Men's rugby earned a 53-22 victory on the road against Iowa Central Community College Saturday afternoon at Crimmins Field in Fort Dodge, Iowa. Eight different players scored tries for Lindenwood with Calvin Ihrig getting two of them himself. 
 
How it Happened: 
The Lions scored first when they started to execute a maul after a five-meter lineout. David Scanlon made a heads up play when he did not feel the Tritons join that maul. He quickly turned around and ran into the try zone to give Lindenwood a 5-0 lead. 
 
Iowa Central tied the match at the 12-minute mark by capitalizing on a Lindenwood mistake. An errant tip pass to the inside was intercepted and returned for the score. The Tritons took the lead moments later after the Lions committed a penalty near midfield. Iowa Central executed a quick tap and go and Lindenwood was slow to react. The Tritons cut through the edge of the defense for a long run that ended in the zone. A successful conversion made it 12-5 Iowa Central.
 
That advantage was short-lived, however. After the first try of the game from Ihrig cut the deficit to 12-10, another five-meter lineout was uncontested at the maul and Eduan van Heerdan flipped his hips and ran uncontested for another try. Byron Forword booted the conversion and Lindenwood led 17-12, an advantage that would not be relinquished the rest of the game.
 
With three minutes remaining in the first half, the Lions drove down close to the goal line. After continually crashing and working the ball closer with every phase, former Triton Le'Donn Mathis eventually was able to use his physicality and speed to pick up a loose ball and dive through the defense and over the line. Another Forword conversion made it 24-12 Lindenwood at the break.
 
The Lions came out firing in the second half with two scores in the first 10-minutes. Duncan Krige scored first, followed by the second of the match from Ihrig. Forword split the pair of conversions and Lindenwood extended its lead to 36-12.  
 
Despite a growing deficit, Iowa Central continued to work. When a lineout to the Tritons was won, the scrumhalf faked the Lion defense and took off running down the sideline instead of throwing the ball out. His speed took him the distance and the Tritons added the conversion to make it 36-19.  
 
Any thoughts of an Iowa Central comeback were quickly thwarted as Lindenwood only needed one minute to respond. The Lions won an ensuing scrum and the ball was tossed out to the backs. They executed a deceptive set-piece play and Brendan Mason slashed through the line untouched for the score to make it 41-19 Lindenwood. 
 
With another lineout opportunity around midfield, the Lions offloaded the ball to Mathis who slipped through the defensive line. After a long breakaway run, he executed a great pass to Jeremy Zwick who finished the try. A Cole Scharffenorth conversion increased the lead to 48-19. 
 
The Triton tacked on a penalty kick and Declan Ries added a try before the final whistle sounded with the 53-22 final.  
 
Other Matches:  
The Lindenwood and Iowa Central second XV squads squared off as well with the Lions taking a 57-19 victory. Emmett Bock was an anchor in the forward pack with his big carries and physical defense setting the tone for the team. Ivan Ingram made a tremendous impact as a substitute as his explosiveness in the contact area created problems for the opposing defense.
 
What's Next? 
With the win, Lindenwood improved to 7-0 in collegiate play overall. The Lions return to action in the Midwest Rugby Conference (MRC) with a road trip to face Adrian College October 27. The opening kickoff is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. at Docking Stadium in Adrian, Michigan. The second sides will also play later that night beginning at 8:30 p.m.
 
Scoring Summary:
4' Lindenwood Try David Scanlon 5-0 
12' Iowa Central Community College Try 5-5 
22' Iowa Central Community College Try 5-10 
22' Iowa Central Community College Conversion 5-12 
27' Lindenwood Try Calvin Ihrig 10-12 
33' Lindenwood Try Eduan van Heerden 15-12 
34' Lindenwood Conversion Byron Forword 17-12 
37 Lindenwood Try Le'Donn Mathis 22-12 
38' Lindenwood Conversion Byron Forword 24-12 
45' Lindenwood Try Duncan Krige 29-12 
45' Lindenwood Conversion Byron Forword 31-12 
49' Lindenwood Try Calvin Ihrig 36-12 
57' Iowa Central Community College Try 36-17 
58' Iowa Central Community College Conversion 36-19 
59' Lindenwood Try Brendan Mason 41-19 
65' Lindenwood Try Jeremy Zwick 46-19 
66' Lindenwood Conversion Cole Scharffenorth 48-19 
78' Iowa Central Community College Penalty Kick 48-22 
80' Lindenwood Try Declan Ries 53-22 
 
Lineup:

1. Asher Webb – 60' Chad Tinney 
2. Christopher Wallace – 63' Xavier Herbert 
3. Hailama Anakalea – 50' Johannes Greyling 
4. David Scanlon – 68' Neil Milczarek 
5. Le'Donn Mathis 
6. Eduan van Heerden – 64' Jack Johnson 
7. Calvin Ihrig  
8. Duncan Krige 
9. Jeremy Zwick 
10. Byron Forword –65' Cole Scharffenorth 
11. Kobe Millar 
12. Declan Ries 
13. Stephin Alberts – 52' Delfino Salinas  
14. John Kenaga – 46' William Bentley 
15. Brendan Mason