Lindenwood University has the opportunity to defend its DI Elite National Championship title, now that the Lions have won its semifinal: 74-7 against BYU. Life University defeated Central Washington University 29-20, and so the Running Eagles will head to St. Charles, Mo., for the May 1 final.
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Lindenwood and BYU faced each other on March 27, so the intel on each other was relatively fresh.
“In preparation for BYU we knew they’d be looking to kick a bit from 10 [flyhalf] and that’s a strength of theirs,” Lindenwood head coach Billy Nicholas explained. “They did a good job of taking advantage of some of our handling errors in the first 20 minutes. They pressured us in our own end and were able to put together some solid phases. They are a talented team and have the ability to challenge anyone.”
But for the most part, Lindenwood was able to enforce its game. BYU had trouble halting the hard-carrying Lions in first-up tackles, and when the support was there, Morgan Freeman and Richelle Stephens connected the fast phases that followed. It was a whole-team affair that produced sideline-to-sideline rugby, and it was tough to stop.
Lindenwood took a 19-0 lead in the first 15 minutes, as senior Stephens, freshman inside center Eti Haungatau and sophomore No. 8 Kapoina Bailey scored tries. Senior lock Natalie Gray kicked two of her seven conversions.
“We have some moments of brilliance and also some moments we wish we had back, so we’ve got some great footage to go through leading into this week,” Nicholas noted. “There are a few things we need to clean up if we want the results we are after for the final.”
BYU did a good job of keeping Lindenwood honest. In particular, Kat Stowers and Delaney Rakuita were relentless at the breakdown. They chose their moments well and glommed onto the ball to draw a not-releasing penalty whenever Lindenwood’s support relaxed. The kicking game did not feature heavily, but Matalasi Morrissette mixed in some options – including a memorable cross-field chip to Baylie Duce, which the wing collected and Demi Allen covered, but exciting nonetheless. Late in the game, Alexa Tenney flew across the pitch to meet Bri Vasquez at full speed in the try zone, and the tackle forced a knock-on in the grounding. The wing had the pace to chase down burners like De Freitas and Sativa Tarau-Peehikuru, and her never-quit was mirrored in players like prop Sierra Fuller. The front row followed a breakaway in the backs and was well positioned to scoop up a bad pass for a counter-attack. BYU never quit, even after a game spent almost entirely on defense.
Scoreboard wise, BYU’s reward came near the 20-minute mark. Some loose handling in the Lindenwood backs afforded the Cougars a scrum in the Lions’ end, and the set piece launched a crisp attack across the pitch. Despite some stunting double tackles in tight – Bailey and freshman flanker Ahnea Aupiu were so tuned into each other – the BYU forwards held onto the ball. Then hooker Kate Rugg lowered her shoulders and refused to bow to multiple defenders, diving over the line. Fullback Nicole Lyons converted for the team’s seven points.
Lindenwood is very good about quickly answering points-against, and it got help when the subsequent restart was knocked on in BYU’s end. Stephens, who had a great game, put a nice kick into space, and dummy lines helped commit the defense in tighter and free up the wider attack. Captain Tarau-Peehikuru freed her hands between two defenders and found fullback Caring De Freitas, who stepped around the Cougars for the try.
The Lions added one more try before the break, as Bailey picked up a loose ball and legged out the pursuit for 40 meters, for a 33-7 lead into halftime. From the kickoff, Haungatau powered down the majority of the pitch, and De Freitas and flanker Alia Ah Far followed with good carries. Bailey ended the series with her third try of the game.
Stephens returned a Kainoa Ah Quin kick, spun out of a tackle and dummied to inside support for a try. Vasquez dotted down in the corner after a hard De Freitas step set the defense moving in the opposite direction for the overload. With 55 minutes gone, the Lions led 52-7, and the reinforcements started to take the pitch.
“The coaches were happy being able to get all 23 in with quite a bit of time for the reserves to make a difference and they came in and contributed really well,” Nicholas praised the bench. “So I’m happy with that team effort.”
Izzy Manu, Lali Lafitaga, Manaia Moala, Jayla Hampton – they refreshed the level of physicality on the pitch. With that said, starters like Nina Tuilaepa still had plenty of gas and the prop’s bruising run set up Meg Gold’s try. Manu broke through the middle and starting lock Moira Dillow finished with a try. Manu and Lafitaga breaks set up Vasquez’s second try, and then Moala took a hard angle at the defense and hit the gap perfectly for the final try and final Gray conversion: 74-7.
Life University will now travel to Lindenwood for the May 1 national championship, which will air at 7 p.m. CT on FTFnext.com. Both teams will then transition to 7s, and they’ll see each other once more before the school year ends. Life is hosting a 7s tournament on May 15 and Lindenwood will be there.