The Ithaca League of Women Rollers kicked off their home 2010 season at the J.M McDonald Sports Complex in Cortland, NY with a double header, which included the debut bout for the burgeoning league’s second team, the Ithaca BlueStockings.

The Ithaca League of Women Rollers operates as two travel teams with an A/B structure. Roughly 1500 fans came to see the Ithaca Bluestockings debut bout against Syracuse’s Assault City Roller Derby’s new B travel team. Syracuse dominated the first few jams of the game. However, in the sixth jam, the Bluestockings took control of the game and kept it the rest of the game, with a generous lead at halftime of 101 to Assault City’s 56.

Coordinated team work between Bluestockings’ Thunder Vittles, Lady Dismantle, Jenna Vendetta and their communicative Pivot, Chrysteria, kept Assault City’s Jammers from posing much of a threat in the second half, while BlueStocking jammers Pl Anne B and Cold War continued to rack up points for Ithaca. When not jamming, AKT*47 played tough defense in the back.

Highlights from the Syracuse team include Raging Ruby forcing her way through the pack on several successful jams, with help from blockers Dixie Dregs, and Erynn Go Brawl. But it was Assault City’s Dolly Foxx who earned the most points for Assault City with 43 points over the course of the game. That was no match, however, to Cold War’s incredible 95 point debut game!

Final score for the Ithaca Bluestockings first bout: 187-106 Ithaca

1st Half: Blue Stockings – 101, Assault City – 56
2nd Half: Blue Stockings – 86, Assault City – 50
Final: Blue Stockings – 187, Assault City – 106

In the second game of the night, Ithaca’s veteran team, the Ithaca SufferJets, played their first home bout of the season against Rochester’s Roc City Roller Derby after returning home from their first away bout of the season against Buffalo’s Queen City Suicidal Saucies (114- 128, Saucies). Despite that it was Roc City’s first game of the season they dominated the game with a fast pack that outskated the SufferJets. A brutal hitting force of Roc City’s Lethal Lorelei and Stabbity Ann proved to be a tough force for Ithaca’s Jammers.

SufferJet, Brutal Vroom, kept Roc City’s pack on their feet with her awesome combination of defensive and offensive blocking while playing her cleanest game ever. Her team mates, Chairman Meow and HitzNGigglz, played as a strong defensive duo, but suffered as Hitz’ four majors in the second half kept her tied up in the box.

Ithaca rookie jammer, Hooty McBooty, jamming for the first time, had a stellar 7 point jam in the 15th jam of the first period, but it was SufferJet jammer, Golden Diapers, who kept her home crowd happy with a total of 51 points in the game, earned with her signature quick feet and effective jumps around her contenders.

Although Roc City’s points were nearly evenly distributed between jammers Asa Clubs, Thea Pocolypse, and Toxin Dioxin, it was Toxin Dioxin that emerged as the team’s top jammer with an average of 4.22 points scored per jam throughout her 9 jams of the night.

In the twelfth jam of the second half, as Roc City jammer, Asa Clubs, sat in the box, Golden Diapers’ power jam was cut short when her hand signal for her pack to slow down was misinterpreted as calling off the jam, robbing the SufferJets of much needed points. The prematurely ended jam left the SufferJets with their closest score of the evening 81 -84.

However, when Asa Clubs emerged from the box in time for jam 13, she dominated Ithaca’s Sarabellum in a 9-0 jam from which the SufferJets never recovered.

With 35 seconds on the clock, jammer Sarabellum called her jam stragetically so fellow jammer, Golden Diapers, could earn one more full jam on the clock, but Roc City ‘s Thea Pocalypse earned lead jammer status in the final jam making their dominance clear to the final jam of the game.

Roc City heads home for their own home season opener on May 8th against Long Island Roller Rebels, while Ithaca will host their first-ever intra-league bout on May 16th.

SufferJets vs. Roc City

1st Half: SufferJets – 49, Roc City – 57
2nd Half: SufferJets – 44, Roc City – 50
Final: SufferJets – 93, Roc City – 107