Both teams were fit to fight Saturday night with the Second Wind striking hard from the very beginning and never really letting go of the lead until near the end of the first half.  Ska Face started the scoring pace with 9 points in the first jam followed by Mo Vengeance, Sunshine N Painbows and Zoe Trocious mounting points through the “hit-it-and-quit-it” technique.  As the first half barreled on, blockers T.S. Helliot, Tamikazi, Rose Feratu, Janicide Joplin and Val Capone were quick to keep the Ohio jammers at bay and made short work of their defensive play.

Ohio didn't start the bout out strong, but finally got their footing as Texas Chainsaw Sasskicker, HellionBOI and Pearl Rogi started a scoring run before the first whistle.  In three jams HellionBOI and Pearl Rogi scored 11 points, and coupled with Sasskicker’s two Grand Slams in the 11^th jam, the Ohio Roller Girls started to seriously chip away at the Second Wind’s lead.  Ava Tarr was making short work of the Second Wind defense late in the first half and was instrumental in getting her jammers through the pack.

Both teams’ defense began to pick up and the bout turned into a hit parade, but not before the Ohio team could even the score at 36, with less than nine minutes left in the half.  Turn four looked like a demolition derby but it didn't slow Zoe Trocious as she scored 10 points to get the Second Wind the lead back and their defense turned on the jets and kept the pack pace fast like an Indy car race.  Before the half ended, Mo Vengeance was taken out in turn two and then took a nasty hit from Ohio’s Dixie Heartless in turn four.  As she got to her feet, she was issued an illegal procedure penalty and sent to the box (much to the crowds chagrin).

With a one-sided start and a methodical, grinding pace looming on the horizon, the bout had the appearance of “business as usual” for the Second Wind at home.  Twelve minutes into the half, both teams started to wake up as Ohio worked away at the Second Wind’s lead.  Unfortunately for the Ohio team, the Second Wind blockers were on a mission to target each Buckeye State Betty with religious fervor.  Both teams were working to gain a foothold in the bout, but the Second Wind wound up on top as the whistle blew and both teams went into the locker room with the score set at 64-40.

The penalty box was a revolving door for the Second Wind as the second half started.  Jammer, Mo Vengeance, spent the first three jams of the half in the box and the defensive effort for the Second Wind stepped up their game to keep the team alive.  With solid blocking and passing the star, the Second Wind was able to hold the Ohio Roller Girls to just three points as they got their scoring runs back on track.

The Second Wind blocking crew was making short work of the Ohio defense, and teamwork was paramount as they powered through the second half.  Tamikazi and Zoe Trocious were taking massive amounts of punishment from Ohio, but managed to stay on their lines and score at will.  Ada Hatelace, Hermione Danger and Janicide Joplin were holding fast and picking up their game throughout to keep the lead for the Second Wind.

Ohio co-captain, Phoenix Bunz, coupled with Bratislava Bruiser and Ava Tarr were working to keep their team afloat.  As the bout powered on, Ohio was slowly chipping away at the Second Wind lead and bringing the game closer.  With penalties mounting for the Second Wind, Ohio took full advantage of the players off the track and began racking up the points.

The Second Wind wasn't going to take a loss lying down and mounted a comeback of their own.   Two jams later, Ska Face, behind the excellent blocking of Hermione Danger, scored an incredible 20 points to get her team over the century mark and the lead again.  Just as the bout appeared sealed up, the Ohio Roller Girls mounted a major attack against the Second Wind.

HellionBOI, backed by Phoenix Bunz, Loraine Acid and Outa My Wayman helped the Ohio team regain the lead and keep it against the home team.  HellionBOI answered with her own six Grand Slams and took off with the lead.  It wasn't for a lack of trying; it was only because the Second Wind couldn't stay out of the box long enough to keep the lead they had attained.  Ohio held steadfast to their game play and worked a smart win out of Windy City’s B-Team.  Both sides of the scoreboard were working hard to get the win, but the Ohio Roller Girls ran away with it at the end and beat out the Second Wind 121-110. The Second Wind faces off against Kansas City’s B-Team on September 10^th at the UIC Pavilion.  Player of the game went to Ohio’s HellionBOI for her impressive come-back run at the end of the bout.

