WFTDA 2010 Championships Day 1 Recap

by Shelly Shankya

Day 1 was a great start to what's sure to be an action-packed weekend of awesome roller derby.

In the opening bout of the 2010 WFTDA Championships, Uproar on the Lakeshore, in Chicago, IL, Texas Rollergirls managed to open up the tight point spread in the second half to defeat B.ay A.rea D.erby Girls 72-59. The Texecutioners split lead jammer status evenly with the B.A.D. Girls, 10 for each, in the first period. The only two double-digit jams in the first came from Ivy Prophane for B.A.D., who had a 13-point jam in the eighth jam, and Bloody Mary from Texas, with a 10-point jam in the eighteenth jam.

The jammers came up against strong defense, resulting in the small point gains throughout. The half ended Texas 38, B.A.D. 37. After the short halftime break, the second half looked to be a repeat of the first with the small point gains, but with two 5-point jams back-to-back from Texas (Bloody Mary and Luce Bandit), largely unanswered by B.ay A.rea, the Texecutioners started to solidify their lead over the black and gold. B.A.D. burned all of their three time outs late in the second half, and was unable to stop the clock before the last thirty seconds, despite Astronaughty having lead jammer status; they had shortened the spread to 13 points, but they had to leave it at that as the clock ran out. Texas will advance to play Gotham in Day 2.

Minnesota Rollergirls fans went all out to support their team, standing shirtless at the UIC Pavilion, but it was the Charm City Roller Girls who went bananas in the second bout of the tournament, winning Bout 2 249-118. From Just Carol’s 24-point jam in the ninth jam of the first, Minnesota had a hard time catching the ladies in yellow and black. Charm had three more large-scoring jams during the first, making a comeback seem unlikely for the skaters from Minnesota. The strong, defensive pack play, led by Charm City pivots Dolly Rocket and Holly Gohardly, kept Charm in the lead for the remainder of the bout. In the first jam of the second half, Minnesota skaters had a tough time staying out of the penalty box; in fact, all Minnesota skaters on the track visited the sin bin in the first two minutes of play. The serious penalty trouble plagued play for the ladies from the north, and Charm continued to stretch the lead. In the last jam of the bout, however, L’exi Cuter made a valiant run for it, scoring 14 points for Minnesota—the team’s largest for the game—after securing lead jammer status. Charm City takes the win and will play Rocky Mountain in Day 2.

With lead jammer status nearly 70% of the time, Philly Roller Girls held Mad Rollin’ Dolls to only 53 points in Bout 3; the Liberty Belles ended the game with 213. In the first half alone, Philly grabbed lead jammer status 14 out of 17 times, five of which resulted in their jammers scoring in the double-digits. The Liberty Belles’ defense kept Mad Rollin’ back, and with their jammers  taking a trip to the penalty box five times in the first and three times in the second, #3 from North Central had a hard time mounting a charge against the Belles. While the point spread seemed vast, the Dairyland Dolls played hard, even to the last jam. The team called a time out with two seconds left on the period clock to extend game play, despite their jammer, Jewels of Denile being in the box. When Jewels came out of the box, the fans from the North were on their feet, as this was Jewels’ last bout with the Mad Rollin’ Dolls. Philly wins it 213-53, and will play Kansas City in Day 2.

No one said playing the reigning WFTDA Champions—the Oly Rollers—would be easy, but Nashville Rollergirls put forth a valiant effort. It wasn’t enough, however, and Oly was victorious, 214-53. The jammers for Oly, as expected, started strong, holding the ladies from the Music City to less than 10 points in the first 10 jams. Oly pivot Sassy had several impressive moments, single-handedly holding Nashville jammers from breaking the pack. Showstopper for Nashville, along with teammates Susan and Union Jack-U-Up, stood out as blockers who worked tirelessly to keep Oly jammers at bay. With three no lead jams in the first, Nashville ended the period with 40 to Oly’s 94. The jammers from the Cosa Nostra Donnas, backed by their defense, blew the doors off any hopes the skaters from Nashville had, as they grabbed lead jammer for the lion’s share of the second half—14 out of 17 jams. In the end, the Oly Rollers reigned supreme over Nashville, and will face Windy City in Day 2.

Day 1 Results

• Texas Rollergirls (South Central, Seed 2) 72
  B.ay A.rea D.erby Girls (West, Seed 3) 59
  • Texas advances to play Gotham Girls Roller Derby (East Coast, Seed 1) in Bout 5 on Day 2.
• Charm City Roller Girls (East, Seed 3) 249
  Minnesota Rollergirls (North Central, Seed 2) 118
  • Charm City advances play Rocky Mountain in Bout 6 on Day 2.
• Philly Roller Girls (East, Seed 2) 213
  Mad Rollin’ Dolls (North Central, Seed 3) 53
  • Philly advances to play Kansas City in Bout 7 on Day 2.
• Oly Rollers (West, Seed 2) 214
  Nashville Rollergirls (South Central, Seed 3) 53
  • Oly advances to play Windy City in Bout 8 on Day 2.

The action continues Saturday as the teams playing for the top spot in the WFTDA will be determined. Watch it live on Derby News Network.