Men's rugby defeated Mount St. Mary's (Md.) 26-0 in the D1A Playoffs round of 16 Saturday evening at the Lindenwood Track Complex in St. Charles, Missouri. David Cathcart led the Lions with two tries and Bryon Forword was perfect on three conversion attempts.
 
How it Happened:
Lindenwood scored what proved to be the winning try in the eighth minute. After executing a lineout deep in Mount territory, the Lions forward pack worked the ball into scoring position before settling in on the goal line. Alejandro Martinez-Tapia picked the ball from the back and snuck through a gap on the goal line for five points. Forword slotted the conversion for a 7-0 Lindenwood lead.
 
Midway through the first half, the Lions went to work 30 meters out. Christopher Wallace received an offload out wide where he had an edge on the defense. He swiftly worked down the field before making a final pass to Jaryd de Jager for a try. Forword was good on the conversion to expand the Lindenwood advantage to 14-0 in the 29^th minute and that's where the score remained until the break.
 
The Lions continued to expand their lead in the second half. In the 50^th minute, Cathcart was out wide near the sideline when the Lindenwood attack started working for width. The Mount St. Mary's defense tried to stifle the Lions, but the ball moved well through Declan Ries and Stephin Alberts before finding Cathcart out wide. The wing broke a tackle before racing in the corner for his first try of the match. Forword connected on a difficult conversion to make it 21-0.
 
The final score came with about 12 minutes remaining in the match. Lindenwood had a scrum 20-meters from the try line and a well-executed set piece move fooled the defense, leaving Cathcart alone on the edge. He out-raced a would-be tackler before touching down in the corner to make it 26-0.
 
What's Next:
With the victory, the Lions advanced to the D1A quarterfinals April 13 against longtime rival Life University. The opening kickoff is scheduled for 2 p.m. CDT Saturday at Lupo Family Field.
 
Player Quotes:
Duncan Krige: "Congratulations to Mount St Mary's for giving us a great show on physicality and making the match difficult for us. We are very much now looking forward to our next match versus Life. This rivalry is a highlight and driver for the Lindenwood boys. We have a lot to prove, and we know we are up for what's next."
 
Christopher Wallace: "We have unfinished business in Marietta. The last time we went down there we were taught a great lesson and it has made us the team we are now. We are frothing at the mouth to go back down to Georgia and show everyone the kind of team we are."
 
Scoring Summary:
8' Lindenwood Try Alejandro Martinez Tapia 5-0
9' Lindenwood Conversion Byron Forword 7-0
28' Lindenwood Try Jaryd de Jager 12-0
29' Lindenwood Conversion Byron Forword 14-0
50' Lindenwood Try David Cathcart 19-0
51' Lindenwood Conversion Byron Forword 21-0
68' Lindenwood Try David Cathcart 26-0
 
Lineup:

1. Chad Tinney
2. Christopher Wallace
3. Connor Devos
4. David Scanlon
5. Alejandro Martinez Tapia
6. Duncan Krige (C)
7. Calvin Ihrig
8. Eduan van Heerden
9. Jeremy Zwick
10. Byron Forword
11. David Cathcart
12. Declan Ries
13. Stephin Alberts
14. Bautista Nasta
15. Jaryd de Jager
16. Mark Barbour
17. Asher Webb
18. Johannes Greyling
19. Le'Donn Mathis
20. Neil Milczarek
21. Brendan Mason
22. Jack McAllister
23. Kobe Millar