Crew only unbeaten team remaining after 56-0 demolition of Steelers

It looked a mismatch on paper, and the story on the field was no different, as the Wroclaw Crew raced to their seventh straight win to open the 2011 season, posting a 56-0 shutout victory over the Zaglebie Steelers on Sunday afternoon in Bedzin. After the Warsaw Eagles’ defeat on Saturday at the hands of the Wroclaw Devils, the Crew are now the only team left in the top division without a loss.

Deante Battle had three total touchdowns for the Crew, who ran out to a 28-0 lead in the first quarter thanks in part to his two short touchdown receptions. Lukasz Sutkowski also scored in that opening quarter, on a 15-yard reception from Justin Walz, who threw for five touchdowns on the afternoon, including four in the first quarter. Neither team scored in the second quarter.

With the game relatively in hand in the second half, the Crew experimented a bit on offense, with defensive star Aki Jones taking a handoff at the five-yard line and barging his way into the end zone for a touchdown. Jones then sacked Maciej Szczerba in the end zone for a safety on the next drive to complete a rare double. Battle took a punt back 80 yards for a score in the fourth quarter, and Walz hit Sutkowski for a 60-yard touchdown reception shortly thereafter to complete the scoring.

Zaglebie was without starting quarterback Michal Krzelowski, who was replaced by Szczerba after being injured during pregame warmups. The Steelers will likely need Krzelowski to return for their final two games in order to avoid either having to play in the 'barrage' or suffering outright relegation. They play the Gdynia Seahawks at home on June 11, and then comes the big season-ending matchup against the winless AZS Silesia Miners, who are currently a game behind both the Steelers and the Bialystok Lowlanders.

For the Crew, the last big obstacle to a perfect regular season is a road date with the 6-1 Warsaw Eagles. That game will also take place on June 11. If they win that one, the Crew will need only to beat Kozly Poznan on the road on June 19 to match the feat their crosstown rivals, the Devils, achieved last season.