(Mark Morris photo)

Driving snow and unseasonable cold have wreaked havoc on the Carolinas Rugby League season to date.

After completing its inaugural round on January 23rd, heavy snow and unseasonable cold caused the postponement of six matches over two weekends.

Finally, 20 days after the season began, the CRL got back in action Friday night when Division North Carolina traveled to DII Appalachian State and defeated the Mountaineers by a count of 20-16.

On Saturday the weather was determined to remain a factor, the wind blew north to south with gusts up to 30 miles per hour for the entirety of the Clemson at Wake Forest game.

In the first half, the Tigers had the wind at their back and used it to continually pin the Deacons in their own end. As a result, Clemson went in at halftime with a 15-0 lead.

In the second stanza, the teams switched sides, and seemingly switched fates. Down 15 to Division I Clemson, the small Wake Forest side could have packed it in, but they came out with guns blazing.

When misfortune struck Clemson in the form of injury to two front row players, Wake took advantage by winning virtually every scrum from that point on.

Especially important in the scrimmaging effort was newly appointed Wake Forest 8-man Hunter Lostan. With Lostan at the back of the scrum, and the wind at the back of the pitch, Wake put up 21 unanswered points and took the match 21-15.

Wake Forest head coach Pat Kane was pleased with his squad saying, “In this league it seems like any team can win on any given day. I’m happy that we were able to come out on top today.”

Kane also lamented the lack of a fourth try for Wake Forest and hoped that the missed bonus point didn’t come back to haunt them.

Also on Saturday, the weather loomed its head again forcing South Carolina to visit NC State in a mud bath and without much footing, both squads sputtered to an 8-8 draw.

Rugby was also played in the SEC on Saturday, with Alabama defeating Mississippi State 25-12 and Vanderbilt beating Ole Miss 29-7.

Georgia was supposed to travel to Auburn, but as has been the trend lately, that match was postponed on account of weather.

Don't forget to check back with ARN as we will have a recap of Sunday’s CRL matchup between Wake Forest and North Carolina.