Quad Squads: Derby Double Header

After a summer of derby dearth, roller derby returned to Morristown NJ last night with a double header: the women’s NJRD All Stars vs Lehigh Valley Metal Vixens and the men’s Jersey Boys Roller Derby (JBRD) vs Capital District Trauma Authority.

Following the anthem sung by NJRD Small Stars junior derby skaters Lil Miss and Fast’n’Furious, the ladies were up first. Whatever home court advantage existed for the All Stars was balanced by a greater depth of skaters on the Metal Vixens’ bench. In the first jam, MJ Slammer snared 8 points for the Vixens, a harbinger of things to come; MJ and fellow Vixen jammer HotgunZ would skate particularly impressively. Over the past two years the All Stars have developed a smart defense, breaking the pack and forming walls as needed; this was on display, but the Vixens blockers proved adept at disrupting All Star tactics, making for a very physical bout. Pixie Bust and Bitty Boom Boom took down Vixen jammers in single hits while Lin Diesel hit hard for Lehigh. Vixen walls at times were impenetrable. Miss USAHole, Chase Windu, Slam Hathaway, and Maulin Rouge nonetheless added points for the All Stars. At halftime the score stood at 94-50 in favor of the Vixens. In the second half, the All Stars sought to erode the Vixen lead. With fewer fresh skaters to rotate onto the track, the All Stars were visibly tiring, yet they succeeded at chipping away at the Vixen lead. Maulin Rouge showed her usual agility and burst of speed. Despite the effort, and a final power jam by Chase Windu, the whistle blew with a final score of 162-128, victory to Vixens.

MVPs – All Stars: jammer – Maulin Rouge/blocker – Rosa Ruckus

              Metal Vixens: jammer – MJ Slammer/blocker – Hellrazin’ Hussy

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In what appeared at first to be a reverse image of the women’s bout, the home team JBRD took an early lead over the Trauma Authority, leading by 22 points 7 minutes into the bout. It soon turned into a very different kind of match. The Trauma Authority retook the lead which then traded back and forth until the final minutes of the bout. Papi Chuleta and Scooter McGoot jammed strongly for JBRD through blocking that frequently was fierce – Pepi was taken down particularly hard at one point. Herzog and Massacre jammed surefootedly for Trauma. With 8 minutes remaining in the bout, Trauma led 109-108. In a final push, Scooter and Papi racked up points for JBRD and the lead changed again. Final score was JBRD 153/Trauma Authority 123.

MVPs – JBRD: jammer – Scooter McGoot/blocker – I Don’t Care Bear

             Trauma Authority: jammer – Herzog/blocker – Hart