WXRT

Roller Derby Love  

What could be better than ladies who are fierce on the track and also committed to charity work in their communities? The Windy City Rollers aren’t just your average derby league either. They’ve got championships under their belts and they’re number one in the North Central Region.

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RedEye Chicago

This DePaul staffer’s on a roll, literally

“I play because I’m competitive, I like to stay busy,” she said. “Strategically, I’ve never had to think so much about playing a sport—we play offense and defense at the same time. Physically, never have my leg muscles been so huge.  Emotionally, I am more invested in this sport and league than I’ve ever been.”

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Both The Fury and Manic Attackers were ready for war from the get-go, but after the final whistle blew, The Fury won the bout and the Ivy King Cup with a score of 121-77.  Both teams wanted the win badly and it showed, but The Fury’s deep jammer pool and cohesive pack play lead to a solid victory and the league's longest win streak.

As the bout started, both teams came out swinging with stiff defense and incredible jammer combat that kept the score low and the action high.  Wreck N Shrew scored the first points for the Manic Attackers in the second jam, and then both teams cranked up the defense.  There wasn’t another point tallied until Ska Face came out against Zoe Trocious in the fifth jam.  Both girls were fighting like mad to make it through the pack and Zoe Trocious got lead jammer thanks to the hard hitting of Val Capone and Wreck N Shrew.  The score was 7-8 in favor of the Manic Attackers and then the floodgates opened.

The lead changed twice early on in the second half thanks to Kola Loka jamming hard for The Fury and Wreck N Shrew jamming for the Manic Attackers.  The scoring was intense, but the blocking was pivotal for both teams.  Amy Nonamey, Val Capone, Bork Bork Bork and Tamikaze were holding The Fury jammers hard, giving the Manic Attackers a chance to stay in the game.  Behind the defense of Ol Drrrty Go-Go, Red Zeppelin, Sargentina and T.S. Helliot, though, The Fury was able to keep the momentum on their side for the better part of the first half.

Sargentina laid a punishing hit to Zoe Trocious in the 8th jam, giving The Fury full swing on the Manic Attackers.  Val Capone and Jackie Daniels were trading blows throughout the first half too, creating holes for Yvette YourMaker, Ska Face and Kola Loka.  It was a non-stop hitting cavalcade before the whistle blew to end the first half and it looked like The Fury could run away with the lead early.  AliSin Chains, Ada Hatelace and Val Capone took matters into their own hands and created a huge scoring chance for Beth Amphetamine with just under ten minutes left in the half where she scored an impressive 14 points.

Both teams were rolling fast but that didn’t stop The Fury from keeping the lead and behind a couple of grand slams from Ska Face late in the half, they went into the locker room up 64-39 over the Manic Attackers.  The beginning of the half was a back-and-forth battle between both teams.  Hitting was the order of the day right from the get-go.  The score favored both sides of the scoreboard early on, but The Fury managed to pull away and mount a significant score as the half drew on, but not before the Manic Attackers could make their presence felt.

The second half saw no shortage of action from both sides.  With the Manic Attackers down, they threw it all on the line and the blocking power of Mo Vengance, Amy Nonamey, Bork Bork Bork and Tamikaze was being felt throughout.  There was a terrible collision between Amy Nonamey and Kola Loka; Amy went down hard and there was a stoppage in play.  As she recovered, the silent UIC Pavilion erupted in applause and the bout rolled on.

The entire second half was an ebb and flow of hits and scoring.  Carnage Wilson and Mel Content turned on the gas late in the bout to keep The Fury afloat, hitting Manic Attacker jammers Ruth Enasia and Zoe Trocious at will and making notice to the league and the fans that The Fury was ready to hoist the cup again.

The pack looked like a meat grinder and every point the jammers scored, they truly earned.  The Manic Attackers’ fan base came out in full force as well and kept the morale up behind their bench for the rest of the half.  With just under ten minutes to go in the bout and the score set at 109-58 in favor of The Fury, both teams were standing behind their blockers to keep the action going.  Bork Bork Bork and Val Capone were menacing The Fury jammers and Sonya MouthShut alongside Sargentina and Mel Content were holding Manic Attackers jammers at bay.

