2008 | 2007

May 24, 2008 vs. Sonoma County Derby Girls

BAKERSFIELD, CA

Sonoma County [95] Bakersfield [66]

Recap by Penny Pincher | BRG News Service

The Bakersfield Rollergirls lost a hard-hitting defensive duel with the visiting women of Sonoma County Roller Derby Saturday night (May 24) before a packed house at Rollerama on 34th Street.

After keeping the score close through the first two 20-minute periods, Sonoma County pulled away in the third with a series of high-scoring jams and handed Bakersfield their third loss of the season, 66-95.

Despite some excellent skating by Sonoma County jammers Teacher, Phantom Payne and High Roller, Bakersfield’s defense kept it close behind punishing hits and heads-up play from the Rollergirls’s blockers.

“I'm very proud of the girls and their performance against Sonoma County- we started down 2 players and proceeded to incur a lot of minor injuries throughout the bout, but the girls kept on playing. Sonoma played an excellent game as well and we look forward to a re-match!” remarked league founder, Spider Cricket.

Tonka Toy led Bakersfield’s scoring in the first period, which ended with the Rollergirls down only nine points, 26-35.

Aggressive hits on both sides led to several devastating falls, including two that forced injury time outs for Bakersfield’s Miss Taken and Dezi Von Dropya, who were shaken up. Both skaters later returned to action.

Bakersfield’s defense stiffened in the second period, and the Rollergirls closed the gap in a seesaw scoring battle thanks to high-scoring jams from Tonka Toy, Ima Blowbya and Miss Taken.

“Bakersfield has really taken control of the pack,” said announcer Tara Armov of the second period, which ended with Bakersfield only five points down, 56-61.

The Bakersfield defense tired a bit in the third period, and Sonoma extended their lead with each jam as the Rollergirls’ scoring dried up.

“Bakersfield’s Dred Blocker is still dishing out the hits” Armov said. “She’s not going down without a fight.”

Armov wasn’t the only person impressed with Dred Blocker’s play– Sonoma County’s skaters voted her MVP. The Teacher was voted MVP for Sonoma County by Bakersfield's roster.

All's well that ends well: the after party at The Finish Line.

Roller derby fitting way to jam out of B-town

by Andy Kehe | The Bakersfield Californian

It was about the moment that Dred Blocker took out both a competitor and a referee, spilling both into the first row of fans and sending a half-full cup of soda spewing everywhere, that I knew that flat track roller derby is a Bakersfield jam not about to be cut off anytime soon.

Fans hollered "woooooo!!!" People got up and danced, shouted trash at the wiped out chick from the Sonoma team, laughed and pointed at the referee. After a short break to clean up the mess, the jam was back on, with Bakersfield's Tonka Toy (Tonya Warren) racing as the lead jammer to meet the back of the pack, where thunderous hip and shoulder bumps from Sonoma's Grateful Red and D. Enforcer awaited, and where she hoped to score with help from Rollergirls teammates Dezi Von Dropya (Dezi Avila) and Hardcore Honey (DeAnna Brown).

Like Joanie Weston and Charlie O'Connell, Ralphie Valladares and the L.A. T-Birds, Bakersfield and roller derby is a match folks can roll with -- even this reincarnated version from the glory days of banked-track roller derby that is void of fights, storylines and predetermined outcomes, but not the rough-housing. Names on the back of the jerseys sometimes suggest skills having not much to do with roller derby, but otherwise it's a family show.

And just like the old L.A. T-Bird crowds, Bakersfield Rollergirls fans file in during the third jam and are gone by the 28th.

The bout is just in its infancy, but the unbridled enthusiasm demonstrated by the surprising packed house inside the 34th Street Rollerama on May 24 reminded me of the crowds who turned out in droves to watch the Bakersfield Oilers play hockey at the Civic in 1994, even though many weren't quite sure what the heck it was they were watching. All they knew was that there were people getting hit and bodies were flying every which direction.

And we all know what the Oilers led to.

The Rollergirls were formed last year by Joann Divers, aka Spider Cricket. They come in all sizes and from all walks of life and figure to be around for a while, although survival is tough even with tickets to their "bouts" going for $10 a head and T-shirts going for $23.

Tonka Toy led a valiant effort, but Sonoma, behind its dominant jammer Erica "The Teacher" Saya, pulled away in the third period for a 95-66 victory. I hear that Sonoma supplied the refs, which is an area the Rollergirls might want to address before their next home match July 12.

And they need Spider Cricket back. She was out because, well ... better she tell you. I can safely say it's an injury old-school gals on the San Francisco Bay Area Bombers never had to worry about.

In 22 years covering news, entertainment and sports in Bakersfield, I'd thought I'd seen everything. Of course I thought the same the night an irritated Mike Butters of the Bakersfield Oilers hurled hockey pucks from behind the bench at opposing players. I thought the same, and darn near left the business, the night Michael Dokes relieved himself into a drug testing cup as I was interviewing him after he had battered Bakersfield's Lionel Washington. I was just a few months on the job when local heavyweight Larry Frazier performed an unprecedented all-in-one-day trifecta of getting married, losing a 10-round heavyweight decision at the Civic and being arrested immediately after by BPD. I thought then I'd seen it all, even though I hadn't seen nothing, yet.

Along came Rick Plester, a goalie for the Bakersfield Oilers who played a phenomenal Jimi Hendrix/Woodstock version of the national anthem before a game at the Civic, while on the move around the ice and in full goalie gear, including mask. That was the coolest thing I'd ever seen in a sports venue until I witnessed Anthony Rodriguez, blind since birth, sprinting down the track in a frosh-soph 100-yard dash at South High a few years ago, pinballing purposely off his Ridgeview High teammate and budding best friend Chase Lanyon.

That blew me away, as did roller derby the other night. It instantly joined the glut of indelible memories I'll take with me out of town. Honestly, I could write a book.

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