SQUADS FACE EACHOTHER AGAIN AT JULY’S TITLE BOUT

by the Grand Poobah

(ST. LOUIS, MO) If Saturday’s action at the All-American was any indication – then the 2010 championship bout for ARRG will be ridden on an emotional roller coaster.

A 20-point halftime lead helped pace the Stunt Devils to an 85-77 victory over the Smashinistas in ARRG’s final regular season bout of the season.

The win gave the defending league champion a perfect 4-0 record in intraleague action – a record that at one time seemed impossible for some members of the legacy franchise of ARRG.

“Having in the past the worst record in the league to having an undefeated record this season is so freakin’ amazing,” said veteran Stunt Devil blocker Grave Danger following the bout.

But don’t be fooled by the final score – the camo princesses almost stole the “W” away from the ladies in purple with the final jam of the bout.

And even in defeat, their second to the Stunts this season, the Smashies know that they have an opportunity to seek revenge as the two teams meet again in the quest for the league trophy on Saturday, July 10 at the All-American.

“We get a re-do,” said Smashinista jammer The Educator following the bout. “We get to win the next one.”

And that mantra was quickly recognized by the Stunts, who found out that the squad they played on Saturday was jelling at the right time.

“Clearly the Smashies are going to challenge us at the championnship,” said Stunt jammer Morgan LeFaetal. “It’s going to be a really intense game.”

And intense completely describes the numerous, dramatic swings the bout went through Saturday night.

To the surprise of many, points would come few and far between in the bout’s first twenty minutes. Thanks to stingy defense on both sides, neither team gained a true advantage.

In a game of “derby chess,” both teams match each other move-for-move in the first five jams. Eight minutes into the bout, the Stunt Devils possessed a 7-6 edge.

Then came the bout’s first true eye-opening moment.

Smashie scoring leader The Educator raced to the front of the pack and collected an 8-point tally, which gave the ladies in camo a 14-9 lead at the 21:20 mark.

If anything, the Smashies’ message to the high-scoring Stunt Devil squad was now crystal clear – “now you’re playing OUR game.”

The Stunts countered with a two-point jam by Artemischief and a four-pointer by South City Shiner, which now saw the defending champs on top 15-14.

And to their credit, the Smashinistas did not break under pressure. In fact, they became motivated by the challenge.

While the holding the Stunts scoreless for the next five minutes, the Smashies regained the lead thanks to Educator’s three-pointer with 12:09 left in the first half.

Down 17-15 a third of the bout in, the Stunts appeared frustrated. The squad’s two top scorers were being held to well below their scoring averages and they were being doubled up on obtaining lead jammer status.

In short, it wasn’t a fun ride early on for the defending champions – and the frustration needed to be controlled.

 ”With women’s sports, it’s about having a certain amount of aggression, but also you have to contain that aggression,” said the Stunts’ LeFaetal of the predicament.

And it seems apropos that LeFaetal herself – by containing that aggression – would be one of the Stunts to shift the momentum of the game in the first half’s final ten minutes.  

The youngster’s 3-pointer with 10:00 remaining gave the Stunt Devils an 18-17 edge. Artemischief followed with two to extend the lead to three.

The Smashinistas answered with Punches Pileup‘s two point jam. The lead was now down to one point.

Then it was time for the Stunts to play ITS game.

The purple skaters collected the next three jams in the first half’s final five minutes. Artemischief scored a four-pointer while Shiner collected four of her own.

Up 28-19, the Stunts delivered a shot to the Smashies that sent the ladies into a tailspin – an Artemischief double grand slam as the clock wound down. The 10-pointer with :25 left would put the exclamation on a Stunts’ 19-0 stretch run – and a 39-19 lead at the halftime break.

The Stunts would continue the roll to begin the second half of play. The defending champs would outscore the Smashies 20-10 in the second half’s first eleven minutes. Thanks to Shiner’s 8-point tally with 19:10 left to play, the Stunt Devils possessed a 59-31 lead.

The bout – itself a foreshadowing of next month’s league championship – then took a strange turn and featured a foreshadowing of things to come later that night.

With 18:50 remaining, time stood still….literally.

A power malfunction shut down circuitry to the scoreboard and silenced the public address system. And ARRG officials called for a suspension of play while officials at the All-American frantically worked on restoring power.