Take Out Box jammed for The Fury late in the bout and tallied six points for her team over two jams.  The Manic Attackers weren’t going down without a fight, and in the waning minutes of the bout Zoe Trocious and Wreck N Shrew were still mounting an impressive amount of points.  As the final whistle blew, though, it wasn’t enough to get the Manic Attackers a win and they fell to The Fury 121-77.  Both teams gave their all, but The Fury showed their depth and determination to get the longest winning streak in the league and the Ivy King Cup for a second year in a row.  Ska Face was named Player of the Game for The Fury and Val Capone was given the Player of the Game title for the Manic Attackers.

As the season comes to a close, there’s much change and hope on the horizon for all four teams within the Windy City Rollers.  Next season will hold so many possibilities it’s almost incomprehensible...it will truly be anyone’s year. Congratulations to the players and coaches on all the home teams and we all look forward to next season.  And now, on to the All-Stars and Second Wind!

In the second bout Saturday night at UIC Pavilion, the Manic Attackers took on the Double Crossers.  With their spot in the Ivy King Cup secure due to The Fury’s victory over the Hells Belles in the first bout of the evening, the Manic Attackers looked to build momentum heading towards the championship.  For their part, the Double Crossers looked to end the season on a positive note, despite the fact that they faced a tough uphill fight without a number of their key players including Captain Georgia on Yer Behind, Sassy Squash, Indycent, and Berg.

The Manic Attackers got off to a fast start as Bork Bork Bork, Amy Nonamey, Mo Vengeance, AliSin Chains, and Tamikaze frustrated the Crossers jammers and opened holes for Manic jammers Wreck N Shrew, Zoe Trocious, Beth Amphetamine, and Thieven’ Tyler.  By the fifth jam, the Manics had built a 39-0 lead on rookie Thieven Tyler’s nine point jam.  The Double Crossers refused to go quietly into the night, however, and on the next jam, Crossers Captain Julia Rosenwinkel picked up a grand slam on nice offensive blocking from the Crossers pack.  Abbey then picked up another four points for the Crossers in the seventh jam to give them hope.

Despite inspired and determined play from the Double Crossers pack including Karmageddon, Norma Lee Wright, Joanie Utah, Tina Flay, Miss D. Meaner, Sunshine N Painbows, and Teriyaki, the Manics reasserted control of the pack and built an 80-9 lead by the fourteenth jam.  In the fifteenth jam, rookie Crossers jammer Dani Get Your Guns picked up lead and three points despite starting the jam in the box behind strong defense from Karmageddon, Sunshine N Painbows, and Tina Flay.  To make the Crossers struggle more difficult, the jam ended with Karma injured and out of the bout on a big hit from Wreck N Shrew.  The Crossers did not score again in the first period and the Manics built a 93-12 lead by halftime on strong jams from rookies Bellatrix Lapain and Thieven Tyler.

In the second period, the Manics picked up where they left off, extending their lead to 135-12 by the fourth jam.  The Double Crossers continued to trade vicious hits in the pack with the Manic blockers, and their hard work paid off with their Julia Rosenwinkel and Dani Get Your Guns picking up points in the fifth, eighth, and tenth jams, including a 14-point jam from Julia.  The Manic depth took its toll over the course of the bout, and they were able to jam most players on the team, getting points from veteran pack players Val Capone, Bork Bork Bork, and Tamikaze, and rookies Boo Meringue, Beaster Bunny, and Lola Getz.  With the clock at zero, the Manics prevailed by a score of 238-35 and set the stage for the upcoming match-up with The Fury for the Ivy King Cup.

The Daily Northwestern

Roll Rage: Windy City Rollers offers derby dames double lives

In real life, MouthShut is a 27-year old school teacher. She said she likes teaching students in kindergarten through eighth grade on Chicago's south side how to use computers, but has been assuming a new persona during Saturday night bouts since she was 21. Many women in the Windy City Rollers lead double lives like MouthShut does, Dadabo said.

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Time Out Chicago

This Week in Chicago

Butt-kicking action features a doubleheader: Manic Attackers vs. The Fury, followed by Hell's Belles vs. the Double Crossers.

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Do312

Giants on the Make

Roller Derby isn’t just a bumper-car pinball of a game with Tommy like execution and ho-hum exuberance. This is a league comprised of educators, scientists, businesswomen, and other intellectuals as brash as the participants on any given Sunday. The sport is a combination of teamwork, individualism, brute-force, and precision.

Read the article!

