OHRG defeats Montréal in final jam

The Ohio Roller Girls come out on top against the Montréal Roller Derby in a back-and-forth bout that could not be decided until the very last jam. OHRG defeated Montréal 102-98 June 28 in Philadelphia at the East Coast Extravaganza.

A timeout with 20 seconds remaining gave the Ohio Roller Girls the extra boost it needed to regroup and secure another victory in dramatic fashion in a back-and-forth bout versus the Montréal Roller Derby June 28 at the East Coast Extravaganza in Philadelphia.

Coming down to the wire, OHRG had a 97-93 lead but jammer Drrty Grrl was issued her fourth minor penalty and sent to the penalty box. This left Montréal’s best jammer, Iron Wench, on the track by herself to score five points and take the lead. As the crowd roared the lead change in favor of the first international team in the Women’s Flat Track Roller Derby Association, Ohio called a timeout to give it one last chance to back the lead.

Leading OHRG scorer Pippi RipYourStockings was called on to do what she does best, while Montréal selected Beater Pan-Tease to jam. The packs for both teams made it difficult for each jammer to get out for the coveted lead jammer position. Just when Beater Pan-Tease saw an opening to get out of the pack, she was forced into a major track cutting penalty and sent to the penalty box to sit for one minute. All Pippi had to do was get through the pack cleanly and become lead jammer but committed a minor penalty herself causing the jam to go the full two minutes. Gassed but determined, Pippi skated through the pack for a five-point grand slam and secured a 102-98 win for the Ohio Roller Girls in one of the most exciting games of the tournament.

Montréal quickly became a fan favorite of the tournament surprising everyone with its speed and agility on the track. The girls from Canada nearly defeated Atlanta the day before on the back of captain and all-star jammer Iron Wench. Coming into the bout against Ohio, Montréal’s speed took OHRG off guard for the first few jams and quickly gave them a double-digit 18-5 lead. But Ohio’s experience and strategy allowed the girls in kelly green and black to quickly adjust on the defensive end and began holding up the speedsters from Montréal.

Captain Phoenix Bunz did what she does best – stopping jammers in their tracks – while the rest of the Ohio pack controlled Montréal and opened holes for the OHRG jammers. Ohio fought back from its deficit tying the game early on at 21 after the elusive Hellion BOI stealthly made it through the pack without being touched and scored four points. The gelling for the Ohio squad increased and it took the lead back from Montréal and grew its lead as the half continued.

Late in the first half, jammer Drrty Grrl was sent out on a controversial major cutting the track call allowing Montréal to take to the track unopposed and score eight points clipping the Ohio lead to 49-41. Only two jams later, jammer Pippi RipYourStockings was sent out on a major block in the back penalty on the Montréal jammer which made the score even thinner for a 51-45 Ohio lead going into halftime.

The intensity in the second half was even higher than the first as Montréal’s Iron Wench was able to take the lead from Ohio after 10 minutes elapsed after early penalty problems crept up on the OHRG pack. Several lead changes in the half had the crowd on its feet time after time and Iron Wench came on again. This time with less than 10 minutes left in the bout, she tied the game at 82. In the next jam, penalties on jammers made Drrty Grrl go the entire two-minute jam scoring an 11-spot and taking the Ohio lead once again at 93-89.

The waning minutes had the arena screaming for Montréal to pull out its first-ever sanctioned-bout win. But the Ohio Roller Girls wouldn’t have it. The bouts at East Coast Extravaganza were the last to be considered before the WFTDA selects teams to the national tournaments. OHRG is a part of the North Central region and is currently ranked 13th before the 2nd quarter rankings are released in late July.