When play resumed ten minutes later, it provided a fresh jump to the Smashies. Downtown Dallis scored five quick out of the gates to cut the gap to 59-36 Stunts.

And much like the beginning stretch of the game, both teams traded points as the second half progressed – the highlight being Educator’s 9-point power jam with 7:30 remaining to make the score 75-53.

Following a two-point score by the Stunts’ Shiner, Dallis’ grand slam for the Smashies decreased the Stunt’s advantage to 19 points.

Feeling the pressure, the Stunts countered with a pair of four-pointers by LaFaetal and Shiner to give the purple contingent a commanding 85-58 with 3:16 remaining.

The Educator collected four on the next jam for the Smashies, but time was now becoming a factor. Perhaps too little, too late, as the deficit was now 23 points.

The Stunts, sensing victory, offered a rare jam to longtime pivot Mayor Francis Slayer. The sign of respect to the ARRG veteran resulted in no points, but with an 85-62 lead with under a minute remaining, this was to give everyone on the Stunts roster a chance to revel in an undefeated regular season.

All seemed well in the world for the Stunts….until the final jam.

As the game clock reached the :30 mark, the Educator raced to the front of the pack and obtained lead jammer status for the Smashies.

And then it happened again – a power failure.

Which in this case did not matter on the game clock, for the 2:00 jam clock was now the element that dictated the final scoring.- which now was uncertain for there no numbers to read by anyone in ARRG Nation.

The key number crucial to the Smashies was “23″ – the current deficit.

And the Stunts were about to be taken to school as the Educator began to rack up points….very, very quickly.

And to the shock of all those in attendance, the Smashies were coming close…dangerously close to tying. In fact, most could tell that Educator had netted multiple grand slams in the process.

Amid all the confusion taking place, the question had to be asked…..just how many points was she scoring?

When ARRG Official Timer Hi-Refinition blew the final whistle to signal the end of the jam – and the bout – the drama was at a fever pitch. And the tension was high as Educator’s points were being calculated.

The Smashies needed 23 points to tie – The Educator scored 15. And the purple contingent knew that they had dodged a huge bullet in the eight point win.

The 85-77 final served multiple purposes for both squads post-bout, who meet again for the league’s top prize in three weeks.

 ”We definitely know what we need to work on going into the championship game,” said Danger. “We know that we cannot take the Smashies lightly.”

South City Shiner lead the Stunt Devils in scoring with 31 points, followed by Artemischief’s 29 and Morgan LeFaetal’s 19.

And all three jammers will be on the radar of the Smashinistas – who will look for the franchise’s first title at the re-match next month.

“I think we’re going in aware, but confident,” said The Educator, who finished with a bout-high 49 points.  ”I feel like we’ve got some work to do, a few things to tweak, and I think we can take it.”

Downtown Dallis added 15 for the Smashies (1-3), while Punches Pileup added 13.

But now with the regular season in full closure, the slate is wiped completely clean for both sides.

All stats are reset to zero on Saturday, July 10 – and neither team wants to be known as the runner-up.

“It’s going to be knock-down, drag out, full-on derby brawl,” foreshadowed Danger.

Indeed, she is correct.

UNOFFICIAL SCORING

Stunt Devils: South City Shiner 31, Artemischief 29, Morgan LeFateal 19, Mighty Mighty Boston 6

Smashinistas: The Educator 49, Downtown Dallis 15, Punches Pileup 13

NOTES FROM THE POOBAH

Thanks to all who came out on a busy Father’s Day weekend to enjoy women’s flat track roller derby action. There were many dads who were in the audience who continue to support their daughters in the sport that they love so much. Whether you were a dad, a spouse or a significant other to a skater, thank you for your support to the women of the league who make this an important part of their lives.

Much thanks should go out to our media partners who continue to spread the word of ARRG, including KPLR-TV and KTVI-TV, who did an amazing job down the stretch. Thanks to you all for your continued support.

And thanks to all who patiently sat through our extended timeout during the bout while we had a malfunction in the junction with our electricity. An impromptu calvade of entertainment – including skating stunts by ARRG officials, the “worm” executed by Joanie Rollmoan, a belly flop by Hells LaBelle and the “wave” by ARRG Nation – proceeded to make a long break not seem so long.