Early in the bout saw an Amazonian jam between Ruth Enasia and the towering inferno, Deb Autry.  Both ladies brought their A-game to the table but Deb Autry came out on top, scoring three points.  With these two giants setting a precedent for their teams, both the Hell’s Belles and the Manic Attackers were going to make a run of it.

If the Chicago Bears had their Monsters of the Midway, the Manic Attackers have an equally aggressive and dominant entity behind Bork Bork Bork, AliSin Chains and Mo Vengeance.  They were mashing up the track and leaving a red streak of Hell’s Belles carnage.  Their hitting didn’t go unanswered, though, and Hermoine Danger, Dinah Party and Yameet Ur Doom were drawing hits in for the Belles.  Halfway into the first half, the bout was turning into a blocking practice as both teams’ blockers and jammers were laying waste to each other as they mangled their way through the pack.  It was as if there was no sacred ground and no team member untouched.  Even with Val Capone's hairline fracture, she made short work of the Hell’s Belles’ jammers and blockers alike.

Both sides of the benches had a number of excellent jams through the melee of hits.  The Manic Attackers stood on top of Zoe Trocious, Beth Amphetamine, Ruth Enasia and Wreck N Shrew as the Hell’s Belles were relying heavily on Zombea Arthur, Shocka Conduit, Deb Autry and Pominatrix.

As the half drew to an end the Manic Attackers’ hard-hitting slowed the Hell’s Belles, but didn’t stop them.  Behind excellent blocking on both sides of the scoreboard, both teams had a chance of walking away with a win.  Halftime came with the Manic Attackers up 64-38.

The ladies from both sides came out slugging after the half with Shocka Conduit scoring a grand slam for the Hell’s Belles and Zoe Trocious answering right back.  The hard hitting continued and Bork Bork Bork was making mince meat of the Hell’s Belles blocking crew.  The Hell’s Belles proved their second half stamina with Zombea Arthur skating as though she was beginning-of-the-game fresh.  The Manic Attackers were answering back with strong jams from Ruth Enasia who was employing the “hit it and quit it” technique.

As the second half wore on, it was evident that the Manic Attackers were running out of gas and the Hell’s Belle’s were trying to capitalize on their low energy.  Pitting Ruth Enasia and Zombea Arthur against each other, it was as though David was facing Goliath again, only this time with serious sass.  Zombea Arthur brought four points against Ruth Enasia and the Hell’s Belles were off on mounting a serious comeback.

Both teams were feeding off the fever pitch swirling inside the walls of UIC Pavilion.  Hermoine Danger and Yameet Ur Doom were working well together, helping to combine a one-two blow to the Manic Attackers and geting their own jammers through the pack.  Within the last ten minutes of the bout, the energy was shifting between both teams and you could almost hear the breath of the true fans in the stands.  While the Hell’s Belles were dishing out punishment, their fans were raising the roof, and as the Manic Attackers mounted their fight, their fan base was peeling the paint with their exuberance.

Deb Autry managed a 15-point jam with less than three minutes to go and the intensity reached a near-breaking point.  The crowd wasn’t going to let this bout go without a powerful rally behind their troops.   Shocka Conduit backed Deb Autry with a grand slam, bringing the Hell’s Belles to within eight points with enough time for one last jam.

The crowd was on fire with the Hell’s Belles on the cusp of tallying their second win for the season.  The Manic Attackers lined up Beth Amphetamine against Deb Autry.  Beth Amphetamine took the field and got lead jammer, blowing through the pack like a wraith and almost immediately calling it off.  The Manic Attackers won 103-95, but not without a strong showing by the Hell’s Belles.  For all that it’s worth, the bout was an excellent show of physical prowess on both sides.  The Manic Attackers stand against The Fury in the next bout while the Hell’s Belles look to add a second win against the Double Crossers in the second bout.

Both teams were working tirelessly to get their jammers through the pack, but the Manic Attacker’s near impenetrable wall of Bork Bork Bork, Rose Feratu, AliSin Chains and Val Capone proved to be a deciding factor in the bout’s outcome.  Right out of the gates the hitting was intense with Double Crosser jammer Julia Rosenwinkel going down hard in the first jam and needing to be helped off the track.

