SDRD vs. Santa Cruz Derby Girls - 05/22/10

O-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-Oh My Gosh!
San Diego Roller Derby’s Starlettes beat the Santa Cruz Harbor Hellcats with a final score of 124-56 on Saturday, May 22nd at Skateworld. Now, with a record of 12 wins out of 14 bouts since the league began, the Starlettes have demonstrated once again that they are an unstoppable force.

Any fan at the bout could sense that the Starlettes were primed for a win. Their “derby” energy was still on a high from their recent victory at the Battle for the Coast Tournament in Ventura just 3 weeks earlier. They were determined and ready to win.
But the Santa Cruz Roller Girls were no slouches. They had come along way and they were ready to skate. These girls were good on their skates, tough to knock down and executed several carefully choreographed strategic plays. But somehow, this was not enough to stop the Starlettes.

SDRD started out strong and continued to score jam after jam. They played a clean game, kept out of the penalty box and were able to outmaneuver the girls from Santa Cruz. The three jammer rotation of Wicked Angel, Icepax and Wonder Whoop’em worked well for the Starlettes. Each of the jammers has her own individual style which she uses to her advantage. Wicked Angel plows through, Icepax circles around and Wonder Whoop’em jumps between the opposing players.

As always the Starlette’s defense was top notch. I am still wondering what IB Rascal must put in her coffee to maintain that crazy energy. The Santa Cruz jammers did not have a chance of getting through the pounding of her star-studded tutu. Rumble Pie, as always, put on quite a performance as well. Her posture and stance are as elegant as a dancer, but on the track she was more boxer than ballerina. Especially for the blocker who was elbowing her teammate. But my favorite move of all was when Lady Diesel turned around to stare down the opposing blockers. They seemed to shake in their skates rather than attempt to pass the Rock-Block of Diesel, captain of the Starlettes.

Just when I thought I couldn’t take any more edge of my seat excitement, I found myself mesmerized at the half time show. I was happy to sit back and enjoy the cute dancers and see if I won the 50-50 raffle. But when B. Stang, coach of the Starlettes, and Jackson, Skateworld employee, in the midst of their freestyle skate routine jumped a total of 8 Starlettes lying trustingly on the floor, I realized this was skating at its best!

Could it get any better? Yes it did! The second half was even more exciting than the first. It seemed there was no end to the pummeling of players on both teams. The hits got bigger and the falls got harder. The Santa Cruz girls continued to fight until the very last jam. But, this was no match for the Starlettes. SDRD continued with a sizable lead throughout the second half. The fans were even able to catch a peek of some of the new jammer talent that will likely be playing in their next bout on June 26th. Sweet Pain, Mrs. Brigg ‘em Down and Juno EscareMe all made appearances to bring in the final points of the jam.

San Diego Roller Derby has proven once again that they are a league to be respected in the world of Flat Track Roller Derby. They are an inspiration to us all both on and off the track. Go San Diego Roller Derby!