The Rose City Rollers playoffs started on Saturday night featuring two semi-final bouts. The first of which saw the undefeated Break Neck Betties going up against the still winless High Rollers, followed by the Heartless Heathers taking on Guns N Rollers. The winners of each bout would have their ticket stamped for the championship bout being held on October 20^th.

High Rollers vs. Break Neck Betties

Blood Clottia was able to pick up lead jammer status in the first run, but Madame Bumpsalot was hot on her heels for the High Rollers. After each skater picked up 4 points on their first scoring run, Clottia knocked Bumpsalot to the floor before collecting four more points and calling off the jam, giving her Betties an early 8-4 advantage. Ava Sk8trix picked up lead jammer in the 2^nd jam and called it off after scoring 2 points before High Rollers jammer Wetback Attack could come around to collect any of her own. Rhea DeRange earned lead status in the 3^rd jam and went on a 14-0 rampage to pull the Betties out to a 24-4 lead after only three jams. With Hurricane Skatrina starting the 4^th jam in the box for the High Rollers, D. Konstructor once again picked up lead status for the Betties and raced away with an 8-0 decision. Dora Doom continued the Betties run as she came away with a 4-0 score in the 5^th over Wetback Attack to make the score 36-4. Madame Bumpsalot gave the High Rollers something to cheer about in the 6^th jam as she was able to pick up the lead status, but was still outscored by Blood Clottia to the tune of 4-3. D. Konstructor came away with lead status in the 7^th and rolled to a 4-0 score over Bunny Lepowski. Then after a 0-0 deadlock between Rhea DeRange and Busta Spines in the 8^th, Ava Sk8trix was able to pick up a grand slam over Madame Bumpsalot in the 9^th before calling it off with a 5-0 advantage. D. Konstructor once again picked up lead status in the 10^th and skated away with an 8-4 victory over Buster Spines. And Wetback Attack and Dora Doom started the jam late in the period and both were unable to score any points before the whistle blew. At the end of the first half, the Break Neck Betties held a commanding 57-11 lead.

Now, if this is wrong I would like to be corrected on it, but I also hope it's actually true. There could have been a late change in the scoreboard during the jam that I didn't catch onto, but according to my book, D. Konstructor ran off with a 20-0 jam to start things in the 2^nd half over Bunny Lepowski! I do remember D. Konstructor lapping the field three times for sure, and there very well could have been a 4^th pass, too. At that point, I think shell-shock was starting to set in. Anyway, with Lepowski starting the 2^nd jam in the penalty box, Ava Sk8trix was able to collect another grand slam and a 5-0 run. But Sk8trix wound up in the box to begin the 3^rd jam, which allowed the High Rollers Buster Spines to go out there, claim lead jammer and pick up a 4-0 victory for her squad. Sk8trix also started the 4^th jam and reeled off a nice 3-0 run over Bunny Lepowski before using her lead status to call it off. The 5^th jam was Dora Doom's turn to go wild as she picked up a pair of grand slams on her way to a 14-0 skate over Buster Spines. The 6^th jam saw Madame Bumpsalot and Blood Clottia skate to a 3-3 draw, followed by a 0-0 jam between D. Konstructor and Buster Spines. Madame Bumpsalot picked up lead status in the 8^th and raced away with a nice 4-0 run over Cadillac. Then blocking dynamo Megahurtz took the jammers cap and raced off to a 9-0 run for the Betties in the 9^th. The 10^th and final jam of the second half saw Ava Sk8trix finish stongly with a 4-0 run over Candy Warhol. When the clock hit 0:00, the Break Neck Betties had coasted to a 115-22 win.

THREE STARS

3. Megahurtz. Solid, hard-hitting blocking all night long. That and Alan has been on my case for a couple months now wondering why I never pick her (lol). Naw…she played great on Saturday night!

2. Dora Doom. Another nice night of blocking/pivoting along with a pair of really nice jams.

1. D. Konstructor. Regardless if that 20-0 jam is correct or not, she put on a show out there for the Betties. In my opinion, the best Rose City skater not on the Wheels of Justice travel team.

This was a tough one to pick only three stars…all of which would have been Betties. Blood Clottia, Ava Sk8trix, Domesticated Violence, Fran Checkya, Rhea DeRange and Cadillac all could have gotten on that list. They played tough, they played tight, they played like a team destined for a championship.

I really don't know what to say about the High Rollers. Madame Bumpsalot, Trixie Fairlane and Hurricane Skatrina all played well for them. JK Rolling is a nice addition from the Oly Rollers. I dunno…hopefully they'll get things turned around here next season.