TICKETS AVAILABLE NOW FOR THE CHAMPIONSHIP BOUT ONLINE

Saturday, July 10 will be here before you know it, and you – a member of the derby-lovin’ public – do not want to be shut out from the action. The 2010 ARRG Championship, featuring the Stunt Devils and the Smashinistas has a special start time of 7 PM. And once again it’s two bouts for the price of one as the STLGatekeepers - the men’s flat track roller derby squad of St. Louis – participate in an intrasquad exhibition prior to the title bout.

The last time there was a double-dip of derby action featuring ARRG and the Gatekeepers – the building reached maximum capacity – so much so that patrons were turned away at the door due to fire occupancy issues.

I can’t stress this enough – if you don’t have a ticket already for Saturday, July 10 – GET IT NOW!

Go to Brown Paper Tickets online to order your tickets.

If you don’t…you probably will only hear about the final.

ARRG TO PARTICPATE AT PRIDEFEST THIS SUNDAY

The Arch Rival Roller Girls will again participate in the official PrideFest parade, to be held Sunday, June 27 on South Grand in St. Louis. The parade route, which makes its way down South Grand Avenue to Tower Grove Park, begins at 12 noon.

This continues ARRG’s involvement of community events in 2010 – which has included the St. Louis St. Patrick’s Day Parade, HeatUp St. Louis and Macklind Days.

The parade is just one of numerous events going on during the two-day celebration this weekend. For more information about St. Louis PrideFest 2010, check their official website HERE.

When not playing Horse Hooky at Fairmount Park, The Grand Poobah and Hells LaBelle are bout announcers for the 2010 season of the Arch Rival Roller Girls. Check back in this section on Mondays for the latest in ARRG news and information.

127-75 WIN NETS LOCALS THIRD WIN IN FOUR BOUTS

by the Grand Poobah

(ST. LOUIS, MO) It was not that long ago that the ARRG All-Stars found themselves in a potentially problematic situation. A mid-May record of 1-4 showed that the locals had experienced more lows than highs early in 2010.

And with strong WFTDA squads on the horizon, a season that some critics would have classified as “rebuilding” could have been completely demolished prior to the official start of summer.

Was the foundation strong enough? And more importantly – could it survive the storm brewing up ahead?

Faced against adversity, the pink and black building still remains intact.

Paced by Artemischief’s bout high 48 points, ARRG posted an impressive 127-75 victory over Duke City of Albuquerque, NM in front of 800 Saturday night at the All-American Sports Mall.

The win over the sixth-ranked team in the WFTDA West region improved ARRG’s record to 4-5, which includes three victories in their last four bouts against WFTDA-sanctioned teams.

“This season we’ve been on a steady stretch upward and it really feels like we’re making some strides,” said ARRG blocker Eli Wallop following the bout. “We’ve been capitalizing on the momentum.”

Although the final score indicates that the bout was lopsided, in all fairness, Duke City was already behind the 8-ball prior the bout – a roster of only 13 skaters, which saw the absences of several key players including a top scorer.

Yet with small numbers in the line-up, the Munecas Muertas grabbed an early advantage.

A grand slam by Duke City’s Meep Meep at the 5:00 mark gave the visitors a 15-4 lead.

ARRG would then shift the momentum to its side during the bout’s next ten minutes. Five consecutive lead jam scores – including a 10-pointer by Enya Nightmare – resulted in 22-point uncontested streak. When the dust had settled at the 16:15 mark, ARRG had posted a 30-18 advantage.

Undaunted, Albuquerque quickly regained the lead on the very next jam. Meep Meep’s 15-point megajam overturned the leader board – which now read 33-30 Duke City.

But whereas Duke City placed all their chips on a roadrunner, ARRG countered by unleashing its cheetah on quads.

At the 5:15 mark, Artemischief sprinted to the front of the pack and came up with a 15-point jam of her own. Just like that, ARRG possessed a 49-37 lead.

The veteran jammer’s 27-point first-half output resulted in a 52-41 lead for the pink and black attack at the halftime break.