Wreck N Shrew scored first blood, netting four points for the Manic Attackers.  Once the skates hit the track, the Manic Attackers ran away with the score and never really looked back.  Ruth Enasia, Beth Amphetamine and Zoe Trocious added to the score and within the first ten jams, the Manic Attackers had amassed 36 points to the Double Crossers’ five.

The Double Crossers were working feverishly to keep the Manic Attackers jammer line at bay.  Team captain Georgia on Yer Behind, rookie hotshot Sunshine N Painbows and Norma Lee Wright were working well together recycling blockers and roughing up the opposing jammers, but their efforts were still falling short.  The Double Crossers were throwing everything they had at the Manic Attackers, even lining up Dame Over against Beth Amphetamine, but the Manics wouldn’t let up.

By the time the teams went to the locker rooms for the half, the score was locked in at 74-14 in favor of the Manic Attackers, who were firing on all pistons and showing why they are a solid contender for the Ivy King Cup Championship this year.

As second half action started, Wreck N Shrew lined up against Julia Rosewinkel and made short work of the Double Crossers pack, scoring nine points and stretching the Manic Attackers lead even further.  The hard hitting continued from both team’s side of the line.  Amy NoNamey added a wealth of excellent hits to help contribute to her team’s lead.  Pound for pound, both teams were giving their all when it came to blocking.

Karmageddon was hitting like a woman possessed pulling double duty for the Double Crossers.  As the Manic Attackers’ score went over the century mark, the Double Crossers were reaching hard to catch up.  Indy Cent was working full-time jamming for the Double Crossers and moving through the pack like a heat seeking missile.
With less than nine minutes in the bout, the Manic Attackers were up by 110 points, with a score of 138-28.  Their lead was not only insurmountable, but the Manics were still in top form, as if they were trying to send a message to the other home teams.  With the minutes starting to wind down, the Manic Attackers worked some of their rookies into the jammer rotation.  Bellatrix La Pain made her rookie debut but was unable to tally any points.

The Double Crossers weren’t going down without a fight and kept pounding away at the Manic Attackers from all angles.  To seal the final nail in the coffin, Rose Feratu took the jammer line and scored 18 points.  As she skated back to her bench, the crowd regaled her with the happy birthday song in anticipation of her upcoming birthday and apparent early birthday gift of winning points.  When the final buzzer sounded, the Manic Attackers had demolished the Double Crossers with a 168-39 final score.  The Double Crossers just didn’t have enough gas in the tank to pull off a win, and so they remain winless this season.  Bork Bork Bork received Player of the Game and is quickly becoming an anchor for the Manic Attackers.

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.

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WebTalkRadio

Brainstorming with Juanna Rumbel

Have you ever had a crazy idea that turned out to be a brilliant and successful reality? Listen in this week as Elizabeth “Juanna Rumbel” Gomez joins Nora and tells of how she and a fellow teammate recruited and formed Chicago’s premier all-female flat track derby league–the Windy City Rollers.

Listen to the interview!

Naptown was on rapid fire throughout the entire bout tallying 27 points in the first six jams before the Second Wind could even get on the board. The Naptown top jammer combination of Maiden America, Slammy Faye, Blue Messiah and Willa Hoeflinch made scoring look easy. “The Gazelle from Hell”, a.k.a. Dora the Destroyer was also in top form in the first half, netting three grand slams in the sixth jam and setting the pace for the rest of the game.

The bout wasn’t all Naptown, though and Second Wind jammers Zoe Trocious, Karmageddon and Hermione Danger were working hard to keep the team alive. Val Capone and Tamikaze were relentless throughout the pack and made every effort to shut down the Naptown offense.

Joan of Dark proved to be the blocker to beat from Naptown. Teamwork was the key factor for her team while jammer speed and agility helped them rack up nearly 100 points in the first half. Naptown went into halftime up 94-33 over the Second Wind.

The second half saw Naptown jammer Willa Hoeflinch making the whole pack flinch displaying her abilities to physically navigate the defense. The Second Wind was answering back with the one-two speed combo of Hermione Danger and Karmageddon. Though they were doing everything they could to keep the game alive, the Naptown squad simply out matched the Second Wind. The final score was 190-78 in favor of Naptown.

Naptown jammer Blue Messiah received the Player of the Game award and a battle-worn Second Wind team congratulated Naptown in good form. The David-versus-Goliath-type grudge match looked more like a fistfight at times but the overall atmosphere was speed and grace under fire.