In one of the higher-ranked clashes of the early part of this spring DI college season, Central Washington defeated Lindenwood 21-3 19-3  in St. Charles, Mo. Saturday night.

"The game was tough," said Lindenwood flyhalf Nick Feakes. "We found ourselves on the back foot for much of it due to poor discipline and simple errors. Central Washington were also a strong and skillful team who took advantage of the opportunities we gave them. The most important thing to me was that the effort was there. The other things are fixable and we will be looking to bounce back in Colorado this weekend."

Tresten Keys scored the opening try of a tense game at 25 minutes after CWU charged down a clearance kick, and Central led 7-0. It stayed that way for the rest of the first half. Lindenwood made it 7-3 early in the second half, but with 12 minutes to go, Larry Peneuta scored to put the Wildcats up by two scores, and then Darren Cooper scored late to seal it. Ian wright kicked two CWU conversions (the previous report said he had all three, but upon further review, he was 2-3), while Feakes added a penalty for Lindenwood.

"Outstanding composure under pressure against a very good Lindenwood side tonight," said CWU Head Coach Todd Thornley. "I'm very proud of this group of young men. We left it all out on the field.  Sure, we weren't perfect and made mistakes, but the guys showed great mental toughness and discipline to get this win."
 
"All credit to Central Washington for their play," said Lindenwood wing Sam Chapman. "They were a very physically imposing team. We struggled to string together phases and couldn't keep out of the bin. These are games we will win as we approach the level of play we are capable of."

Lindenwood got big games from props Toma Ghattas and Chance Wenglewski, as well as flanker West Parker.

The game was physical, and hotly contested. Both teams suffered more than one yellow card.

For both, this will be a good start for the rest of the season.

"We played well in the first half of each half," said Lindenwood Head Coach Josh Macy. "Central did a great job of grinding away and taking their chances. Our players knew we had opportunities down the edges of the field but we struggled to sufficiently manipulate the defense and lost chances there. We had some long periods of top play in this game and I’m looking forward to seeing what happens when start to put it all together."

"I would like to thank Lindenwood for being great hosts," added Thornley. "We look forward to returning the favor next year."