In chatting with Connecticut RollerGirl Your Mom about this past Sunday’s bout between the Stepford Sabotage and Montreal’s New Skids on the Block, Your Mom used a word that so well describes the efforts of Connecticut: Tenacity. Montreal is a powerful team. They have grown a ton since their founding in 2006. Saturday night they defeated Providence with something akin to a 200 point victory. Unfortunately for Connecticut derby fans, this Sunday’s showdown saw similar results as the Stepford Sabotage endured a crushing defeat of 298 to 52. Still, there was no absence of tenacity from the CT skaters, especially from CT’s lead scorer on Sunday: Pearl Jammer.
This was Pearl’s first bout back after coming off of a knee injury. It was great to see her skate again. She is truly skilled. Still, it was clear that her knees were still punishing her, especially under the aggressive thrashing of the Montreal defense. But no amount of hits could keep Pearl Jammer down. On multiple occasions Pearl Jammer would be on the receiving end of a devastating blow. She’d be knocked down but would force herself up without pause. Again. and Again. and Again. That woman is a wrecking ball of tenacity.
The CT pack did what it could to support their jammer but were outmatched by Montreal’s impressive skating and strategies. The Connecticut crowd kept up their support by cheering the small victories. Girl Fawkes and Murphy Outlaw’s incessant blows on Ti-Loup in the 2nd jam, Pearl’s four points in the 7th, Shiny Toy Bun’s great drive for lead in the 11th, and C.Mya Rage’s consistent ability to squeeze in a few points – even after lost leads.
There were other moments where the CT team seemed to shine as a collective group. Pearl, Rage, and Murphy had a great streak in the second half pulling in 13 points between them in a trio of successful jams.
But the power of Montreal was hard to contain. Their jammers pulled lead jammer status for 24 of the 35 jams and during power jams were able to rack up 25 and 30 point jams; a commendable achievement for any team. It was impressive to see such point domination as a result of not any single player as much as a well oiled team very much in sync with one another.
While the final score might suggest otherwise, this was a great bout to watch. Great job to all the players for their efforts!
Let’s look at some stats!
Lead Scorers:
Montreal New Skids on the Block
Georgia W. Tush 67 points (eight jams, six lead)
Ti-Loup 65 points (six jams, two lead)
Chasing Amy 52 points (six jams, six lead – Whoa.)
Connecticut’s Stepford Sabotage
Pearl Jammer 18 points (ten jams, four lead)
C. Mya Rage 15 points (eight jams, one lead)
Shiny Toy Buns 6 points (six jams, one lead)
As far as I’m aware, no MVP’s were officially announced. Still, I think Stepford’s Pearl Jammer deserves some major street cred for her resilience. And New Skid Chasing Amy is worthy of accolades for her flawless record of lead jammer attempts.
If you’d like more information on Connecticut Roller Derby, check out the website here.
If I’m not mistaken that makes the Sabotage 0-3 in closed bouts this year.
IMO the only reason WHY there should be a closed bout is to fulfill the requirement prior to June 30 per WFTDA rules, and even then only in late May til June.