Lindenwood-Belleville takes on another difficult DIA opponent in Davenport this week.

For the Lynx, that makes the third such opponent so far - they lost 30-14 to Wheeling Jesuit, and last week lost 51-16 to Arkansas State. Head Coach Pat Clifton said he was quite pleased with the level of improvement for his team, and that seems fair considering Lindenwood-Belleville's rugby program didn't really exist before last fall, and they were DII then. Now playing a DIAA independent schedule, the Lynx are being challenged by their coach to play at a high level, and not get overconfident.

It seems to be working. Clifton pointed out that the score against Arkansas State was 30-16 with about ten minutes to go.

"To be within two scores of a program like Arkansas State, which I hold in the highest regard, is something we can build on," he said. "It was a gutsy effort across the board as a lot of our boys became men today."

Captain Alex Quinn is a physical defender and leads by example. He's been playing superbly. Pete Winkley got a try, with a conversion from Kritsian Poletti and three penalty goals from JP Aquirre. 

Meanwhile, Davenport has undergone their own trials. The program was thought to have been marginalized somewhat by the formation of a new men's football program in Grand Rapids. That, along with a change in coach made people wonder whether the Panthers were all there. Davenport's shift to a new group of "non-varsity" sports also seemed to be a demotion. But new coach Harry King said it's all about clarity. Being a Non-Varsity sport puts them in the same category as hockey, lacrosse, and volleyball, and they are still supported and promoted by the University.

"We are still pushing to create a team that is competitive in DIA," said King. "We want to play and beat colleges at the highest level. We've got some good young players and we're building."

Davenport thumped Western Michigan two weeks ago and then lost by two against Notre Dame College last week. But that loss was kind of perfect for King because he could show his players what they did well, but keep them humble because of the loss. Davenport isn't as young as Lindenwood-Belleville, but they are still figuring things out. And with King's commitment to get local players - 36 of the 40-man roster are from Michigan, Ohio, Indiana, and Illinois - they have a lot of work to do to get up to speed with teams that have more overseas talent.

So this game is a measuring stick for both teams. Davenport is looking to get everyone up to speed before the Mid-South season starts in the spring. For Lindenwood-Belleville, every game is a mid-term on which their worthiness to be in the DIAA playoffs will be judged.