The first half of the bout saw KCRW slowly picking their way forward in points. With neither team clearly grabbing a firm hold to the top spot, it was anyone’s guess as to how the first half would end. It was a tied game after jam 10, with Zoe Trocious scoring the 3 points to even the score. But the last 10 jams of the half saw WCR only capturing 4 additional points while KCRW pushed ahead, gaining 17 points, to end the half 42 to 29 (Kansas City).

The WCR All-Stars came into the second half with a renewed spirit and brought the fight back the Kansas City. Just as KCRW picked away at the points in the first half, the WCR All-Stars began to chip away at KCRW’s lead with each passing jam. In jam 9, while KCWR was busy attempting a star pass, Athena DeCrime grabbed lead jammer status and  pushed the All-Stars into the lead by getting WCR 4 points, ending the jam with a score 60-57 (WCR).

The All-Stars kept mounting their points and widening the gap as the second half pushed on. But their momentum came to a halt. With12 minutes left in the bout, the tide turned as the All-Stars gained no ground for 7 jams. It didn't help that the All-Stars could not keep themselves out of the penalty box, which included the expulsion of Jackie Daniels with 3 minutes left to the bout. KCRW took advantage of the frequency with which the All-Stars were being sent to the box by claiming lead jammer status jam after jam, clawing their way back into the top position.

With recurring trips to the penalty box, coupled with the repeated claim of lead jammer by KCRW, the All-stars could not gain their footing and lost their chance at the Hydra Trophy. With a final score of 112-95, Kansas City moves forward to face their next opponent tonight while WCR celebrates a top-notch final bout and the end of their 2011 season.

Even though this was a loss, the bout was a wonderful display of the level of tenacity that WCR plays at. It demonstrated why the Windy City Rollers are a top derby team. Varla Vendetta, Yvette YourMaker, Athena DeCrime, Jackie Daniels, Wreck N Shrew and Zoe Trocious all displayed some great jamming when they cleared the pack. It was not just their speed, but also agilely jumping the apex, juking around a seemingly solid wall, and even a display of a “crazy octopus” move (as the announcers called it) which helped the All-Stars rack up points and maintain a close score for most of the bout.

Even with their defense spending a lot of time in the box, WCR’s blocking powerhouse made KCRW fight for their win. Bork Bork Bork, Ol' Drrrty Go-Go, Sargentina, Tori Adore, Jackie Daniels, Hoosier Mama, Amy Nonamey, Georgia on Yer Behind, Deb Autry and the rest of the All-Star defense built tough walls for KCRW to breech and hit hard at every chance. Even with a single blocker on the track at times, it was never an easy pass for KCRW. With great game play and sportsmanship (Hoosier Mama embraced opponent skater Kelly Young after a jam) the All-Stars can return to Chicago still feeling like champions as they set their sights on their 2012 season!

The bout was a blowout from the very beginning where the All-Stars scored 62 unanswered points before Barbie Bont could tally 3 points for her team. As the first half wore on, the All-Star blocking crew made mincemeat out of every jammer that was coming through the line, and handled the Tantrum's defense like they were sheep being lead to slaughter. As Wreck N Shrew, Athena DeCrime and Varla Vendetta were scoring at will, Sunshine N Painbows and Hoosier Mama were taking liberties with the Tantrum's defense. The half ended with the All-Stars up 110-12.

There was no change of pace for the second half, even as Barbie Bont pulled off a grand slam in the first jam. It didn't do much to sway the All-Stars as they continued on their scoring run strafing the scoreboard with grand slam after grand slam. The point scoring was merciless, and, to the Tampa Tantrum’s defense, Tampa took it in stride. Both teams threw everything they had at each other, including the All-Stars jamming veteran Tori Adore in her last bout as a Windy City Roller. At the final whistle, the score was set at 196-42 and Tampa was sent home to lick their wounds.

Georgia on Yer Behind was awarded player of the game.

The All-Stars aren't done yet! The WCR All-Stars have their sights firmly set on Denver as they head to the WFTDA Championships, which begin on Nov 11!

At the end of the bout, WCR was behind the 8-ball and fell to a determined Kansas City team by a score of 111-92.  The UIC Pavilion transformed into the Terror Dome, where two teams would enter but only one would leave.

