No. 1 River Hill's struggle against No. 9 Wilde Lake in the rain and wind Saturday afternoon can be looked at in several ways and raises some questions.

Is Wilde Lake perhaps closer to River Hill's ability than one might think?

Is River Hill not quite as good as its previous gaudy scores would lend fans to believe?

Were the weather conditions a real equalizer?

Or is the fact River Hill was able to make a number of major mistakes, take on Wilde Lake and the weather conditions and still win 12-0 a sign that the Hawks are better than some of their critics think.

Certainly there were mistakes made that could have cost River Hill the game on a day like Saturday -- the failure to cover the kickoff simply being the most glaring. And River Hill was lucky -- lucky Wilde Lake's kicker missed a 33-yard field goal by inches, probably due to a puff of wind. And lucky its all-star running back Mike Campanaro had a bit more strength than Wilde Lake's Chaz Cousin-Lee at the end of a 28-yard reception and was able to pull down the Wildecat at the 5-yard line, or it might have been a completely different game.

But the fact River Hill's defense was able to stop Wilde Lake deep in its own territory and then open the inside holes for Campanaro for two major drives that ended in touchdowns, says a great deal about River Hill's resilience and resolve in difficult situations.

That's a good thing for the Hawks' coaching staff to know as they edge closer to the playoffs.

For Wilde Lake, the game was also a positive. The Wildecats didn't win, but when they look at the film, they'll find a lot of positives to take away from the afternoon matchup. Not least among them, the knowledge that they can go toe-to-toe with No. 1.

- Sandra McKee