Sacramento, CA

photo by Danforth Johnson

In Game 6, the final game of Day 1 at the international WFTDA Division 1 Playoffs in Sacramento, the Rat City Rollergirls (seed 4, rank #16) of Seattle, WA, USA worked through transitions, maintaining fast pack pace to defeat the Terminal City Rollergirls (seed 5, rank #18) of Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada 191-142.

The first team to pull points in the game’s opening jam, Terminal City Rollergirls followed scoreless in the proceeding five jams, giving Rat City Rollergirls two power jams, resulting in 20 points. Each power jam, however, was hard fought. Using mindful extensions, stringing the pack and jammers back half of the track, Rat City managed to establish its lead 27-4 in the first 10 minutes of the game. Pack advantages went back and forth as blockers exchanged places in the penalty box, yet the strong walls and triangle defense made point accrual difficult for the ladies with the star covers. It wasn’t until a 15-point jam by Terminal City jammer Simonius Smaximus against Rat City jammer LeBrawn Maimes that TCRG really showed its fight.

Working on both offense and defense, Rat City blockers and veteran skaters Missile America and Carmen Getsome led their pack to hold Terminal City scoreless for 15 total jams during the first half. Terminal City, however, managed to hold Rat City scoreless for only seven. Both teams used offense and defense to their advantage, each using multiple star passes throughout. Most often to take the star for Rat City, Carmen Getsome scored nine points in the first half, while jammers Luna Negra and Sintripetal Force scored the bulk of Rat City’s points. For Terminal City, Smaximus and Maiden Sane did the lion’s share of point scoring.

“We’ve been working on offense for months, and it’s really helping as our blockers are making a lot of open lanes for our jammers,” Rat City jammer Luna Negra said. “We have young jammers, and they’re really coming into their own.”

Terminal City took a timeout in the half with 7:46 left on the period clock, at which point the momentum shifted ever-so-slightly in Terminal City’s favor, as the team attained lead jammer status for five consecutive jams. The shift wasn’t enough, however, to keep Rat City in check. The half ended with Rat City leading by 36 points, 82-46.

Managing to give up only two power jams in the first half, Rat City slipped in the second, allowing four; Terminal City gave up five power jams. This back-and-forth of power jams did little to change the score differential, though, as each team’s defense held many jammers at bay for multiple laps. For Terminal City, blockers Mackenzie, Sundown and Suggit used rotating walls to force jammer and blocker recycling that, at one point, allowed the ladies from Vancouver a chance to come within 24 points of their geographical neighbors from Seattle.

With just 17 seconds left in the game, Terminal City used its final timeout to extend the game with one more jam in an attempt to bridge the 54-point spread. Jammer Evada Peron skillfully skated through the pack to attain lead jammer status, and it looked like things would work to Terminal City’s favor as Rat City jammer Sintripetal Force went to the box on a track cut. The Rat City pack, however, walled up around Peron, moving at nearly a stand-still to hold the jammer. Blocker Rumble Fist forced a track cut and a jammer swap-out, crushing Terminal City’s final grasp for points.

Rat City took an early lead from the second jam of the game, one that they managed to hold onto tightly for the remainder of game play, never allowing Terminal City to come closer than 21 points of the team’s victory. Rat City defeated Terminal City 191-142.

“Our focus is teamwork and smart play,” Luna Negra said. “Our goal is to get to Champs. That’s our next step.”

Rat City Rollergirls (seed 4, rank #16) move on to play Gotham Girls Roller Derby (seed 1, rank #1) in Game 9 on Saturday at 2:00 p.m.

Terminal City Rollergirls (seed 5, rank #18) move to the consolation bracket to play Blue Ridge Rollergirls (seed 10, rank #41) in Game 7 on Saturday at 10:00 a.m.

Final Score:

Rat City Rollergirls 191
Terminal City Rollergirls 142