Lindenwood Magazine - Fall 2018: Connecting to Alumni and Friends

CAMPUS NEWS ALUMNI SPOTLIGHT UPCOMING EVENTS LINDENWOOD SPORTS ALUMNI EVENTS AWARDS & RECOGNITIONS ALUMNI NEWS & NOTES 21 Lindenwood University-Belleville / SPORTS LINDENWOOD HOSTS 2018 CHAMPIONS OF CHARACTER Lindenwood University-Belleville / SPORTS MEN’S RUGBY ACHIEVES NATIONAL RANKING by CHARLIE MAGER The Lindenwood University– Belleville Athletics Department hosted the 2018 American Midwest Conference (AMC) Champions of Character Summit recently with various student-athletes from the AMC conference participating. Lindenwood Associate Athletic Director Annie Reis, along with the athletics staff, worked for several weeks with the AMC to plan this event. “The summit was an absolutely tremendous event,” AMC Commissioner Will Wolper said. “Character, character development, and leadership are such vital parts of life, beyond the playing field, that programs like the summit are important experiences to provide our student-athletes. Annie Reis and the staff at Lindenwood Belleville did a tremendous job planning and implementing the program.” The summit consisted of AMC Commissioner Will Wolper, Freed-Hardeman University representative Jonathan Estes, Lindenwood Belleville Athletic Director Ryan Kaiser, and nearly 50 student representatives, explaining the importance of the five core values of Champions of Character and what they mean for collegiate student-athletes. The five core values are integrity, respect, responsibility, sportsmanship, and student leadership. The second part of the summit consisted of a student-athlete question-and-answer session, followed by small group roundtable discussions. “We are very pleased with the overall success of the Champions of Character summit,” Kaiser said. “I appreciate the efforts and leadership from Annie Reis and the rest of our staff that made this event a very successful event. We hope that this program continues with the conference moving forward.” The 2018 fall men’s rugby season has proven to be extremely successful for the Lindenwood University-Belleville rugby team. The Lynx, with an impressive 7-2 record, are getting noticed on a national level, rising up to No. 15 in Division I College Rankings by Rugby Today, which sets a new program high in the Division I poll. “We have been working hard all season, and the improvement in rankings is a reflection of that work,” said Head Coach Joe Lippert. Lindenwood Belleville opened its season with a pair of matches with Big Ten schools, claiming a 36-14 win at home against Wisconsin in the season opener before dropping a close 18-14 decision at Indiana on Sept. 8. Following a forfeit victory over Middle Tennessee, the Lynx returned home and picked up a 38-16 win over Iowa Central. After a home victory over the University of Kansas on Oct. 6, the Lynx hit the road to record a 33-5 win at the University of Kentucky and a 48-5 triumph at the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater. On Oct. 27, Lindenwood Belleville closed out its home season with a thrilling 39-26 win against traditional power and No. 16-ranked Arkansas State before completing the regular season slate with a 29-10 loss at No. 2-ranked Lindenwood University. “Our team is in its fourth year of existence, and we have added substantial talent and depth in the past 12 months,” said Lippert. “Achieving our highest ever ranking is one small payoff for months of hard work and diligent focused effort.”