With the USA Rugby D1A Playoffs just two weeks away, men's rugby was able to solidify its depth in a 45-27 win over Iowa Central Community College Saturday afternoon at Crimmins Field in Fort Dodge, Iowa. In a game where the Lions played shorthanded the entire second half, Lucas Black led the team in scoring with 13 points while Preston Hammerschmidt scored two tries for 10 points.
   
How it Happened:   
Lindenwood jumped in front of the Tritons early with two quick tries to take a 14-0 lead after just eight minutes, but it didn't take long for Iowa Central to counter with a score at the 13-minute mark to cut the deficit to 14-5.
 
The Lions showed great resilience when they kicked off and an errant pass from the Tritons allowed an intercept from Hammerschmidt. He scampered 40-meters untouched for the first of his two tries. The conversion kick from Black was true to give Lindenwood a 21-5 advantage.
 
Iowa Central started to find some rhythm and continually punished the Lions for ill-advised penalties at the breakdown. Two Triton scores and a conversion closed the gap to just four points at 21-17, but Lindenwood once again countered in the 36^th minute when captain Calvin Ihrig showed excellent footwork to split two defenders and offload to a supporting Brendan Mullen who finished the play for a 28-17 lead with the conversion. 
 
As the first half was closing, Iowa Central was driving down the pitch when a small scuffle started which led to a Lindenwood forward being red-carded. Despite being a man short with just 14 players, the Lions held on for the remainder of the first half to keep the Tritons out of the try zone. 
 
Much like the opening of the game, Lindenwood started the second half quickly by scoring almost immediately. After the kickoff, the Lions forced a turnover and then fed the ball to Carl Kawodza who evaded numerous defenders to score for a 35-17 margin. Lindenwood continued its momentum with the Tritons kickoff. The ball landed in the hands of Hammerschmidt who broke numerous tackles and executed several dummy passes to score unassisted to expand the Lions lead to 40-17 after only three minutes.  
 
Iowa Central continued to work and punished the Lindenwood defensive line throughout the second half. Playing with only seven forwards put the Lions at a disadvantage and the Tritons took advantage and slowly started to wear down the Lindenwood forward pack, but Neil Milczarek and Ihrig continually rose to the challenge to lead the defense in tackles. Despite the heroic efforts, the Tritons scored twice to trim the lead to 40-27, and then the situation for the Lions was further compromised.
 
Following the try, Lindenwood found even more trouble with a yellow card that resulted in the loss of another player. Now playing with only six forwards and 13 overall, the Lions battled until the final whistle. Reserves Chad Tinney and Joaquin Gonzalez Fontan brought a renewed physicality and tempo on defense that was smothering for the opposition. As the final seconds of the game counted down, Kyle Liebenberg scored in the corner to seal the match for Lindenwood.   
   
Player/Coach Thoughts:   
Captain Calvin Ihrig: "I thought we started the match off strong by scoring a few tries early on. However, as the first half went on, we didn't earn the ball as much as we wanted, so we kept having to play long defensive phases. Everyone communicated effectively, showed we wanted to be there, but more importantly we all worked very hard off the ball to ensure our defense stayed strong. We showed a tremendous amount of heart as we missed a couple of players and I think that's what ultimately helped us come out on top." 
 
Preston Hammerschmidt: "I think the boys played with a lot of heart and came away together when we needed to most in order to come out with a win. With the limited opportunities we had with the ball, I thought we executed on attack well and took every opportunity to get points. It wasn't easy but the guys who played today showed their love for the sport and team by holding on throughout the match." 
   
What's Next:   
With the victory, the Lions improved to 31-2 overall and wrapped up the regular season. They have earned the No. 2 seed in the East bracket of the USA Rugby D1A Playoffs, which gives them a bye in the opening round. They will host the winner of Arkansas State versus Texas A & M at Hunter Stadium in St. Charles, Missouri on April 16. The start time is to be determined.
   
Additional Match:  
Lindenwood also faced the Iowa Central 2^nd XV squad and earned a 52-0 shutout victory. The Lions scrum was dominant throughout the match, and constantly put the Tritons under heavy amounts of pressure. John Rink found the try zone twice and Lochlan Charley was effective with his foot by keeping the ball in the Iowa Central half of the field for most of the match.  
   
Lindenwood vs. Iowa Central Community College Box Score:    
6' Lindenwood Try Lucas Black 5-0 
7' Lindenwood Conversion Lucas Black 7-0 
9' Lindenwood Try Brendan Mullen 12-0 
9' Lindenwood Conversion Lucas Black 14-0 
13' Iowa Central Try 14-5  
16' Lindenwood Try 19-5 
16' Lindenwood Conversion 21-5 
22' Iowa Central Try 21-10 
29' Iowa Central Try 21-15 
30' Iowa Central Conversion 21-17 
36' Lindenwood Try Brendan Mullen 26-17 
37' Lindenwood Conversion 28-17 
42' Lindenwood Try Carl Kawodza 33-17 
42' Lindenwood Conversion Lucas Black 35-17 
43' Lindenwood Try Preston Hammerschmidt 40-17 
56' Iowa Central Try 40-22 
65' Iowa Central Try 40-27 
80' Lindenwood Try Kyle Liebenberg 45-27 
   
Lineup:     

1. Johannes Greyling – Connor Devos 53' 
2. Christopher Wallace - Chad Tinney 53' 
3. Blake Knight – William Scott 50' 
4. Joshua Holt – Yellow Card 71' 
5. Neil Milczarek 
6. Calvin Ihrig 
7. Juan Mota Sanchez – Joaquin Gonzalez Fontan 55' 
8. Brendan Mullen – Red Card 39' 
9. John Stewart 
10. Brendan Mason 
11. Clement Quaicoe 
12. Lucas Black 
13. Carl Kawodza 
14. Preston Hammerschmidt 
15. Kyle Liebenberg