With rain pouring down all day long in Charlottesville, Va., the Penn State men's rugby team knew they would need to change their style of play to suit the conditions.

Luckily for the Ruggers (9-1), they were able to adapt and came away with the win, downing Virginia 36-5 on Saturday.

"I think the weather definitely played a pivotal role in the game since it poured the entire time that we were on the field," fly-half Joe Baker said. "We were literally soaked from head to toe but we did what we had to do and were able to come away with the win."

The Ruggers prevailed in what became a forward-dominated match behind strong performances from Jake Thuma and Kevin Kimble, as well as an improved defense and sense of physicality on the field.

In practice last week, the coaching staff had stressed to the players the benefits of playing a more physical brand of rugby.

That ideal came through on the field on Saturday, Baker said.

"Our forwards really dominated Virginia all match, and in my opinion it was the difference in the game," Baker said. "Playing in conditions like that, where ball handling is impeded by the rain, it comes down to who is going to play tougher, and I think our forwards got that done."

Penn State coach Don Ferrell said the win was a well-balanced all-around performance from the team, and that they were able to take care of the ball well despite the sloppy conditions on the field.

"It was really sloppy out there and I think we really made it a point to focus on taking care of the ball better," Ferrell said. "With ball handling at a premium, I thought the guys did a great job adjusting and played a real solid game."

Senior offensive captain Jesse Beyer said even though the score was lopsided, the Ruggers missed some opportunities throughout the game, and could have put more points on the board.

Beyer said that the Ruggers controlled the ball in Virginia territory for much of the game, but were just unable to cross the try line at times.

"I thought we did a good job of playing our game and not going down to Virginia's level, but we should've scored more points," Beyer said. "We were down there the whole game just about, and we kept driving it down, but we just couldn't get it across the try line and convert the possession into points."

Looking ahead, Baker said that the win gave the Ruggers some added confidence as they prepare for this Saturday's match against Kutztown.

Baker said that it was nice to get the bad taste of the Ruggers' loss to Delaware out of their mouths, but that they still have a lot of hard work ahead of them.