The first half was nothing short of a disaster for the WCR All-Stars.  Kansas City came out swinging from the onset and didn't let up.  KC jammer Kelley Young (skating under her real name) scored a grand slam in the opening jam.  It was immediately apparent to the WCR team and its fans that this #1 South Central regional team was here on serious business and looking for a win.

Athena DeCrime answered back with 10 points two jams later, gaining an early lead over Kansas City.  Ol' Drrrty Go-Go and Yvette YourMaker owned the front of the pack for the jam and made scoring rather easy for Athena DeCrime.  Penalties became an issue for both teams and the lead fluctuated back and forth during the first half.

There was nothing on the WCR bench that could stop KCRW from scoring at will in the first half.  Behind the speed and talent of Hall Balls and Kelley Young, KCRW was mounting a monstrous attack against WCR and had them rocked back on their heels.  As the penalties mounted for WCR, so did the points against them, and their chances for bouncing back hung in the wings somewhere between a miracle and raw talent.  As the whistle blew at the end of the first half, an unheard-of hush fell over the crowd as the score was set at 78-18.

With the start of the second half, an all-new WCR team came out of the locker room.  The bout turned into a barn-burner where jammers Jackie Daniels, Wreck N Shrew and Zoe Trocious took the fight back to Kansas City.  Sargentina stepped up her intensity and was landing hard hits alongside teammates Georgia on Yer Behind and Hoosier Mama.  WCR jammer, Varla Vendetta, was trading blows with KCRW jammers and adding to the physical presence of the team as the bout rolled on.

In the 6^th jam of the second half, Ol' Drrty Go-Go, Bork Bork Bork and Sargentina were zeroing in on the KCRW jammer, Case Closed, creating opportunities left and right on the track.  The blocking crew was making holes for jammer Varla Vendetta, who scored a much needed 15 points.  With just over 18 minutes left in the bout, WCR was closing the gap on Kansas City and the crowd was starting to erupt inside the UIC Pavilion.  In two jams, WCR scored 22 unanswered points and the score was set at 93-61 in favor of KCRW.

The intensity kept growing in favor of WCR and the entire venue was on fire.  Not only was the WCR bench swarming with activity, the fans were behind their team and helping the motivation develop at an alarming rate.  With only minutes left in the bout, WCR jammer Zoe Trocious took to the track against KCRW’s Track Rat in a deciding moment in the bout.  As the jam continued on, Zoe Trocious got lead jammer as Bork Bork Bork dropped Track Rat to the ground.  The building came alive and the crowd was ready to witness an explosive comeback by the WCR All-Stars.  The excitement grew as Track Rat was sent to the penalty box and a power jam started for Zoe Trocious and company.  At the end of the jam, Zoe Trocious has scored a much-needed 14 points and the score was 95-83, still in favor of Kansas City, but there was light at the end of the tunnel.

As the bout neared the end, both teams cranked up the intensity and it was an all-out foot race to the end.  It was a 10-point game at one point, and it looked like a miraculous comeback for WCR.

If it there were a moment in time where people should be biting their nails and pulling out their hair it was in this bout.  There wasn't a moment safe for blinking during the second half where WCR brought the game back to Kansas City and almost stole a win away from a gladiator of a flat track derby team.  The ladies in blue and white were holding hard with solid blocking and fancy navigation by their jammers, but KCRW kept the speed up, and the momentum shifted in their direction.  When the smoke cleared, WCR lost by a narrow margin, with the score set at 111-92. Though it was a loss, this bout was the best home game of the All-Star season hands down and there was no shortage of action from both sides of the scoreboard.

Bruz-Her from the Kansas City Roller Warriors won player of the game.

WCR faces off next against the Tampa Derby Darlins at UIC Pavilion on October 22.

The WCR All-Stars came out firing from both barrels and never let up on the San Diego team.  Even as they mounted penalties landing their jammers and steadfast blockers in the penalty box, WCR wasn’t going to give San Diego any room to breathe.  The points margin was so incredibly large before the end of the first half, there was no real chance for a comeback in the cards for the Wildfires.

