(BALLWIN, MO) Saturday night saw the local season openers for the Arch Rival Roller Girls (ARRG) and GeteKeepers Roller Derby (GKRD) at Midwest Sport Hockey and high-octane surges in both games’ waning minutes determined winners.
Photo Credit: Bob Dunnell
In the women’s flat-track main event, the Smashinistas upended the defending league champion Stunt Devils, 178-173, and in the men’s opener, the Central West Friends topped the Raiders of Forest Park, 200-176.
With the competitive play displayed by all four squads this weekend, one thing can already be projected following the first of each respective leagues’ three-team, six-event regular season…it’s going to be a mad scramble to claim championships next April.
ARRG: SMASHINISTAS 178 STUNT DEVILS 173
The re-match of last year’s trophy battle was a topsy-turvy affair that was highlighted by ten lead changes overall, three of those within the final five minutes. The decisive one, netted by the Smashies with 1:05 left to play, inevitably resulted in the five-point win.
Photo Credit: Bob Dunnell
“It was anyone’s game,” said Smashinistas co-captain Cloak N’ Drag-Her about the heart-stopper. “The Stunt Devils are such as a talented team and I think it was just the luck of the draw. We dug a little bit deeper and it just ended up in our favor tonight.”
And even with the setback, the Stunts held their collective heads high afterwards and proved that they will be a dangerous foe as the season progresses.
“I’m really excited because everyone got a lot of playing time,” reflected Stunts blocker Shear-Ra Powers of the effort. “We all had great communication and we were all able to rely of each other. I was very impressed.”
Photo Credit: Bob Dunnell
Trailing 9-7 after four jams, the Stunt Devils flipped the scoreboard at the 23:45 mark following Psychokid D Freakout’s 14-8 strike that gave the defending champs a 21-17 edge. Ten points uncontested followed as CupQuake’s seven and Bricktator’s three in the next two rotations pushed the score to 31-17 with 21:30 left.
The Smashinistas rebounded with 27-0 rally over the next five jams and, in the process, regained the lead. Harmony Killerbruise posted eight in jam 7 to tighten the score to 31-25 and Hakuna Renata’s four-pointer whittled the lead to two points, 31-29.
Smashie newcomer Flash flipped the scoreboard at the 19:15 mark with a nine-pointer that gave her squad a 38-31 lead. The run was concluded with respective jams of four and two points from EnYa Nightmare and Killerbruise to stretch the Smashinistas’ advantage to 44-31 with 17:00 left in the period.
The differential remained at 13 points, 53-40, at the 12:30 mark, but the Stunts’ 17-0 rally over the next four rotations resulted in another lead change. CupQuake’s eight-pointer in jam 16 was followed by Freakout’s trey with 10:30 left that whittled the margin to two points, 53-51.
Bricktator notched six on the next rotation to conclude the streak and give the Stunt Devils a 57-53 lead with 9:25 left in the period.
Photo Credit: Bob Dunnell
The advantage was short-lived as the Smashies grinded 19 points uncontested as six from Renata on the next rotation and Killerbruise’s 13-pointer with 5:50 left resulted in a 72-57 lead for the Smashinistas.
That advantage also expired quickly as Bricktator on the next jam notched 25 points to flip the scoreboard back to the Stunts’ favor, 82-72 with 5:05 left in the frame. CupQuake added four thereafter t o stretch the lead to 86-72.
The Stunts’ late-period run, powered by blockers Powers, Aceta Menacin, Ninja Sass ‘Em, Danisaurus Rex, Aggie Wartooth, Peg E. Sass, Cruella Belle-ville, Sound-Proof, Midnight Smack and Stormin’ Norma, continued with a 27-12 run down the stretch. Accented by power jams from Bricktator and Freakout that yielded 17 and 10 points, respectively, the defending champs possessed a 113-84 lead at intermission.
In the second period, the Smashies whittled the deficit to 125-108 five minutes deep but the Stunts’ CupQuake quelled the momentum with a 14-pointer scored with 23:15 left to push the score to 139-108.
Photo Credit: Bob Dunnell
Undaunted, the Smashinistas responded with a 28-0 run over the next four rotations to slash the lead to three points, thanks to solid work from blockers Drag-Her Shimmy Hoffa, Fletch-A-Sketch, Chewblocka, Party RockHer, Party McFly, Girl Fawkes, Bad Mutha T and KannabisKorpse. Killerbruise launched the surge with three, Nightmare followed with five and Renata’s 15-0 power jam with 19:20 left shaved the score to 139-131. Killerbruise tacked on a grand slam on the next rotation to narrow the Stunts’ lead 139-136 with 18:20 remaining.
Scoring ping-ponged as the minutes continued but the Stunts stretched its lead back to double-digits as CupQuake’s eight-pointer scored with 12:50 left pushed the score to 153-143.
Photo Credit: Bob Dunnell
A Smashies’ 15-0 run over the next five minutes resulted in another lead change. Back-to-back four-pointers from Nightmare and Flash whittled the game to 153-151 with 9:45 left. Nightmare added a three-pointer with 8:50 remaining to flip the scoreboard, 154-153. Killerbruise contributed four with 7:15 left to widen the Smashinistas’ lead to 158-153.
