Week 15 (7/30/99): Albany @ Houston

'Birds finish with win

The Albany Firebirds have done all they can. Now they must hope the Grand Rapids Rampage can upset the Iowa Barnstormers tonight.

Needing a win Friday night to keep alive their hopes of gaining home field advantage throughout the Arena League playoffs, the Firebirds traveled to Houston and defeated the ThunderBears, 63-55, before 4,729 fans in the Compaq Center.

A win by Grand Rapids tonight in Des Moines would give the Firebirds (11-3) home field for as long as they're in the playoffs, which start next weekend. If Iowa wins, however, Albany's playoff position will be determined by what happens in games involving Tampa Bay and Arizona.

The Firebirds got another outstanding performance from offensive specialist Eddie Brown and quarterback Mike Pawlawski. Brown broke his own single-season record for touchdown receptions, hauling in four Friday night to give him 45 for the season. He caught 44 scoring passes in 1994.

Brown also broke the single-season receptions record, set last year by Arizona's Calvin Schexnayder, by catching 14 passes Friday night. He finished the regular season with 138, but could see his newly minted record fall tonight. Thomas Bailey of Grand Rapids needs 11 catches against Iowa to claim the record.

Brown was named the game's MVP.

Pawlawski completed 25 of 36 passes for 317 yards and five touchdowns without an interception. He finished the regular season with 79 touchdown passes and just seven interceptions.

Evan Hlavacek, named the game's Ironman, got the Firebirds on the scoreboard with less than a minute elapsed when he returned a fumble two yards for a touchdown. Brown's first touchdown, an 11-yard pass from Pawlawski, made it 16-7.

Albany extended its lead to 30-14 on two more Pawlawski-to-Brown connections, the first 45 yards, the second 25.

Houston (4-10) got within 33-28 late in the first half on a 2-yard run by Shaw Washington, but Greg Hopkins caught a 5-yard scoring pass from Pawlawski with 27 seconds left in the half and Brown scored on a 1-yard run four minutes into the third quarter to put the Firebirds in control.