Both teams collected points at a frenetic pace to start the second half. ARRG’s South City Shiner and Artemischief scored back-to-back four pointers to extend the lead to 19. Nightmare followed with five of her own.

Down 65-41, Duke City’s Meep Meep and Brutalitaur scored 10 and five respectively to keep pace. The local contingent became nervous as the lead had been whittled down to 65-56 with under 24:00 remaining.

Sensing the uneasy feeling of a large lead lost, ARRG responded with a huge rally.

A 26-1 scoring stretch in the bout’s next eight minutes – punctuated by Shiner’s 15-point power jam – made ARRG Nation breathe a sigh of relief. Their favorites on quads now possessed a 91-57 advantage.

ARRG would continue to maintain the pressure on an already exhausted bunch of Duke City skaters. The “fab four” of Artemischief, Shiner, Nightmare and Black Market Baby would score 75 points collectively for ARRG in the second half, which matched the number of points Duke City scored overall for the bout.

Artemischief lead ARRG scorers with 48 points, followed by Shiner’s 31. Nightmare added 28 while BMB collected 15 for the locals, who picked up their second straight win.

Meep Meep paced Duke City (4-3) with 40 points, followed by Brutalitaur’s well-earned 24 and Amanda Jamitinya’s 15.

“Everytime I went out for a hit, I was bracing myself because those (ARRG) girls hit really hard,” said Jamitinya respectfully said after the bout.

How hard? “Bonecrushingly hard,” replied Wallop.

“They’re made out of bricks,” countered Jamitinya.

And that, perhaps, is the best way to build a solid foundation.

The ARRG All-Stars now take a two-month break from travel team action, as the league focuses its energies on the remainder of the 2010 local season.

St. Louis’ best on quads return to all-star action on Saturday & Sunday, August 14 and 15 at the All-American Sports Mall for a special two-day, four team tournament that includes the Detroit Derby Girls, the Kansas City Roller Warriors and the Philadelphia Liberty Belles.

ST. LUNACHIX UPENDED BY DEMOLITION CITY

EVANSVILLE KEEPS RECORD PERFECT

In Saturday night’s opener, ARRG’s developmental team – the St. Lunachix – dropped to 2-2 on the season following a 134-78 loss to the Demolition City Dynamite Dolls of Evansville, IN.

The locals’ loss was the second this year to Demolition City, who remain undefeated at 6-0.

“it’s a little disappointing, but we’ll learn from it and play better next time,” said Chix jammer/blocker The Siege. “(Evansville) is a very good team – they play very well together.”

The Chix were unable to stop the early attack of the Dolls’ monster jammer, Godjilla, whose 33 first-half points resulted in a 51-10 lead twenty minutes into the bout.

Jammer Mighty Mighty Boston gave the St. Lunachix a small glimmer of hope. An 11-pointer scored cut into the deficit, but Demolition City’s Shelby N. Pain countered with a 14-point power jam. A 69-21 halftime lead for Evansville seemed impossible to catch.

“Last season, it usually took us the whole first half to get the gist of what we needed to do,” said Pain of the huge lead at the break. “So what we’ve been working on this season is picking apart what we needed to do before the bout and learning to adapt a lot quicker during the bout.”

It looks like they’re following their plan to the letter.

But to their credit, the St. Lunachix played in the second half as if the bout was tied. Joanie Rollmoan banged out a 15-pointer five minutes into the second half, while The Siege steadily racked up 4-pointers of her own.

Conversely for Demolition City, a pair of 15-point powerjams – one by Godjilla, one by Pain – were pounded with precision as the period progressed.

Evansville proceeded to outscore the locals 65-53 in the second half to ease to victory.

But don’t think that the visitors didn’t have respect for the Chix post-bout.

“We knew they were going to come back at us because they’re tough,” said Pain, who finished with 41 points. “They were still picking us apart on a lot of stuff so we’ve still got plenty of work to do.”

Godjilla’s 48 points paced Demolition City, while Lillith of the Valley added 32.

The Siege scored 30 points while Rollmoan collected 26 for the St. Lunachix, who next play the COMO Derby Dames on Saturday, September 18.

SATURDAY NOTES FROM THE POOBAH

Thanks to all 800 who showed up at the All-American Sports Mall Saturday night to support a fun night of double derby action. Without your support, special events like these would not be possible.

