Gotham (#1) wins 2012 East Region Playoffs

By Lois Slain

The final bout of the 2012 East Region Playoffs brought the classic East Region rematch between the Philly Roller Girls (#2), of Philadelphia, and Gotham Girls Roller Derby (#1), of New York. The teams were again competing for the title of East Region champions and the all-important #1 seed for the WFTDA Championship tournament.

Photo by Manish Gosalia

Historically, reigning WFTDA Champions Gotham have been the leader in the region, and this year is no exception. Philly won the #1 seed once, beating Gotham by 1 point in 2009.

Gotham's impenetrable defensive walls shut down Philly's jammers for nearly 7 minutes, giving Gotham a 30-0 lead to start things off. Philly began a string of earning lead jammer status, but was only able to convert that advantage into a handful of points before Gotham regained control. Halfway through the first period, Gotham boasted a 50-point lead.

Philly fought hard to chip away at Gotham's lead for much of the first period, but the story remained much the same – while both teams traded lead jammer status, Gotham was better able to put points on the board. The score at halftime was 99 Gotham, 40 Philly.

Gotham started the half with blockers in the box, allowing Philly to gain a little steam, but the pace of the bout quickly returned to what it had been in the first half. Gotham seemed in control of the pack even when they didn't earn lead jammer status. Both teams were generally able to spring their jammers from the pack quickly, and often limited their opponent's scoring ability by running the pack at a blistering pace.

Gotham inched closer to doubling their score as the period wore on, but tenacious jamming from Philly's jammers and the team's efforts to capitalize on Gotham's frequently thin packs kept them from getting there. That is, until a Philly jammer penalty allowed Gotham's Bonnie Thunders to rack up points on a stopped pack. With 5 minutes left in the bout, Gotham had an insurmountable 120-point lead.

The final score was 232 Gotham Girls Roller Derby, 102 Philly Roller Girls. Both teams advance to the WFTDA Championships in Atlanta, Georgia, this November.

Gotham Girls Roller Derby (#1) 232 - 1st Place
Philly Roller Girls (#2) 102 - 2nd Place