(COLLINSVILLE, IL) For Confluence Crush Roller Derby, Saturday night’s flat-track home finale went as well as it could have.
Photo Credit: Brian Ledford – Arch City Media
Effective offensive and defensive strategies clearly defined the Crush’s 340-93 victory over the Rolla Rockets at Collinsville’s Gateway Center.
For the league’s primary travel team, the output marked season bests in both points scored in a single contest and the winning differential recorded.
“It was amazing,” beamed Crush jammer Lil’ Smokes following the 247-point triumph. “This was such a good gauge for us. Everyone was very strong, stayed together and helped our jammers.”
“I think communication was great tonight,” added Crush blocker Rampage. “Everyone picked up on where we needed to be and where we needed to go.”
The squad on quads’ awareness and dominance was on display throughout the night. With excellent pack work, the Crush obtained lead jammer status 31 times out of game’s 38 overall rotations (81.6%).
Mercy! That stat included 14 straight lead jams from the opening whistle, which resulted in the locals’ early sizable lead.
Following Smokes’ 12-6 opening jam, the Crush churned 34 points uncontested and sported a 46-6 advantage following Code Red’s 15-point strike recorded eight minutes in.
Trauma Queen added a 7-3 jam on the next flight that stretched the score to 53-9.
Photo Credit: Brian Ledford – Arch City Media
The Crush blocking schema – paced by captain Scarlet Bandit, Abitude, Rampage, Swamp Smasher, D’ Woww Murkem, Rushin’ Bruisette, Andy Cyclone, Harley Legal, Mean Bean and Kassaroll – then went into lockdown mode – and went on a 45-0 run over the next four jams.
Launched by Smokes’ 20-pointer scored in Jam 7 and concluded by Rampage’s first turn at jammer that yielded eight points with 14:10 remaining in the first period, CCRD widened the score to 98-9.
“When you come in and get all those leads, it sets a good tone for the whole game,” said Rampage of the team’s fast start. “You come in with your mind set to win and that turned out to be very important.”
The Crush broke the century mark on the next jam as Abitude donned the star for the first time of the evening and added 15 points.
As the first period continued, the rollers kept momentum on their side and widened the differential to triple digits. Red posted a dozen points on the half’s penultimate jam that blossomed the lead to 155-37.
Paced by an overwhelming advantage in lead jams obtained (16-1), the Crush held a 163-49 lead at intermission.
To their credit, Rolla – who entered Saturday’s contest winners of four straight – refused to waive the white flag. Rockets’ favorite Shorty notched a five-pointer thanks to a power start that began the second period.
Unfazed, the Crush countered with a 35-0 rally and knocked on the bi-centennial door with 24:20 left in the contest after Smokes churned 19 points, resulting in a 198-54 score.
Photo Credit: Brian Ledford – Arch City Media
After reaching that benchmark with Rampage’s pair of points in Jam 5, the Crush gained a power jam on the next rotation, resulting in Abitude’s eye-opening 28-pointer that jettisoned the score to 228-65 at the 22:40 mark.
As the half continued, another Crush defensive crunch ensued and a rare 200-point differential was achieved. Their 58-0 thump during a five-jam sequence stretched the score to 294-71 with about eight minutes left.
The host topped the 300-point barrier – a feat they had not posted since June 2019 – with Abitude’s 12-8 rotation that made the score 310-80 with 3:50 left in the game.
The narrative of lead jam dominance by the Crush was present again in the second period (15-3) and their 177-44 scoring output in the back-half resulted in the 340-93 home finale victory.
“I’m very proud,” said Smokes of the team’s strong finish. “The togetherness was phenomenal. We played liked we practiced, and a lot of things came together.”
Photo Credit: Brian Ledford – Arch City Media
Smokes – who after the game received Most Valuable Jammer honors for the Crush – paced scoring with 152 points while three other skaters claimed plus-50 each.
The Crush – currently ranked #85 in the North America Northeast region of the Women’s Flat Track Derby Association (WFTDA) – looks to build on Saturday’s success heading into their next night of recruitment. The off-skates informational session takes place Thursday, October 17 at 7 PM at the Tri-Township Activity Center (248 Riggin Rd., Troy, IL).
“I think the future looks great,” said Rampage, who was awarded Most Valuable Blocker for the Crush Saturday. “We’ve got a lot of newer skaters (this year) and we have the upcoming Newbie Night, so I’m feeling confident that next season we’ll be able to go out there on the track and play as well as we have been.”
Photo Credit: Brian Ledford – Arch City Media
Rolla’s Cup-A-TNT and Casskicker were respectively awarded MVP Jammer and MVP Blocker for the Rockets, who hosts their home ender versus South Central Roller Girls on Saturday, November 2.
For more information on the Crush, go to their official website.
UNOFFFICIAL SCORING
CONFLUENCE CRUSH (340): Lil’ Smokes 152, Code Red 57, Abitude 55, Trauma Queen 54, Rampage 22.
By trade, he is a six-time, regional Emmy Award-winning news videographer/editor for KTVI/KPLR-TV. By hobby, he is a writer for Arch City Media, dating back to February 2014. Emphasis is on featuring and promoting local women's sports, but will cover anything that is not reported by traditional media outlets. Also a contributor to local concert reviews. Finally, he prefers Diet Ski over coffee.
