OHIO FALLS TO ARCH RIVAL
Ohio Roller Girls All Stars vs. Arch Rival Roller Girls All Stars
With the long history between the Arch Rival Roller Girls and the Ohio Roller Girls, it could have been anyone’s game on Saturday. Ohio wanted nothing more than to break Arch Rival’s unbeaten winning streak at home, and Arch undeniably wanted revenge for last year’s playoff loss. Unfortunately for Ohio, the hometown team prevailed.
The Smacktivist drew first blood against Mighty Mighty Boston, but it didn’t take long for the tide to turn against Ohio. The Arch defense was not to be messed with from the very beginning. Blockers Mayor Francis Slayer, Emily Rineheart, and Downtown Dallis, among others, worked hard to keep the Ohio jammers frustrated, holding back the likes of Kitty Liquorbottom. With Ohio jammers held back, Arch was able to hold a point lead through the majority of the first half and into the second.
In the last half, Ohio wanted nothing more than to even things up. While jammers Brickyard and Annie Swanson did the work to keep the Arch lead, Ohio blockers Lora “Outa My” Wayman and Amy Spears did their best to hold them back. Ohio started narrowing the point gap midway through the last half thanks to Bigg Rigg and the defensive help of Ena Flash and Jesse “Ava Tarr” Fox. Arch held their lead thoughout and despite a valiant effort by The Smacktivist in the last two jams to even things up, Ohio fell to Arch 153-160.
Gang Green vs. St Lunachix
Once the dust settled from the charter bout between the Ohio Roller Girls and the Arch Rival All Stars that came down to the final jam, it was up to Gang Green and the St. Lunachix to settle an overall 1-1 record against each other in a pivotal rubber match. Fielding a team with under ten skaters, Gang Green called upon veterans Bigg Rigg and Paige Bleed to help out in the battle of reserve squads. Also of note, this bout marked the return to action of original OHRG member, HellionBOI, as she laced her skates for the first time in over a year due to the rehabilitation of a knee injury.
Even with the assistance from Rigg and Paige, the four jammer rotation of Chokehold Chanel, Enya Nightmare, Molecular Mayhem, and Warpath O’Jen was more than enough for the St. Lunachix to keep their jammers fresh and rested. With nothing to lose, Gang Green threw everything, and everyone, at the St. Louis squad, including nine different jammers. Gang Green was able to hang with the St. Lunachix throughout the first half after drawing five jammer penalties on the home squad and only trailed 128-74 at the half. Unfortunately for the Ohioans, the St. Lunachix played much cleaner in the second while Gang Green themselves sent their own jammer to the penalty box five times over the final 26:00 of the bout.
In a valiant effort, Gang Green’s pack of TactiGal, Blitz Lemon, Quiet Storm, Elektra Magneto, Rigg, and Bleed were able to hold St. Louis to only three double-digit jams during the second period. Also showing signs of a bright future for Ohio was T. Wrex, an OHRG rookie who made her debut but hasn’t played this season due to an injury sustained pre-season. The 230-108 loss dropped Gang Green’s record to 6-7. St. Lunachix awarded HellionBOI MVP jammer and Paige Bleed MVP blocker for the bout. Both OHRG All Stars and Gang Green will next take the track this weekend against Cincinnati’s Black Sheep and Violent Lambs.
Gang Green recap courtesy of Inspector Muffin.
Photos courtesy of John Egbert (full album here).