San Diego brought a physical game, but they couldn’t match the point scoring of Wreck N Shrew, Yvette YourMaker, Varla Vendetta, Athena DeCrime and Beth Amphetamine.  Scoring wasn't WCR’s only strong point for the evening.  Hoosier Mama, Sargentina, Norma Lee Wright and Georgia on Yer Behind were making small work of the hard-hitting San Diego defense.  It was an all-out battle in the first half with San Diego making it a point to target the WCR jammers, but little could be done to keep their scoring at bay.

Tori Adore and Karmageddon were making their presence known on the track as well, and with Mya Ssault being called up from the Second Wind there was nothing stopping the All-Stars from skating all over San Diego for the evening.  If scoring mercilessly were illegal, the Windy City Roller’s All-Stars would be serving consecutive life sentences.  Their blocking crew would be sent to the big house for aiding and abetting their jammers.  WCR’s speed, strength and intensity towered over San Diego in the first half giving them an insurmountable lead and spanning a one hundred point scoring gap.   As the whistle blew to end the half, WCR was up 113-13 over San Diego.

The WCR All-Stars didn't let up in the second half, and second-year skater Bork Bork Bork was paramount in helping not only keep the San Diego jammers at bay, but whipping WCR jammers into scoring and lead jammer positions.  To say each lady on the team pulled her weight is a terrible understatement.  From Yvette YourMaker scoring 23 points out of the gates in the second half, to Sargentina and Karmageddon recycling San Diego jammers, the night was full of strength and surprises.

Athena DeCrime, Varla Vendetta, Yvette YourMaker and Wreck N Shrew were scoring powerhouses in the second half, and as WCR went over the 200-point mark, there was no looking back for the merciless menaces in black.  These ladies had a routine and a team so tight you couldn't squeeze an inch of air through it.  With 13 minutes left in the bout, WCR jammer Beth Amphetamine went down after a pile-up before turn three and sustained a concussion.  The bout continued after she was helped to her feet by the medical staff and WCR maintained their intensity and attack, showing no mercy for a team clearly rocked back on their heels.

As the bout pressed on, WCR bench coach Nina Faile regaled the crowd and the visiting team with a solo saxophone rendition of George Michael’s “Careless Whisper.”  As she was being wrangled off the track, the crowd came to their feet and applauded her efforts to bring light to a serious tail kicking.  Every song from DJ Danger that came after the incident had an ‘80s ring to it and kept everyone in the pavilion pleased as WCR continued to open can after can of “Whoop Ass” on San Diego.

Birthday girl and WCR blocker Hoosier Mama played out the last jam and scored 9 points for her team before the final whistle was blown.  Fans of the Windy City Rollers went to a derby bout on Saturday and a scoring frenzy broke out.  The only thing bigger than the scoring gap is the immeasurable expanse of the universe.  Though there was no lack of fight on either side, the Windy City Rollers All-Stars came out on top with an insurmountable score of 255-22.  WCR goes on to play Kansas City on September 10^th at the UIC Pavilion.  Player of the game went to Wreck N Shrew who scored 60 points to help her team to their win.

The lead went back and forth in the first few jams, partially because of excellent jamming and blocking and partially because of early major penalties.  Zoe Trocious, Varla Vendetta and Beth Amphetamine were all in top form right from the beginning.  Steel City had a jamming clan that was impressive as well behind ‘snot rocket science, The Shocker and Hurricane Heather.

As the half continued, Steel City brought out some serious hitters like Athena and Bonecrusher to stave off the speed and agility of Zoe Trocious who was skating through the pack like a bolt of lightning.  Yvette YourMaker and Jackie Daniels were the snipers for WCR, pinpointing and taking out calculated targets.  Sargetnina and Hoosier Mama were making waves and destroying the beefed-up power potential of the Steel City team.

There were some massive blows traded on the track between both teams.  WCR’s Deb Autry took out Athena, allowing Varla Vendetta to score nine points in the 6th jam but not after Varla Vendetta was taken to the floor by Steel City’s Bonecrusher.  In the 9th jam, Damage Dahl laid an impressive hit on WCR’s Georgia on Yer Behind.    Both teams were working to prove they were mightier, but WCR came out on top at the end of the first half.  Ol Drrrty Go-Go was laying heavy hits on the Steel City jammer line, laying ‘snot rocket science out in the last jam of the half.  ODG’s hard hitting stopped ‘snot rocket science dead in her tracks and allowed Jackie Daniels to score two grand slams before the whistle.

