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by Ryan Seven, TCRG League Reporter

Expectations were high for the Terminal City Roller Girls’ second bout of Season 4 after last month’s raucous, sold-out season opener. Luckily, the derby gods were shining down on Minoru Arena last on May 15, as over 1,600 fans cheered on an awesome double-header.

The Bad Reputations defeated The Loganettes – a pick-up team made of the Eves of Destruction from Victoria and the Reign Valley Vixens (based "on the east side of the Fraser River") – 123-71, while the Riot Girls escaped with a narrow win over the Faster Pussycats in a bout that saw nine different lead changes, a handful of monster hits, and the two teams leaving absolutely everything on the flat track, ending in a 129-116 nail (and finger and arm) biter.


The Bad Reputations versus The Loganettes

Although The Bad Reps were able to keep the visiting team off the scoreboard for the first five jams of the night, Beaver Canoe’s speed and Sista Fista’s power eventually got The Loganettes some hard-earned points. The Bad Reps did an impressive job for entire night, containing the jammer behind two- and three-person walls – sometimes even bringing in an extra skater to lay down a blinding hit.

Bad Reps' veteran jammer L.A. Gunns tries to squeeze through a wall of Loganettes. Photo by Nicolas Charest for RollerGirl.ca.  

The Bad Reps haven’t lost a game at home in over a year, and it’s easy to see why, with their crazy mix of strength, speed, and strategy. Against the visiting pick-up team, they executed a near flawless game plan, picking up quick points whenever possible, while keeping the opposing jammer bottled up and beaten.

Early in the second half, Rollergirl picked up 19-points while the Loganette jammer was in the penalty box. Bumble Beats followed up with another 7 points, with the home team going up 90-36 with over 25 minutes left in the bout.

The Loganettes spontaneous dance party at the pivot line – led by Slaya Patra, The Clap and Lady Cuntessa – won big points from the crowd in the middle of the second half, but unfortunately, it couldn’t be transferred to the scoreboard, and the Bad Reps continued to roll to victory.

Credit still goes to The Loganettes, who hung in with the TCRG’s best team, fighting back to close the point gap. The team was a mash-up of solid players from the Island and the Valley, but they just weren’t as fined-tuned as their opponent.

One defining moment of awesomeness came in the final minutes of the bout with Lamb Baste-Her exploding through the pack, as AC/DC’s ‘TNT’ filled the arena. Jamming to the metal, she blew through the pack a second time in what could have almost been a choreographed sequence of hell on wheels, ending the game with a score of 123-71 and a much-deserved victory lap.

The packed house at Minoru Arena would soon find out that the Bad Reps’ victory was really just a knuckle-sandwich appetizer for the second bout, that saw a crazy back-and-forth battle between the Riot Girls and Faster Pussycats.


Faster Pussycats versus Riot Girls

The stakes were high for the match-up, with the Riot Girls needing a win for eligibility for Season 4’s Championship, and the FPCs looking to make a statement after getting their first home win in the season opener last month.

Pussycats' rookie blocker Shell Shockk and veteran pivot PLAYER 1 close out Riot Girls' jammer Trixi Trippin' Chix.  Photo by Nicolas Charest for RollerGirl.ca.

Riot Girls’ blocker Flower Plow'her set the tone right out the gate during the introductions, showing off her take on Suzy Shameless’ signature belly-writing, advertising her hunger for the other team (I think). She was also a presence after the first whistle, quickly pummeling FPC jammer Ring’er Bell in the first jam, helping the Riot Girls take an early lead.

The Riot Girls controlled a tight lead until jammer Mary Queen of Shotz got a grand slam (and more) in the middle of the first half, thanks to some solid blocking from her teammates. The FPC’s took the lead for the first time of the night at 28-23 with 16 minutes left in the half.

Another huge hit came from Suzy Shameless, who returned to the game after her skates fell apart in the middle of the second jam. Shameless’ new pair of borrowed wheels (thanks to Rollergirl) helped her crush Luludemon mid-jam and prevent some points against.

Even though the first half ended with FPCs in the lead, the Riot Girls came back focused, and methodically put on points.

One of the most entertaining jams of the night saw ex-Riot Girl 8-Mean Wheeler go head-to-head with her old teammate Trixi Trippin’ Chix. The two taunted each other, with 8-Mean doing her best to slow down the super-speedy jammer. Both players scored four points, taking the score to 67-66 in favor of the Riot Girls.

With the FPCs down 90-82, Mary Queen of Shotz proved yet again to be a clutch jammer, powering through the pack again and again, picking up 13 points and putting the FPCs ahead for the fifth time of the game.

There was a spectacular hit in the final minutes that saw the Riot Girls’ blocker Bustylicious launch the Pussycats’ Tiki Timebomb completely into the air in front of the seated crowd. It was just as impressive when Tiki bounced right back into the jam.

But the decisive jam of the night came with only a couple minutes left in the game, with Luludemon proving yet again that she’s one of the league’s best jammers, picking up 14 points while the Pussycat’s jammer had to watch from Penalty Palace, as the Riot Girls went up 126-112. The FPCs tried to claw back, but couldn’t catch up. The FPCs tried to get in one last jam by calling a time out with 9 seconds left on the clock, but it wasn’t meant to be and the refs called the game.

The Pussycats used up all nine of their lives in a scrappy and determined battle that was one of the most memorable bouts thus far in TCRG history, ranking up there with some of the classic Bad Rep/Riot Girls showdowns of Season 2.

The TCRG’s next bout is June 26 at Minoru Arena, as the underdog Faster Pussycats take on the top dog Bad Reps, and the Riot Girls take on a team from Seattle’s Rat City Rollergirls.