Guns N Rollers vs. Heartless Heathers

These two very evenly matched teams didn't disappoint on this night. Itzo EZ and Goodie Two Skates dueled to a 3-3 draw to kick things off in the first jam. The second jam saw Scratcher in the Eye earn lead status for her Heathers, but she was still out-done by November Pain to the tune of 4-3. Angry Wrench pulled GNR out to an early lead with a 4-0 run over newcomer X2Z in the third jam before Rolla Reina also picked up lead status and a nice 6-3 score over Vominatrix in the 4^th that gave Guns N Rollers an early 17-10 lead. But Goodie Two Skates answered right back for the Heathers as she racked up a pair of grand slams on her way to a dominating 10-0 skate over Punchkin in the 5^th jam. But Itzo EZ busted through the pack first and came away with a 7-2 decision in favor of her GNR over Teq"Kill"Ya in the 6^th. The 7^th jam saw November Pain earn lead status and pick up a point before being knocked to the sport court, where she wisely called the jam off before Vominatrix could pick up any points for her Heartless Heathers. Scratcher in the Eye took advantage of Rolla Reina's early trip to the sin bin and came away with a pair of grand slams and a 10-0 run in the 8^th that gave the Heathers a 32-25 lead. But Itzo EZ answered that with a nice 4-0 run of her own before calling it off in the 9^th. Then November Pain reclaimed the lead for Guns N Rollers with a sweet 8-0 run over Vominatrix in the 10^th. The 11^th jam started with Viva Vendetta on the line for GNR, and No Namey wearing the jammers cap for the Heathers. But before long, penalties claimed both skaters and the run was called off with no score. At the end of one half of play, Guns N Rollers clung to a 38-32 lead.

November Pain broke away from the pack first to start the opening jam of the 2^nd half with Scratcher in the Eye in hot pursuit with lead status. Scratcher eventually called the jam off, but not before Pain picked up a point to claim an early 1-0 victory. Rolla Reina picked up two points on her first scoring pass in the 2^nd jam, but was claimed by the penalty bug which allowed X2Z to skate away with a 7-2 decision in favor of the Heathers. Vominatrix started the 3^rd jam all by herself back there behind the pack with Rolla Reina still in the box, but was also claimed by penalty troubles and the jam ended with no score. Rolla Reina did start the 3^rd jam again with the star cap on and was able to pick up a 3-0 run over Goodie Two Skates who was also sent to the box in mid-jam. But once again, Reina earned another trip to the box which gave Scratcher in the Eye an open run and she made the most of it by racing away with a pair of grand slams, a 10-0 run and gave the Heathers the lead by a score of 49-44. Goodie Two Skates extended the lead for the Heathers with a 4-1 run over Angry Wrench in the 6^th. And once again, Scratcher in the Eye took advantage of Wrench starting the jam in the box by reeling off an 8-0 skate in the 7^th, followed by Goodie's 5-0 slam over November Pain in the 8^th that gave the Heartless Heathers a commanding 66-45 lead late in the game. But GNR wasn't about to give up as Itzo EZ took advantage of Scratcher's trip to the box by collecting a 4-0 run in the 9^th jam. With time running out on GNR, November Pain was able to pick up lead status in the 10^th and final jam of the evening, but her blockers were unable to contain Goodie Two Skates within the pack and all Pain could muster was a late 7-4 jam. When time ran out, the Heartless Heathers had earned the right to defend their Rose City championship trophy with a 70-56 win.

THREE STARS

3. Itzo EZ. I thought she was the best player GNR had out there on the night. Some nice runs at jammer along with good, solid blocking throughout the game.

2. Goodie Two Skates. Just another night in the life of Ms. Two Skates; doing stand-out jobs at both jammer and pivot. Probably the best overall skater for either team in the game.

1. Scratcher in the Eye. An amazing night at jammer! 31 points on 6 jams, a pair of 10-0 runs and according to my notebook, she earned lead jammer status all 6 times she donned the star cap. She also began two of her jams with the Heathers trailing, and ended them with her team in the lead. If that's not a 1 star, I don't know what is.

I have often said that among all the team up here in the northwest, my favorite regular match-up is between the Heathers and GNR. Their bouts are always good, close, hard hitting, see-saw affairs. It should be every derby junkies goal to witness these two teams play each other at least once since it's always an amazing spectacle!

Even though they stumbled out of the box early this season, GNR finished the season in strong fashion. Although not quite as talented on paper as the Heathers are, they played with a "never say die" attitude and were right in the thick of the game until penalty trouble cost them near the end. Still, each and every one of them gave it their all and have nothing to hang their heads about. They gave it their best shot, it just wasn't quite good enough on this night.

As for the Heartless Heathers…they looked mighty strong all night long. Perhaps unlike the DLF, this is a powerhouse team that has dealt with tough times during a bout before, but they know how to deal with it and pull through. The Break Neck Betties handled them pretty well in their bout during the season, but I have a feeling that things will be at least a little closer come championship night. If there is one thing the Heathers have going for them is that they have been in that situation before, while the Betties haven't. That counts for something, but not everything. Just ask Grave Danger about that.

Of course, the after party was a blast! Although I pretty much hit the wall sometime around midnight or so. I only had 4 beers on the night, but my body pretty much shut down due to exhaustion and I left a little early. I'll tell that tale on here tomorrow, though. But, good Ol' Russ snapped a lot of pictures with me and several Rose City Rollers (and a Duke City skater) while at Outlaws. The pics are up in the picture section, so feel free to check those out, too.

Once again, it was yet another awesome night down in Portland! Oh…and I guess since they announced it at the bout, I'll go ahead and say it here; the 2008 National tournament will be held down in Portland! And to think…one night is great down there. How cool will three or four nights be???

Thanks again everyone! Next weekend…AUSTIN!!!!!!!