It was a mashed up mess of twisted steel in the first half.  Steel City brought some serous poundage with them in the form of Bonecrusher, Athena and Damage Dahl and they really smashed the tar out of WCR but not before the ladies from Chicago took a scoring run from hell to them.  All things considered, the first half was a well matched, back-and-forth measured only by the hit-by-hit excitement and white-knuckle intensity brought by both teams.  WCR went to the locker rooms up 70-38.

Steel City came out in the second half with an apparent answer to WCR’s scoring and blocking.  Behind ‘snot rocket science and Hurricane Heather they were chipping away at the WCR lead.  Both teams wanted a win and neither side was relenting.  Norma Lee Wright made her presence felt in the second half taking The Shocker out in the 27th jam.  WCR was a recycling machine and ODG and Georgia on Yer Behind were at the head of that campaign.  Zoe Trocious still had the jets through the second half and kept the scoring going along with Beth Amphetamine, Varla Vendetta and Athena DeCrime.

Sargentina also jumped in on ecycling duty and was wrecking balls all night long.  Hoosier Mama was helping out and punishing the Steel City jammer pool from start to finish.  Towards the end of the bout, though, it turned ugly for WCR.  Continuous major penalties were slowing their scoring and allowing Steel City to mount some points behind The Shocker and ‘snot rocket science.  By the 35th jam, Steel City was down only by 20 points and quickly it was anyone’s game.

By the last two jams, Varla Vendetta and Jackie Daniels, behind the blocking of ODG and Hoosier Mama, were able to get WCR the win and took Steel City out with a score of 147-117.  WCR was in danger of losing the bout towards the end, but teamwork and solid strategy calm helped them claim victory.  Steel City didn’t go down without a fight, though, and their ‘never say die’ attitude kept them close through the end.   Varla Vendetta was awarded Player of the Game for the Windy City Rollers All-Stars.  WCR takes on the San Diego Derby Dolls on August 27th at the UIC Pavilion.

Before the bout started, the WCR Chorus, made of derby skaters and officials from within the league, sang our National Anthem.  Fanfare aside, it was by and large the most beautiful version of the Star-Spangled Banner to date.

Both teams came out with some heavy-hitting action.  For a charity bout, it was obvious there was plenty of leftover frustration from the season being let out during the first half.  Both teams were up and down and hitting hard.  Jammer selection from both guest coaches was spot-on and an excellent combination for both the athletes and the fans to get into.

Some highlights from the bout included killer blocking and hitting on both sides from Sunshine N Painbows skating as Tutti Frutti, Dinah Party skating as Chai Alert, Hoosier Mama skating as Badonk and Joanie Utah.  These ladies weren’t leaving anything out when it came to defense, and for a scrimmage, there was some serious pain being dished out.  Still though, when it all comes out in the wash, these ladies love and respect each other to the highest degree.

Shocka Conduit, Unicoroner skating as Unicorona, Deb Autry skating as Dawn of the Deb and Varla Vendetta were putting up some major points for the White Zombies III.  Both teams were going back and forth on scoring for the majority of the bout.  D Force had Athena DeCrime skating as Amber Lamps, Abbey skating as ABBEY!!!!! and for the first time in two years – Riley Coyote putting up points for them with reckless abandon.  All of the ladies, coaches and captains from each team did a great job on the track and the end of the bout was the icing on the cake.

Dawn of the Deb took to the jammer line against Amber Lamps for the final jam, and she skirted the inside track and got Lead Jammer.  As Dawn of the Deb came around to turn two, Badonk tackled her to the ground and the D Force team cleared the bench sparking a “brawl.”  Both teams erupted into a mock hockey-style finish, the only difference being there were hugs and congratulations instead of punches and expletives.  Both Dawn of the Deb and Badonk received Player of the Game and Coach Joe ended the night 3-0 as a guest coach for the Black and White Scrimmage.

Gapers Block

Windy City Rollers' Set for Ivy King Cup Championship

After a grueling season, the Windy City Rollers are ready to kick it Thunderdome style. At the Ivy King Cup Championship this Saturday, June 18, two teams enter; only one team leaves (or rather, leaves with the coveted cup). This year, it's down to The Fury and the Manic Attackers, two teams who are maintaining their reps as hard-to-beat skaters.