Special thanks go to the athletes and support staff from Duke City and Demolition City for their professionalism throughout the weekend. In bouts that become one-sided, it is very easy for the play to become chippy and the emotions to become stretched-thin, which could potentially lead to “unladylike” moments. Fortunately, the professionalism of all four squads proved that the sport – and its athletes - will always be respected, regardless of the outcome.

Most respectful were the fans from ARRG Nation who showed their appreciation to both visiting teams with post-bout hand slaps following the bouts.

Special shout outs go to our friends from the local media who gave ARRG a little extra lovin’ prior to this doubleheader: Gary B and Randy Gardner of “STL Sports Zone” on KFNS-AM, Brian McKenna of “The Last Call” on KFNS-AM, Van Lorenz and Rick Wallace of 106.5 The ARCH and Angela Hutti of KTVI-TV. Thanks all for continuing to support ARRG! We appreciate it.

MVPs (as selected by the opposition) for the bouts were the following: ARRG All-Stars, Eli Wallop – Duke City, Amanda Jamitinya – St. Lunachix, The Siege – Demolition City, Shelby N. Pain.

ARRG NEW “C” TEAM DEBUTS THIS SATURDAY

ST. CHUX DERBY CHIX HOST ST. LOUIS’ NEWEST RECRUITS

We’ve featured both the ARRG All-Stars and the St. Lunachix in our continuing coverage this season.

How about we add a third team to the mix?

This weekend marks the debut of ARRG’s other developmental franchise that consists of new recruits to the league in a match-up with the newly-formed St. Chux Derby Chix of St. Charles County.

The bout takes place this Saturday, June 12 at the Omni Sportsplex (4160 Industrial Drive, St. Peters, MO). Doors open at 7pm. The $7 bout starts at 8pm.

Formed last December, The St. Chux Derby Chix is currently a member of USARS (USA Roller Sports), which is the national governing body of roller sports in the United States. Roller sports in the jurisdiction of the USARS include speed skating, inline hockey, figure skating, rink hockey and yep, derby.

USARS derby teams follow the same rules and regulations as the WFTDA, thus they are eligible to face WFTDA teams. The St. Chux Derby Chix’s goal in 2011 is to become an apprentice league of the WFTDA.

The league has one bout under its belt, an interleague match-up between the Vertbreak’n Vixens and the Dollface Killers in mid-April. A 39-35 win for the Vixens launched a newfound athletic alternative in St. Charles County. And if you are a lover of derby who likes to see the sport grow, THAT is always a good thing.

The two squads from St. Charles will combine teams to create their roster, while ARRG will field of roster of rookie recruits. These will be athletes who have dedicated the time and literal sweat equity to ARRG for participation at practices, home bouts and at community events.

They all hope to make their progression into one of the three interleague teams of ARRG in the future. Wouldn’t it be nice to say “thank you” for all the support they have given the league so far?

As of press time, ARRG is still determining the name of the new squad. Find out for yourself as its unveiled this Saturday at the Omni’s Wheel.

It’s the future of the sport – I think it’ll be $7 well spent.

ARRG’S FINAL SPRINT THIS WEEK FOR “RACE FOR THE CURE”

The final week of fundraising has approached for ARRG as they are set to participate in the 2010 Komen St. Louis Race for the Cure, to be held this Saturday morning in downtown St. Louis.

Last year, ARRG raised $2,700 – this year our goal is $3,500! With under a week left, we have reached 43% of our goal! There’s no better time to help out our cause than now! Thanks to your support and donation, you’ll help us achieve that goal and continue our streak of successful community outreach projects in 2010.

To join our team and to make a donation, visit the ARRG team page.

And by all means – come walk with us on June 12 and show support to those who have courageously fought and continue to fight this disease!

NEXT WEEK IN THE ARRG NEWSCENTER: The final bout of the regular season approaches! Two teams battle in a potential championship preview while a third team on the sidelines will watch the scoreboard, hoping that mathematics will sneak them into the finals. Hells LaBelle will bring you a preview.

The Grand Poobah and Hells LaBelle are bout announcers for the 2010 season of the Arch Rival Roller Girls. Check back in this section on Mondays for the latest in ARRG news and information.