Gdynia wins 62-35 in highest scoring game in PLFA history

Kozly Poznan, once again managing to be the surprise story of the PLFA's top division, put a scare into the Gdynia Seahawks on Saturday before finally succumbing 62-35 to the defending champs at the National Rugby Stadium in Gdynia. The 97 combined points by the two teams was the most ever scored in the 8-year history of the PLFA.

Poznan's upset bid lost much of its momentum when Ivan Pavlovic, Kozly's offensive and defensive star, was taken to the hospital with symptoms of severe dehydration. Pavlovic left the game after scoring two first-half touchdowns, the second a 43-yard reception that capped a wild second quarter that involved five touchdown passes and left the Seahawks with a 35-29 lead in the locker room.

Ferni Garza threw six more touchdown passes to give him 28 on the season, a total which puts him ahead of his next two closest pursuers put together. Although the score was already 14-14 after the first quarter, Garza had yet to get going as Gawel Pilachowski scored the first two touchdowns for Gdynia on the ground.

In fact, it was a Garza mistake that set Poznan up for their first score. His interception on the second play from scrimmage put Kozly in excellent field position, and their latest overseas signee, Jared Chunn, made good on it with a short touchdown run. Chunn would later catch one of Jeffrey Legree's four touchdown passes. Pilachowski tied the game on a 26-yard touchdown run, before Pavlovic scored to give Poznan the lead once again.

That was the final time that Kozly would lead, however, and Gdynia would soon go ahead on the first of Garza's touchdown passes, an 8-yarder to Patryk Kordys. After Kozly tied the game at 21, Jeremy Dixon scored the first of his four touchdowns on the afternoon to finally put Gdynia up for good, and Kordys scored again to make it 35-21 before Pavlovic closed the gap just before the break.

Dixon took over in the second half, which began with him putting Gdynia up by two touchdowns with a 10-yard scoring run. The Seahawks continued to pull slowly away, but they were unable to put home fans at ease until the fourth quarter, when Dixon caught touchdown passes of 23 and 22 yards to finally seal Poznan's fate.

Having won 17 of their last 18 games, the Seahawks sport the best record in the Topliga at 7-1. Still, they look somewhat vulnerable after giving up 34 points or more for the second time in three weeks. The 35 points scored by Kozly was the biggest total given up by Gdynia this season, and the most since they gave up 37 in winning NAC SuperFinal VII.

The Seahawks, who have now officially clinched a playoff berth, will look to lock up the top seed in the North Division when they host the team that scored those 37 points in the title game, the Warsaw Eagles, on June 9. Gdynia beat Warsaw 20-7 earlier this season. Kozly, now 3-4, will play the Seahawks again on June 16 in Poznan. Before that game, they will travel to Warsaw to face the winless Spartans on June 8.