Sacred City Derby Girls (#10) upset Angel City Derby Girls (#8) in the last jam to take seventh

By Shelly Shankya

Sacred City Derby Girls (#10) took an early lead in Game 14 of Day 3 against Angel City Derby Girls (#8). The game to determine seventh place was hotly contested and would place either winner in a higher seed than where they entered the tournament.

What looked like it would be a continuous point accumulation for Sacred during the first few jams did a 180 degree turn when Sacred jammer Daddy's Girl took a seat in the box for a major track cut, giving Angel jammer Fifi Nomenon a chance to score 20 points. Two power jams, almost back to back, put Angel City in the lead after the twelfth jam.

Fifi was again able to put double digits on the board due to a 3-4 pack advantage, plus her faith in her blockers. However, in the twentieth jam (there were 25 in the period) Fifi went to the box for a major low block and opened the door for Sacred's jammer, The 4Closer, to shrink the gap. The period ended with Angel City ahead, 78-53.

Angel City came out from the half strong and in charge of the track, holding Sacred City scoreless for several jams, and never allowing them to score more than nine points in any one jam. It looked like Sacred was stuck at 83 points until Fifi went to the box for a major high block and The 4Closer grabbed 19 points, narrowing the gap to 23 points. With the crowd behind them, Sacred City took the momentum and used it to their advantage. Sacred jammer Colt 45 scored six natural grand slams, including landing a few choice apex jumps, as Angel's Chica Go Lightning never got out of the pack. The lead change caused an eruption from the Sacred fans, and a time out from Angel City.

"We've worked on a lot of mental toughness this season," Sacred City jammer Colt 45 said. "We're historically a second-half team, and it's never over until it's over. That's what told ourselves during the second half."

Fifi went out for Angel City against Daddy's Girl for Sacred in the last jam of the game and took lead jammer. The two jammers battled to gain points, fighting against blockers desperate for a win. In the end, Fifi called the jam, under the impression she'd accumulated enough points to clench the win. However, despite her dramatic call off and slide to turn four, it wasn't enough. Sacred City won by one point, 147-146.

"We're excited to come back and play at Westerns," Colt 45 said. "We wanted to let the derby world know that you can't discount us."

Sacred City moves from seed 10 to finish in 7th place, and Angel City stays at 8.

Sacred City Derby Girls (#10) 147 - 7th Place
Angel City Derby Girls (#8) 146 - 8th Place