2017 D2 Playoffs Game 4: Paris vs. Bear City

Paris Rollergirls (#3) vs. Bear City Roller Derby (#14)

The fourth game of the 2017 International WFTDA Division 2 Playoffs Pittsburgh had Paris Roller Derby of Paris, France (#3), competing in their first ever Playoffs game against Bear City of Berlin, Germany (#14), returning to D2 Playoffs for their fourth consecutive season. Paris had some nerves early in the game but took the lead in jam 4 and never looked back.

Paris was slow to start, with the strong Berlin walls holding them scoreless for the first three jams. Kurdy Malloy opened the scoring in Jam 4, picking up 15 points for Paris. Berlin had some blocker penalty trouble, allowing Paris to add points, including a 24-point jam from Kurdy Malloy in Jam 11. With ten minutes to go, Bear City rallied picking up lead in three consecutive jams. Paris were unfazed and continued to play their game, going into halftime with 121 points to Berlin’s 46 points.

By half time, Paris had built up a 75-point lead. Bear City started well in the second half, with Mia Missile scoring 19 points for Berlin in the jam 2. The German team continued to show great composure throughout the second period, outscoring Paris in the second half alone. However, their spike in points was not enough to overtake Paris, whose agile jammers could not be contained for long. The final score of 205 points for Paris to 152 points for Bear City is a fair result, reflecting solid performances from both teams.

Kurdy Malloy, playing in her first season on the all-star team was Paris’s highest scoring jammer, scoring 78 points. Blocking trios from both teams were seemingly impenetrable at times with several scoreless jams. Jammers took some big hits with General Moulinator sitting out for three jams. In the midst of the physicality, there was excellent sportsmanship on display with Miss Gadin from Paris checking in with Mia Missile from Berlin after she took a big hit. The Paris team looks strong as they progress to the next round to play Columbia QuadSquad (#11) at 6:30 p.m. Eastern Time.

FINAL SCORE

Paris Rollergirls (#3, WFTDA #43) 205
Bear City Roller Derby (#14, WFTDA #55) 152