Wake v. UNC Cancelled

After two days of steady rainfall in Winston-Salem, Wake Forest's scheduled Saturday matches with the University of North Carolina were cancelled. A waterlogged Poteat Field was not going to be able to withstand two full matches of rugby, so Wake informed Carolina that only one match would be able to be played on Saturday. Wake offered to play either a first side or second side match, but Carolina indicated strong preference to play two matches. Efforts were made to reschedule the match for Sunday, but Carolina had significant player availability issues that prevented that rescheduling. Wake and UNC will likely face off later this season in either the North Carolina Rugby Union Tournament on Oct. 25-26 or in the Atlantic Coast Invitational on January 17-18. Additionally, the Tar Heels have agreed to travel to Winston-Salem on January 31 for a preseason friendly prior to the start of league play for both teams.

Wake Forest will travel to Myrtle Beach, SC next weekend to play Coastal Carolina University. Kickoff for the first side match is scheduled for 12pm with a second side match to follow.

Wake Falls From Rankings

After opening the season ranked #20 in the county in Division II by erugbynews.com, Wake Forest has fallen from the rankings, the victim of not having yet played a first side match while other teams around the country are in full swing. Wake can regain its spot in the rankings with a solid showing against the University of North Carolina this Saturday. UNC is a Division I team who last year finished third in the South D1 competition. UNC opened its season last weekend with a sloppy 12-8 victory over North Carolina State but is sure to be playing improved rugby this weekend against the Demon Deacons. The match kicks off at 12pm on Saturday at Poteat Field. A second side match will follow.

Seven Wake Players Named to All-Star Team

Seven Wake Forest players were named to the North Carolina Rugby Union Men's College All-Star team after a tryout was held this past weekend in Chapel Hill on the University of North Carolina campus. The team is coached by Andy Richards, the UNC head coach, and will play in the South College All-Star Championship on Nov. 1 in Greenville, SC. The players who made the team are:

Kenton Forte, Junior, Prop
Matt Storck, Sophomore, Prop
Christian Jewett, Junior, Lock
Ross Hilton, Junior, Lock
Timo Kawira, Senior, #8
Drew Legge, Senior, Scrumhalf
Ben Cohen, Freshman, Wing

Last year six Wake players made the team, including Jewett, Storck, and Kawira. They finished second in the tournament, beating Georgia and then losing in the final to the Mid-South (Tennessee and Arkansas).

Wake Defeats Davidson 18-17

In a sloppy game between two inexperienced sides, the Wake Forest second side defeated Davidson 18-17 on a beautiful Saturday afternoon on the Davidson campus. Davidson opened the scoring early with an unconverted try as Wake Forest looked completely out of sorts. But the Wake forwards settled down, lead by the solid play of captain Dave Poplaski and freshman flanker Brendan Shea, and Wake eventually responded with a try of its own when flyhalf JD Harrison lofted a perfect kick to the corner where it was gathered in and touched down by freshman outside center Ben Cohen. The touchline conversion fell short, but Harrison was good with the boot on penalty goals twice more before half and Wake went into the break up 11-5.

Davidson scored another unconverted try to start the second half and cut the lead to 11-10, but Cohen responded by matching his second try of the day after a solid individual effort where he chipped over the Davidson defenders into the tryzone and then outpaced the defense to touch down. Harrison converted to put Wake ahead 18-10. Davidson responded with another try, this one converted, to close the gap to 18-17. The Wake defense then held on for the final ten minutes as Davidson pressured hard to win the match and the final whistle blew with Wake inside their own 22 and on their heels.

In all it was a great day of rugby and Wake showcased some impressive depth as no fewer than 26 players took the field for the Demon Deacons with at least a dozen playing their first ever official rugby match.

Wake is next in action on Saturday against the University of North Carolina, who escaped with a 12-8 win over NC State on Saturday. Both a first and second side match will be played. Kickoff for the first side match is at noon on Poteat field.

Wake Open Season Against Davidson on Saturday

Wake Forest will kick off its fall exhibition season with a match against Davidson College, in Davidson, NC. Kickoff is scheduled for 2pm. Wake will be fielding its second side against the Division III Wildcats, who are in the process of ressurrecting their program.