Read the article!

RedEye 6/13/11

Windy City Rollers: Ivy King Cup Championship

The Fury and Manic Attackers try to batter their way to a roller-derby title. They were kind enough to wait until the Stanley Cup finals and NBA Finals were over before stealing the championship spotlight.

Examiner

Windy City blows into Cincinnati Part I

It was hot, it was sticky and it was miserable in the Cincinnati Gardens on Saturday, but there was roller derby and in fact one of the very best teams in all of WFTDA came to town; #9 in the world and #1 in the North Central division the Windy City Rollers.

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Windy City blows into Cincinnati Part II

The main event of the evening was a WFTDA sanctioned bout between the Cincinnati Black Sheep and the Windy City Rollers’ All-Stars. Windy City owed this victory to their defense, Cincinnati’s blockers were unable to help out their jammers, and instead the jammers looked to be flying solo and fighting for their lives. The final score Windy City 178, Cincinnati 83.

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Chicago Now

Chicago Roller Derby: The Quick & Dirty

Regardless of whether you're a baseball fan or booked up watching the Bulls playoffs this weekend, The Windy City Rollers matches are good competitive stuff to watch. Like with the best of sports, the home bouts have an atmosphere similar to Wrigley or The Cell, which makes you feel like you're not just watching but participating.

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Chicago Tribune

The Windy City Rollers

The league's sixth bout of the home season determines which two teams compete in June for the Ivy King Cup Championship. Windy City Gay Idol 2006 winner Christy Hasselson sings the national anthem.

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Time Out Chicago

This week in Chicago

[This weekend's] bout determines the final standings of the home season. First up: the Fury vs. Hell's Belles at 6pm. At 7:30pm, the Double Crossers take on the Manic Attackers.

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RedEye

Daily Plan-it

Well hello there, February. You kind of snuck up on us with all this blizzard talk taking over. Don’t worry, though, we’re prepared to greet you and your sports offerings open – albeit heavily layered – arms. Here’s our plan for the month. Let us know if it works for you. Where else can you see women with names like Athena DeCrime and Val Capone on roller skates knock each other around for teams like the Hell’s Belles and Manic Attackers? Just roll with it, ok?

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RedEye

February Survival Guide

Blizzards may serve as a painful reminder that we haven’t quite reached the home stretch into festival season and outdoor shenanigans, but all hope for fun isn’t lost. The month chock-full of holiday happenings, award season fever and fun food fests ahead should be a kickass and speedy route to an impending spring revival. On February 13, quench your thirst for some bloodsport at the Windy City Rollers’ roller derby double header at UIC Pavilion.

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ChicagoNow

Hoops on an aircraft carrier? That's just the beginning

Michigan State and North Carolina plan on playing a basketball game on an aircraft carrier in San Diego next season. That's odd, for sure. But we have a few ideas for even odder and more unusual settings for sporting events. Chicago's Windy City Rollers could take their game to a whole new level with a race around Navy Pier. And instead of just bumping competitors off the track, they could knock them into the lake. That way, they could wear personalized life vests.

Read the article!

WCR came out from the very beginning forcing Oly to play their game.  Hard hitting and solid pack awareness allowed WCR to control the tempo early on and gave their jammers all the opportunity they needed to score.  In the initial jam, Shocka Conduit cut through the pack, broke out ahead of Oly’s lead jammer 2 Ton Heffer, who had to go to the sin bin on a cutting major, and drew first blood throwing seven points up on the board.

It didn’t take long for Oly to adjust to WCR’s style of play and that’s when the battle began.  No. 2 for the Oly Rollers, Sassy, was working WCR’s Kola Loka over in the second jam allowing plenty of time for 2 Ton Heffer to finish out her sentence and come back out swinging.  Kola Loka netted three points for WCR, but 2 Ton Heffer came through with seven and the early lead gap closed quickly.  The next jam pitted WCR’s Jackie Daniels against Oly’s Atomatrix.  Jackie Daniels broke out first getting lead jammer, but Atomatrix was in tow and the jam became a foot race.  Both girls used their speed to their advantage and at the end of the jam, WCR was up 12-10.

