Normally our girls would not be too concerned about facing Hammer Time until you look at what is really at stake in the ring this time. They’ll enter Rivertown Sports for the first time since the spring floods that not only destroyed much of their gear but also forced them to relocate as the track has to be rebuilt.
The last time our Grand Raggidy Roller Girls faced off in the rink, it was in September 2009. And while they came out on top each time, Hammer City is ranked much farther below our team, which recently was awarded the #40 spot in the world rank of all derby leagues – earning a girls a much-deserved ranking for the first time and making us truly an international team. But a win to a team ranked below the GRRG threatens their standing. Besides, it is teammate Nnegratron's last bout with the gals, so before they head to The Rez on Plainfield for their rowdy post-match dance party, they really want to deliver a win for the team.
As to the teams’ ranking, after a series of late-summer matches (September is the start of the 2013-2014 season) GRRG’s Lucy Morales says, “We likely will not know our final rankings until after the Championship playoffs in November. We did go into the first round of Division 1 playoffs seeded 10 and ended up in 9th place, so that should help, but it all depends on how the other teams ranked directly above us in Division 1 and those ranked directly below us in Division 2 do in the upcoming tournaments.” And thus why a win is important this weekend.
And unless you think that our typically regionally-focused team was exhausted from this new rankings pressure, Garden Ho’s reminded me of the real benefits of now being able to play nationally and internationally ranked teams.
“Being part of the top-ranked teams means we had to put in the work. We had to be able to adapt quickly to new strategies and be ready for anything when facing new opponents. Two of the three teams that we skated against at playoffs were from the other side of the country,” says Garden Ho about their recent tournament. “We had never played any Western teams before that weekend and their style of play was distinctly different than what we were used to. It opened our eyes to all the possibilities that the sport of roller derby has.”
Typically the Roller Girls see some changeover from tournament to regular season, but not only is our home team filled with the same members as played in the competition (“Rare,” according to Lynch), Saturday night’s match will also see the return of three veteran skaters. Selena Goremez, X Libris and Rue DeDay are returning after a brief absence and there is also the debut of new blood on the track (and potentially those in the suicide ring side section) as Straight Edge Revenge, Jack N DeckHer, and Star Slinger make their roller derby debuts.
Admission: Advance $12, Day of $15, Student with valid ID $10.
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