2019 Championships Game 1: Texas v Philly

Texas Rollergirls (Winston-Salem #2) v Philly Roller Derby (Seattle #3)

See Game Details on stats.wftda.com

The 2019 International WFTDA Championships in Montréal kicked off with the Texas Rollergirls of Austin, Texas, U.S. (Winston-Salem Playoffs #2, WFTDA #7) taking on Philly Roller Derby of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S. (Seattle Playoffs #3, WFTDA #9), with both teams putting up a fight till the last whistle.

Starting with the first jam, viewers witnessed the seemingly unstoppable force of Texas Rollergirls’ jammer, Freight Train, charging out of the pack with powerful hits against the Philly Roller Girls’ defenses.

But Philly didn’t let down their guard and quickly responded with formidable defensive tripod wall formations. Combined with effective single blocker offense, Philly’s jammers Reptar and Herrmann successfully controlled the jams with lead jammer status through the first half of the game.

Both Texas and Philly jammers were faced with a punishing defense as blockers from both teams created seemingly impenetrable walls covering clear across the track. In a couple instances, spectators saw incredible wall formations, bridging, and run-backs as jams went almost the full two minutes and around the entire track before any jammer emerged from pack to lead.

After halftime we saw the endurance and perseverance of the Philly jammers and blockers slowly beginning to chip away at Texas’ exhausted skaters. Philly jammer Persephone’s explosive lateral moves allowed her to swing around the Texas walls and execute one-pass scores before Texas could re-engage the pack.

While Texas jammers, Freight Train and Hauss the Boss, dominated the second half as lead jammer, they were no match for Philly’s immovable walls and fast recycling across the track. Philly’s blockers,  VanEssa V-Diva Sites, Jail Bars, and Russian Bayou, displayed remarkable teamwork as they halted, knocked out and rolled back the numerous attempts of the Texas Rollergirls jammers’ from breaking away from the pack.

With time left on the clock for one more jam, Texas Rollergirls attempted to put their “Hail Mary” play into action as they lined up with Freight Train at the jam line. Although she showed incredible athleticism and skill, it was not enough to overcome the 30-point deficit as the game closed with Philly Roller Derby earning a hard-fought 136-114 win for the first game of the 2019 WFTDA Championships.

Philly advances to play the Rose City Rollers of Portland, Oregon, U.S. (Seed #1, WFTDA #1) in Game 5 on Friday. Texas moves to the consolation bracket on Saturday.

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