Both teams were leaning hard and heavy on their blocking abilities.  WCR’s Ying O’ Fire, Amy Nonamey, Georgia on Yer Behind, Hoosier Mama, Sargentina and Go-Go Hatchet were showing off their recycling skills throughout the period and giving the Oly jammers a run for their money. WCR’s Varla Vendetta exploded into the seventh jam, cut through the pack like a hot knife through butter, and gave the crowd an electrifying show of speed and agility.  Athena DeCrime, Kola Loka and Jackie Daniels were standouts as well, showing why WCR still had a shot against the second best team in the nation.  Their abilities to push through the pack and zigzag around Oly defenders helped close the gap and bring WCR to within 14 points with just over 13 minutes left in the period.  Though WCR was running and gunning, Oly managed to brave the onslaught of hits, return the favor, and put some numbers up on the board.

Oly blockers D-Bomb, Wheel Her, Sassy, Deadly Aim, Chest NutZ, Blond An’ Bitchen and Harmony Killbruise created a solid wall of baby blue through the course of the period and gave their jammers the opportunity they needed to create a point-spread that would later prove insurmountable.  Oly was adjusting on the fly to WCR’s style of play and serving it back to them in healthy doses.  Tannibal Lector, Atomatrix and Femme Fatale netted six grand slams for Oly during the last five minutes of the first period that contributed greatly to their lead.  WCR tried their hit it and quit it technique, but it just wouldn’t stand up to Oly’s continuous point scoring before the end of the half.  Both teams went into the locker room with Oly ahead 74-31.

Oly made a statement on the first jam of the second period as Atomatrix threw down an impressive 15 points to start the half.  That put Oly up 89-31 and the WCR All-Stars were wondering what to do next.  Athena DeCrime came out in the second jam working hard to break through Oly blocking powerhouses 2 Ton Heffer, Blond An’ Bithchen, Chest NutZ and Licker N Split but couldn’t quite pull the trigger.  She passed the star to Jackie Daniels who broke through the pack like a bullet fired out of a gun.  And though she didn’t put up any numbers for the team, their fluid play and improvisation on the track showed Oly that WCR wasn’t ready to lie down and take a beating.

Varla Vendetta fed Oly a dose of their own medicine netting three grand slams throughout the second period that helped get the crowd involved in the bout.  The chanting was intense and the WCR fans were just as vested in this bout as the skaters.  Second period standout blocker Deb Autry for WCR was taking up massive retail on the track and looked like an 8-foot-tall spider monkey giving the Oly jammers a run for their money and WCR a chance to get back into the game.   A handful of miscues and penalties, though, kept WCR out of the running and excellent blocking and jamming on Oly’s part kept their lead growing.

In the sixth jam of the period, Kola Loka tore out of the penalty box and took a whip from Hoosier Mama, which sent her flying into the back of an Oly blocker and landed her right back in the penalty box.  Oly answered with nine points on the jam and the score was set at 124-40.

Though the Oly jammers were fleet of foot and their blocker walls nigh unpenetrable, the WCR fan base was louder than ever continuing to back their home team heroines and keep them revved up for war.  The ninth jam proved to be a revolving door for jammer penalties.  With 13:49 left in the bout, Jackie Daniels had the track to herself and worked her way through the pack to get lead jam and the crowd on their feet, only to draw her fourth minor and swap sin bin seats with Oly jammer Scara 2 Death, who then drew a cutting the track major and swapped back out with Daniels.  She fought her way through a salvo of hits from Deadly Aim, Femme Fatale and D-Bomb and kept WCR to within 100 points with a score of 147-52.

Oly kept the grand slam machine moving with Licker N Split and Blond An’ Bitchen both scoring one apiece in the 12th and 13th jams respectively.  And though Kola Loka, Varla Vendetta and Jackie Daniels were showing jump even into the waning minutes of the bout, it wasn’t enough to mount the points needed to put Oly to bed for the night.  The final score of the bout was 178-76 Oly, though WCR did a much better job of keeping the pace and the score closer than their last meeting in October.  Oly went on to lose by a mere point to the Rocky Mountain Rollergirls in the final on the last day of Uproar on the Lakeshore, breaking their WFTDA gold two years in a row winning streak.  Next year will serve to show if RMRG has begun their own winning streak.