The Wait is Over – Queens Back on Track with 129-96 Win over Brooklyn
by: Thomas Gerbasi
July 11, 2010
The Wait is Over – Queens Back on Track with 129-96 Win over Brooklyn
by Thomas Gerbasi
NEW YORK, July 10 – For the core group of the Queens of Pain team that won the 2008 Gotham Girls Roller Derby Championship, it’s been 623 days since the last time they experienced the thrill of victory together, an agonizing time marked with near-misses, bad breaks, and team turnover. But Saturday night at the sold-out Hunter College gym, they forcibly removed that monkey off their collective back by defeating the Brooklyn Bombshells 129-96, while simultaneously sending a message to the defending champion Bronx Gridlock that they’re ready to challenge for the crown.
The win broke a six bout skid that included four league bouts, and avenged a 137-67 loss to Brooklyn in 2009. One of the key absentees from that last meeting, Queens captain Suzy Hotrod, made her presence known Saturday with a team-record 84 points, and she was aided by contributions not only from holdover members of the 2008 championship squad (team MVP Donna Matrix, Ana Bollocks, Hyper Lynx, Stevie Kicks, Greta Turbo, Haulin’ Cass), but from a host of newer vets and rookies, creating the team effort Queens had been looking for in their quest for a fourth league championship.
Team play was also the prevailing theme for the gutsy Brooklyn squad in the hard-fought bout, which was a lot closer than the final score would indicate. Despite falling to 0-2 this season, the Bombshells showed vast improvements since their opening season defeat to the Gridlock in May, led by team MVP Hard Anya, leading scorer Carmen Monoxide (37), and a never-say-die group of skaters who kept battling until the final jam.
Queens was not to be denied on this night though, and after some back and forth early action, monster jams from Hyper Lynx (10 pts) and Suzy Hotrod (14 pts) turned a 13-10 deficit into a 34-13 lead. And while Brooklyn clawed their way back to within five and two points at different times in the first half, just when they looked to have momentum on their side, it would be Hotrod and Lynx closing the door offensively while Donna Matrix (2.30 per jam pts diff) and Ana Bollocks (1.33) locked up the cupboard on the defensive end. It was Donna's blanketing defense in the rear of the pack which earned her the MVP honors; she repeatedly used the hips of teammates as leverage to hurl herself at sailorette jammers, denying them entrance into the pack.
Entering the second half down 61-47, Brooklyn was still in striking range, but a 17 point jam from Hotrod turned that deficit to 31, and seven consecutive jams with lead jammer status for Queens basically wrapped up the end result. Despite this, the game was far from over in the eyes of the skaters, and the final 30 minutes was epitomized by grueling infighting and hard hits, with Brooklyn’s Hela Skelter, Megahurtz, Bitch Cassidy, Lady Fingers, OMG WTF, and Double Clutch battling it out with Queens’ aforementioned vets, as well as Pippi Strongsocking, Bunny McBones, and Knockturn Ali.
Joining Hotrod and Monoxide in the scoring column were Queens’ Hyper Lynx (36) and Puss ‘N Glutes (9), and Brooklyn’s Score of Babylon (23), Demonica Mars (18), Papierschnitt (15), and Hard Anya (3).
With Queens’ victory, the race for the championship got a lot tighter, as the first place Gridlock (2-0) now has Manhattan (1-1) and Queens (1-1) closing in on the top spot. On August 7th, Queens battles the Bronx at Hunter College, while Manhattan takes on Brooklyn in the same venue on September 11th.
Period 1 Period 2 Total
Queens 61 68 129
Brooklyn 47 49 96
Queens MVP – Donna Matrix
Brooklyn MVP – Hard Anya
Leading Queens Scorers:
Suzy Hotrod 84 pts (15 jams)
Hyper Lynx 36 pts (11 jams)
Puss ‘N Glutes 9 pts (8 jams)
Leading Queens Blockers:
Ana Bollocks 21 jams (+28)
Haulin’ Cass 21 jams (+15)
Donna Matrix 20 jams (+46)
Leading Brooklyn Scorers:
Carmen Monoxide 37 pts (16 jams)
Score of Babylon 23 pts (9 jams)
Demonica Mars 18 pts (8 jams)
Leading Brooklyn Blockers:
Hela Skelter 18 jams (-1)
OMG WTF 17 jams (-25)
Hard Anya 16 jams (-15)
Queens Penalties
Minors: 39 Majors: 22 Box Trips: 27
Brooklyn Penalties
Minors: 39 Majors: 14 Box Trips: 21
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Watch the replay of Brooklyn vs Queens on NYC life, Channel 25 (22 on Cablevision), on Wednesday night, July 21, at 11:30pm, or again late on Saturday evening, July 24, at 12:30am. After these broadcasts, the bout will be viewable on demand at www.ggrd-nyclife.com.