Saint Paul, MN

by Shelly Shankya

The highly anticipated first semifinal of the 2015 International WFTDA Championships featured Rose City Rollers Wheels of Justice from Portland, Ore. (#1 D1 Dallas, #2) against the London Rollergirls London Brawling of London, England (#1 D1 Jacksonville, #3), and the game didn’t disappoint. The two teams met earlier in the 2015 as London hosted the Wheels of Justice in August where the host team defeated Portland 193-129. And prior to that barn-burner, the teams exchanged one win and one loss in previous years’ play.

by The Oxford Commakaze

The Victorian Roller Derby League of Melbourne, Australia, (#1 Tucson) pushed past the Texas Rollergirls of Austin, Texas, (#2 Dallas) to secure a place in the semifinals at the 2015 WFTDA International Championships. VRDL will play Gotham Girls Roller Derby of New York, N.Y., (#1 Omaha). It will be the first time the teams have faced each other since 2012, VRDL’s first season as a WFTDA member league.

by Shelly Shankya

The story when Gotham Girls Roller Derby (#1 D1 Omaha, #1) plays isn’t how the team wins - they’ve been undefeated since 2010; the story is how close the other team can get, and in the case of Jacksonville’s New Jax City Rollers (#2 D1 Jacksonville, #8), the story turned out pretty well, especially in the game’s first period. After a narrow defeat of Arch Rival Roller Girls on Friday, the Jacksonville skaters came out swinging against the powerhouse players from New York City, but the Gotham team did what it does best; they won 299-114 to advance to the semifinal game on Saturday night.

By The Oxford Commkaze

In a familiar matchup seen just a few months ago and at last year’s Championships, the Rose City Rollers of Portland, Ore., (Dallas #1) outlasted the Bay Area Derby Girls of Oakland, Calif., (Tucson #2) in the quarterfinals at the 2015 International WFTDA Championships. Rose City moves on to play the London Rollergirls at 6:30 p.m. tonight.

by Shelly Shankya

An early bleed of blockers to the penalty box set both teams on edge, as nerves were high during the opening minutes of Game 5 between London Rollergirls (#1 D1 Jacksonville, #3) and the Angel City Derby Girls (#2 D1 Jacksonville, #6) at the 2015 International WFTDA Championships in St. Paul, Minn. Angel City felt the brunt of the penalty box pain, losing three in the first jam. The second jam was just as penalty-heavy, and led to a 2-1 pack advantage for the London Brawling. While tensions and penalties remained high, London hoped for a repeat of the teams' earlier meeting in June 2015 when the Brawling dimmed the star of the Hollywood Starlets, winning 218-117.