Both teams collected 10 points on ensuing jams, resulting to back-to-back lead changes. Freakout’s 10-pointer with 6:30 left flipped the scoreboard in favor of the Stunts, 163-158, and Renata reciprocated with 10 to give the Smashies a 168-163 lead with 4:55 remaining.
The Stunts posted six points straight over the next two jams to regain the lead. CupQuake’s two-pointer with 2:30 left was followed by Bricktator’s four with 1:30 remaining to give the Devils a solo-point advantage, 169-168.
Photo Credit: Bob Dunnell
In the game’s penultimate jam, the Smashies’ Renata collected lead and notched four points, resulting in the donnybrook’s tenth lead change and a 172-169 advantage for the camo-clad troopers with 1:05 remaining.
In the game’s final rotation, and with the Queeny Park contingent standing in nervous anticipation, the Smashinistas’ Killerbruise grabbed lead with the Stunts’ CupQuake escaping the congested pack in close pursuit. A 6-4 nail-biting battle-ending jam ensued and the Smashies held on for a 178-173 victory to claim its first victory of the season.
Killerbruise topped the Smashies with a game-high 84 points, followed by Nightmare’s 43. The squad looks to keep its record spotless with a December 5 meeting with the M-80s at Queeny Park,
The Stunts, 0-1 and idle in December, was paced by CupQuake’s 70 points followed by Bricktator’s 68.
INDIVIDUAL SCORING
SMASHINISTAS (178): Harmony Killerbruise 84, EnYa Nightmare 43, Hakuna Renata 39, Flash 18, Shimmy Hoffa 9.
STUNTS DEVILS (173): CupQuake 70, Bricktator 68, Psychokid D Freakout 41, Aceta Menacin 4.
GKRD: CENTRAL WEST FRIENDS 200 RAIDERS OF FOREST PARK 176
In the men’s opener, which featured a total re-branding of GateKeepers’ local teams, the newly-minted Central West Friends staved a second-period charge from the Raiders to collect a 24-point win and snag the team’s inaugural win.
Photo Credit: Bob Dunnell
Trailing 9-4 four jams in, CWF jammer Bower Ranger notched a 23-point power jam at 24:05 to give his squad a 27-9 advantage.
The Raiders responded with a 33-0 rally, with jams involving increments of one better over the prior across the next three jams, which snagged an advantage. A. Black’s 10-pointer, Mouthful’s 11-pointer and Porter’s dozen resulted in a 42-27 lead for Forest Park with 18:15 remaining the first period.
The scoreboard flipped, and was extended, with CWF’s identical 33-0 rally over the next three jams. Ranger’s 19-point power jam at the 16:05 mark resulted in a 46-42 lead change. Mailbox followed with eight in jam 11 to push the score to 54-42 and Ranger’s six with 13:45 left in the period widened the Friends’ lead to 60-42.
As the first period progressed, the Friends, propelled by blockers Monster Jam,SoGo, Perc In Boots, Fruit Wallup, Great Stromboli, Cpt. Kramerica, Red Rider and Blue Suede Bruise, capitalized on power jams to widen its advantage. Highlighted by a 14-point jam from Mailbox and a 15-pointer from Poppa Choppa, CWF pushed the score to 93-60 with 5:05 remaining in the half.
Photo Credit: Bob Dunnell
The score was pushed to 115-64 following Mailbox’s 18-point power jam scored with 2:05 left. The Friends went on to hold a 122-73 lead at intermission.
In the second period, the Friends maintained the margin and pushed the score to 170-115 following Ranger’s 18-point power jam with 16:05 left in the contest.
As the period progressed, the Raiders found its proverbial ”derby Ark” and churned a 46-0 run over five jams, paced by blockers Spin Diesel, Dr. Dredd, Bower, Wrecking Bill, Slammin’ T. Killa, Atom Bomb, Hamilton and Arty Panimal. The uncontested sprint, highlighted by Black’s 13-point power jam at the 12:00 mark, whittled the Friends’ lead to 170-161 with 7:45 remaining in the contest.
Ranger notched the grand slam with 6:30 left to push the Friends’ advantage to 175-161 but the Raiders’ Porter collected seven on the next rotation to narrow the score to 175-168 with 5:05 remaining.
Photo Credit: Bob Dunnell
On the game’s penultimate jam, the Friends’ Ranger grabbed lead and utilized a power jam to collect a 18-8 rotation that pushed CWF’s lead to 193-176 with 2:40 left. Mailbox’s seven point strike in the final rotation secured the 200-176 victory and the first-ever victory for the Central West Friends
Ranger finished with 110 points to pace CWF. The GateKeepers’ “Turf Wars” campaign returns to Midwest Sport Hockey on January 2, 2016.
For more information on the Arch Rival Roller Girls, go to archrivalrollergirls.com.
For more information on GateKeepers Roller Derby, go to stlgatekeepers.com.
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