All photos courtesy of our own Lock-Down Sally (Charlotte Tisdale) unless otherwise noted.
The River City Rollergirls’ Poe’s Punishers showed the Charlottesville Derby Dames some Tough Love on Saturday night in both teams’ season opening bout, hosted by RCR in the Richmond Convention Center.
CDD Skaters take a knee before the start of the bout.
This was the first bout for the Dames after acceptance into the WFTDA Apprenticeship Program in January. Saturday night also marked the debut of the Dames’ newly formed All-Stars Team including veteran skaters B-one Bomber, Rox Ann Stones, SparKills, Nilla WasteHer, Ivy Ketamean, Demolition Plan, Werefox, Die Ann Scream, Apple Clobber, Puerto Rican PunisHer, Bruta Liza, and Stonewallup. Newcomers Mia Machete and Miami Beat Box completed the Dames’ roster. Acting as Bench Coach and Bench Manager for the Dames: Mad Mountin’ Mama and Rex Knightly, respectively.
CDD Bench Manager Rex Knightly and Bench Coach Mad Mountin’ Mama (photo by Whitney Richardson)
After suffering some setbacks at the end of the 2011 season, including the loss of a primary practice space, the Dames worked extra hard to prepare for this bout, CDD’s first against RCR in two years.
The team’s expectations were high. SparKills, a four-year veteran of the Dames, said before the bout began, “We’ve never been more prepared.”
First to take the track were blockers Nilla WasteHer, Die Ann Scream, Werefox and Mia Machete, with B-one Bomber jamming. After a slow start with both teams taking position at the jammer line, Poe’s jammer, Trauma Gotchi, was first to push through the pack to take Lead Jammer, scoring the first three points of the night for RCR.
CDD quickly came back in the next jam, with SparKills taking Lead Jammer for the Dames, picking up 8 points for CDD while CDD’s blockers proved effective in keeping RCR’s jammer from leaving the pack.
RCR fought back hard using a very effective hammer and nail strategy to consistently land take-down strength hits on the Dames as they struggled to maintain a defense against RCR’s jammers. CDD’s heaviest hitting blockers, Rox Ann Stones and Ivy Ketamean, were on the track in nearly every jam, working hard to destroy RCR’s tight walls. Werefox and PunisHer teamed up several times to successfully hold back RCR’s jammers.
Blockers Machete, Clobber, PunisHer and Die Ann Scream assist Miami Beat Box
But despite CDD’s best efforts, RCR proved more effective in getting their jammer out of the pack first, taking Lead Jammer status in all but four of the first period’s twenty jams. Even so, CDD trailed RCR by just 13 points going into the last jam of the first period.
At the start of the first period’s last jam, CDD’s jammer, B-one Bomber, and one blocker, Apple Clobber, were sidelined in the penalty box. Taking the track for CDD were SparKills, Nilla WasteHer and Ivy Ketamean. Although B-one was released from the penalty box just seconds after the start of the jam, she was quickly returned after being called on a major. SparKills and Nilla followed after also being called with major penalties, leaving Ivy on the track alone against RCR’s blockers. RCR’s jammer, Raci Lords, very quickly cleared the pack to take advantage of a Grand Slam situation. She scored 40 points, bringing the score at halftime to RCR 76 and CDD 29.
Coming back from halftime, the Dames were refocused on offensive strategy and it showed: in the second half, the Dames traded Lead Jammer status fairly evenly with RCR. First to take Lead Jammer for the Dames in the second half was Miami Beat Box, who captured a handful of points for the Dames before calling off the jam.
Rox Ann Stones blocks RCR’s 40 Ounce Bounce
The next few jams saw the Dames struggling to stay out of the penalty box. RCR soon took advantage of yet another Grand Slam opportunity when CDD jammer Die Ann Scream and two CDD blockers, Machete and Stonewallup, sat in the box at the start of the jam, leaving just Rox Ann Stones and B-one Bomber to defend against RCR.
RCR, not content to let CDD sit alone in the box, soon joined our players with three of their own. Werefox, jamming for the Dames, took lead jammer in the next jam, bringing the score for CDD to 42 against Poe’s 119, with a little over half of the period left.
The Dames successfully refocused on moving quickly from offense to defense and over the next several jams was able to further reduce Poe’s lead, bringing CDD’s score to 77 and keeping Poe’s from advancing past 139.
Unfortunately for the Dames, RCR also successfully refocused on offense, taking lead jammer for the next three jams and bringing their score to 148 vs. CDD’s 85. CDD responded with increased intensity, and Miami Beat Box, skating as if she were the spawn of B-One Bomber and SparKills, took lead jammer once again and grabbed 5 points for the Dames.
Miami Beat Box jams for the Dames
With two jams left in the period, the Dames knew they needed to fight for lead jammer status. Blockers Nilla, Machete, Demolition Plan, and Bruta Liza took the track with Werefox wearing the star for the Dames. Poe’s took lead jammer and made several blow-by scoring passes on the Dames. Nilla and Werefox orchestrated a beautiful star pass in the hopes of moving CDD’s jammer out of the pack and into a scoring pass of her own. However, RCR quickly called off the jam, leaving CDD with no points to show for their efforts.
In the last jam of the night, CDD took the track with 90 points. On the track for CDD: Rox Ann Stones, Ivy Ketamean, Die Ann Scream and Apple Clobber with B-one Bomber jamming. B-one immediately cleared the pack to take lead jammer status and scoring 10 points for the Dames to bring the final score of the night to CDD 100 vs. RCR 186.
Game MVPs: for CDD, Ivy Ketamean and for RCR, 40-Ounce Bounce.
Bout MVP: Ivy Ketamean
Next up for the Dames: another away game! The team will travel to Roanoke to bout Star-City Rollergirls on Sunday, March 11 in their St. Patty’s Punch Out. Tickets are available in advance for $6.50 at http://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/229063
And at the end of March, the Dames will host their first HOME BOUT of the season at Augusta Expoland. Join us for Mad March: Beyond Rollerdome when we host Lynchburg’s Blackwater Rollergirls. A portion of the proceeds from the bout will benefit the RISE Campaign. The RISE Campaign empowers women and girls to challenge the disparaging portrayals of women in the media, and to rise to new standards of strength and distinction.
Tickets for Mad March: Beyond Rollerdome are available in advance for $7 at Blue Moon Diner, Rivanna Gear and Apparel or online at http://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/230361 Tickets will be available at the door for $10. Kids under 5 enter free; Kids 5-10 are $5.
Are you the best team in Virginia? Do you want an opportunity to prove it to the regional derby community? Would you like to petition to change the VA state slogan to “Virginia is for Shovers”? Or do you just want to skate?
