Akron’s NEO Rock ‘n’ Roller Girls Buffalo Buffalo

Roller Derby Team Beats Buffalo Team in a Game Benefiting Children’s Hospital

Tallmadge, Ohio (5-2-2009)- George Harrison was right: there is something in the way she moves and that something came together to award the NEO Rock ‘n’ Roller Girls with a 115-76 victory in the home opener of their second season. The league hosted the Suicidal Saucies, a B team from Queen City Roller Girls, in the bout called Derby Road; a spoof of the classic Beatles album.

In a new venue, the Summit County Fairgrounds Arena, with ample seating and beer sales, NEO was poised for a win and determined to show the Akron area some sensational Roller Derby. The Saucies weren’t going to make it easy, however, having come into the game with an undefeated record. On the jammer line to start the game were NEO’s Teeny Houdini, and representing the Saucies, Mexicali Bruise. Teeny had an amazing game scoring a total of 27 points in six turns at jammer. Mexicali matched Teeny’s total in her 10 turns as jammer.

B’Kini Whacks from the Saucies, who nearly traded off the entire game with Mexicali with periodic help from Sissy Fit and Alley Oops, was the game’s highest scorer with 40 points in 11 turns as jammer. Close behind was Scarlet GoDancin with 34 points in 6 turns at jamming. Scarlet comes back to NEO’s lineup after having spent 6 months rehabilitating after back surgery at the close of last season.

Other high scorers for the evening were the makes-it-look-easy Phantom Fox with 15, and Chrissie B. Hynde who with 19 points and 8 jams as a multi-task blocker went on to win the MVP awarded her by the Suicidal Saucies.

The crown for most trips to the penalty box goes to Twin Pistol who also scored high with 14 points. Amber Vendetta also made a return to the NEO lineup after rehabbing a broken ankle after the last game of last season. It was obvious she didn’t lose a bit of her game earning 14 defensive blocks, 4 assists and 3 Jammer Take Outs. However Taking Names answered Vendetta’s challenge and showed the crowd why she won the title of Most Feared skater last year with 15 defensive blocks, 5 assists and 6 Jammer Take Outs.

It’s nearly impossible to qualify individual plays throughout the night, but one play that had the crowd amazed and the refs astonished was a team maneuver where Scarlet pushed Kwik Kyra up into the path of the Saucies’ Alley Oops resulting in a power block that sent Alley down and into a backward summersault. Alley didn’t stay down for even a beat and was on her feet in no time and skating like nothing happened; truly a moment in derby where one realizes that these women are every bit an athlete.

Check back next month when NEO hosts S.W.A.T. from Fort Wayne Derby Girls June 13th in what’s been dubbed Blood, Sugar, Skates, Magik.