for me on and off the pitch, as I was able to play alongside some really talented teammates."
 
Lindenwood improved to 11-2 overall on the season.  The Lions await announcement of their opponent in the USA Rugby Collegiate 15's Semifinals, which will be played March 24 in Greenville, South Carolina.