The Soul City Sirens travelled more than 100 miles to battle the Classic City Rollergirls in a bout they dubbed “Soul City Smash.” The Sirens were the underdogs even without being short two jammers, two blockers, and a pivot. The broken air conditioner, missing knee pad, and unusually high two- inch track barrier were just a few more obstacles the Sirens had to overcome in order to gain their now 5-0 season record.
“We have a strong relationship with the Athens team. They have travelled many miles to watch our games, and we have driven long distances to support them. We even practice together occasionally, so this bout was intense because of that bond,” said Ivana Hitavich.
“Classic City has been studying us all year. They know our line ups. They know what positions we play. They know our strategies, so two weeks before this bout, we designed new line ups and new strategies in the hopes that it would throw Athens off their game,” said Coach Brett.
When the whistle blew for the first jam, you could feel the tension in the rink. One of the largest crowds Skate-A-Round has hosted showed up to watch the battle. Chairs were lined up four rows deep and fans were standing on the rink’s seats in the back just to get a good view. The Sirens fans brought their siren to the annoyance of the Athens fans sitting near them. Haute Mess said, “Sometimes during a game when I am tired and think I have nothing left in me, I hear that siren, and I am suddenly reenergized!”
Classic City took the lead in the first few jams. The Athens crowd was ecstatic. The Sirens were down 18-4. The coaches called a time out. The message was, “Calm down. Focus. Play smart.” The Sirens reentered the track and gained an impressive 28-point lead. Both teams were implementing their best strategies.
Since the Sirens were down two out of their three regular jammers, Ethyl Agitate, Ivana Hitavich, and 3D were tapped to fill in the blanks. Often times, these girls would come out of one jam as a blocker and go into the next as a jammer.
Ethyl Agitate is a full-contact jammer meaning she engages the other jammer outside the pack. This is very important during jams when your team does not have the lead jammer advantage. Ethyl was able to hold up the Classic City jammer to run the clock down.
Ivana Hitavich is a fast and crafty jammer. She skated circles around the opposing players. Taking hip and arm whips from her teammates, she quickly warped from light speed to ludicrous speed. Inskatiable remembers leaning on a blocker while simultaneously giving Ivana an arm whip catapulting her out of the angry pack.
This was only the second bout for 3D who had an amazing game. Her first time up as a jammer, she gained lead jammer status and was able to call off the jam before the Classic City jammer could score any points. Then, as a blocker, she was able to knock the Classic City jammer out of bounds and stop. This forced a cutting the track penalty on the jammer. “This was so impressive because it is an advanced strategy that takes most players years to grasp. We are all very proud of her,” said Captain Pollie Hatchett.
Damn Yankee was most impressed with Elle e Deville who knocked an Athens jammer out of bounds and then stopped. This forced a cutting the track penalty, and the jammer was sent to the penalty box. “This was a strategy that we were able to keep secret from the Athens team. Elle e Deville and 3D were able to implement it very successfully,” said Coach Jason.
By the end of the first half, Pollie Hatchett was getting tired, and Classic City was getting revenge. The last jam of the first half tied everything up at 58 to 58. That focused everyone on the second half. “It was like starting back at zero! We were hot and exhausted, but we had to keep going. Luckily, we are used to practicing in a rink with no air conditioning,” said G-Hottie.
When the teams returned for the second half, the battle continued. During one of the first jams, Pollie Hatchett’s arch nemesis, Chimera, was in the penalty box. Just as Hatchett was beginning her scoring pass, Chimera leapt from the sidelines. Hatchett fought her way to the front of the pack only to be confronted by Chimera, but it was a swing and a miss as Chimera dove in for a hit. Hatchett easily dodged her. The two skaters went back and forth until they were more than 20 feet from the pack. The refs called a penalty on Chimera, but she just smiled and went in for one last hit. This time, her strike was successful. Hatchett, however, bounced right back to her skates and waved at Chimera as she went to the penalty box.
One of Classic City’s biggest mistakes came when they didn’t get a jammer on the track before a jam. Pollie Hatchett (who of course gained lead jammer status) was allowed a full two minutes to round the track and rack up points. Lady GagYa, Inskatiable, Chachi O’Nasty, and Elle e Deville were on the track to beat down the opposing blockers. Hatchett scored 15 points during that jam.
In the last jam, everyone was fighting for those last few points that would mean victory or defeat. Before the last whistle blew, Poke A. Dot went down with an ankle injury. As both teams took a knee in concern for Poke A. Dot, there was dead silence. When she made it back to her bench, the teams remained on their knees. No one moved while waiting for the final score to be posted. The Sirens had no idea if they had pulled it off or not. The refs first relayed Classic City’s points to the scoreboard. As it stood, Classic City had the lead. Then, the refs relayed the Sirens’ points to the scoreboard. As each point was added, everyone held their breath. When the final score was announced by the head ref, the Sirens and their fans erupted with excitement.
As Domestic Disturbance skated off the track to celebrate with her team, joy overcame her. She crashed to the floor with everyone around her and just laid there for a moment in ecstatic exhaustion. She said, “We have worked so hard all year for this moment—the moment where we come together as a team to defeat one of the best teams in our region.”
Chachi O’Nasty said, “When we realized that we had just defeated the team that pretty much taught us how to play roller derby, we all burst into tears. We went in feeling like the underdog, never expecting to win. We had done it without five of our best players. We had done it with 11 people. This is why I play roller derby. This feeling I have right now.”
