Feb 1, 2016 | Bout News

New Year Knock Out: Rockits Pummel Dagger Dolls

By Fire Wally

The Rockits showed poise and control in Saturday’s New Year Knock Out event, earning a 193-149 victory over the Dagger Dolls. Though they led on the scoreboard through the entire bout, the Rockits had to fend off multiple strong challenges by the Dolls. In a game that felt closer and more tense than it read on the scoreboard, the Rockits stuck to their game plan and finished the bout strong, both of which bode well for their chances in the Minnesota RollerGirls postseason bracket.

First Half

Obscene Sheen set the pace for the Rockits with a 22-point performance in the second jam of the bout. With the Dolls falling into penalty trouble, Sheen executed some excellent spread-eagles and spin moves to dodge the pink blockers and exploit her power jam opportunity for as many points as possible. During one scoring pass, Rockits blockers Hater Tot and Ana Stick managed to knock the only two in-play Dolls blockers out of bounds, giving Sheen the easiest scoring pass that any MNRG jammer has had all season.

Sheen scored another big power jam a few minutes later, but then Jacked Pipes answered back with the first of what would be many strong jams from the Dolls jammer. Pipes blasted through the Rockits four-wall almost immediately, this time receiving a boost from her blocker Hanna Belle Lector, then earned 8 points to the Rockits’ 4, making the score 41-22 in favor of the Rockits. Two jams later, Winona Collider earned a solid 14 points for the Dolls behind some excellent offensive clears from Shiver Me Kimbers, bringing the Dolls to within 9 points, the closest margin they’d have for the rest of the game.

The Rockits held fast through the rest of the half, with Sheen, Rhea Volt, and Dreidel Robber each contributing quick four-and-call jams that notched the Rockits score forward while the Dolls were stuck on 56 points. Dreidel and Kimbers traded big jams at the end of the first half, which ended with the Rockits in the lead 106-81.

Second Half

The Dagger Dolls gave the Rockits a good scare at the start of the second half, starting with Jacked Pipes getting lead immediately in the first jam of the half, scoring a quick 5 points. On the next jam, Rockits jammer Obscene Sheen got hit out of bounds by a 1-2 punch from Wolfe Bite and then Ruth Banger Ginsburg, buying time for Shotgun Millie to earn lead jammer and score 4 more for the Dolls. That cut the lead down to 106-93 for the Rockits with 18 minutes left in the game.

Unfortunately for the Dolls, the Rockits recovered deftly from that bump in the road by sending out a blocking line of MadRad, Animal, and Scarmen Hellectra who swarmed on Ova Acheiva and forced her to commit a penalty as jammer Rhea Volt scored 20 for the Rockits. The Rockits kept up that defensive intensity through big jams by MadRad and Driedel Robber, ratcheting up their lead to 146-99 with 11 minutes left in the game.

That score differential would stay roughly the same through the rest of the game, with the Dolls’ small comebacks answered immediately with more points for the Rockits. The Rockits had the Dolls nearly under control, with the very important exception of Jacked Pipes. Pipes scored points in every appearance at jammer during the second half, often earning lead jammer within seconds after the starting whistle. Though it was not enough to outscore the combined efforts of Rockits jammers Sheen, Volt, and Driedel, Pipes managed a very impressive performance that had the Dolls fans in the crowd pumped and behind her.

Perhaps fueled by the crowd’s lust for a comeback, Rhea Volt tied a bow on the Rockits victory with a 19-point performance in the last jam of the game, cementing the Rockits in first place as the Minnesota RollerGirls season transitions to the race for the Golden Skate. The Rockits 3-0 record will put them in the top seed for February’s home team semifinals bout.