Roller derby in St. Albert is a wheel big deal.
Attendance for the first bout in St. Albert history was 383 as the Deathbridge Derby Dames of Lethbridge outscored the St. Albert Heavenly Rollers 139-80 Saturday night at Performance Arena.
“It was epic, absolutely epic!” proclaimed St. Albert captain Celeste Thiesen, a.k.a Petra Phil, No. 1.618. “I’m elated. I couldn’t have asked for a better night. I’m very excited for the girls and how they played. We may not have won the game but we’re going to win the after party!”
The electrifying atmosphere brought out the very best in both teams.
“I felt the crowd and I’ve never felt that before. I don’t know whether it’s the stadium seating that makes sound travel like that but it was really great,” said Thiesen, 36. “It was a very, very professional crowd, too. There was no catty comments from the crowd. There was no jeers. Everybody was cheering and that was really great.”
Deathbridge was also thrilled to be part of the sports spectacle.
“It was really, really cool to be invited up to be their first opponent. They could’ve invited so many other people but they chose us and we’re very honoured,” said Molly K. Elliot, a.k.a Lili Von Schtopp, No. 22. “It was a lot of fun. There were a lot of fans and I think people really enjoyed it. It was a good first showing of roller derby in St. Albert.”
The nervous energy surrounding the first jam whistle spread like wildfire throughout the St. Albert lineup.
“It’s a big venue and there was a lot of pressure to fill it. We also knew Deathbridge would be very tough so we were a little nervous but we were also very excited to get things started in St. Albert,” said Thiesen, an interior designer based in Edmonton. “Traditionally in the first half we get the nerves out of all the newbies and then we play much better in the second half, which was obvious tonight. We brought the score a little closer together.”
The point spread after the first 30 minutes was 84-34.
“Deathbridge was a wonderful, wonderful group of ladies to play and they’re seasoned so we’re quite happy with the outcome of this game,” Thiesen said. “It went exactly according to plan. Our girls played great. They’ve done everything they’ve learned in their training and it was very rewarding to see them apply it on the track.”
St. Albert is 0-3 in its inaugural season. Previous losses were against the Missfits of Mayhem in Wetaskiwin and the Nightshades in Red Deer.
“Everyone played their hearts out in all three games. The only difference [against Deathbridge] is that we had more time to do the drills with the newbies and have them learn the skills so that they can apply it on the track,” Thiesen said. “We knew Deathbridge was a tough team but we’re not going to shy away from that even though this is our third game and our first home game. It’s the only way to really learn. We learned quite a bit from these girls and we’re going to learn more at the after party, I’m sure.”
Improvement in St. Albert’s play included simple aspects of the game.
“I would absolutely say communication and looking behind us. The blockers have a lot going on so you have to keep your head on a swivel and it’s really hard to take in everything that’s happening in the game. It’s not like hockey. You can hit when nobody is looking,” Thiesen said. “Our girls did a really good job of communicating and it’s just not just verbally either. We do a lot of touching as well as a lot of shoving so it all happens together.”
The victory was the second in three games for Deathbridge.
“We’ve been playing together for over a year and have just started to pick up each other’s quirks and the things that we like to do. Each jammer has their preference. Each blocker has their preference. You just have to know what someone needs and what someone wants,” said Elliot, 21. “The big thing is we communicate. I don’t know if you could hear us or not but my voice hurts. We’re screamers and I think that is a big component that just comes with time; you scream to begin with and then you scream the right things. We help each other that way and we work as a team really, really well.”
The scoring system is a bit tricky for the novice fan to understand but it doesn’t take long to add up the points.
“Each team has four blockers on the track. Each team also has one jammer. The jammers are the ones that score points. Their job is to get through the pack as fast as they can as many times as they can because they score points for every opposing blocker they pass. The blockers’ jobs are to stop the opposing jammer and help their own jammer through so they’ve got a lot going on,” Thiesen explained. “We do have a lot of rookie players so their speed is just not there yet. Their jammers happen to have the speed and their blockers happen to have the speed as well but our blockers were effective in taking out their blockers.”
Thiesen is a pivot on the team.
“Pivots are blockers that kind of control the speed of the pack and communicate more to the other players on what to do,” said the fourth-year derby girl, one of the few veterans on the St. Albert squad with experience playing in Edmonton.
Elliot is an interior designer graduate who got hooked on the sport as soon as she strapped on the wheels.
“I love the game. It consumes your whole life. It’s the only thing you want to do. I just about dropped out of school so I can play roller derby all the time,” said Elliot, who anchors the back of the pack and sometimes jams. “It’s not even all about the game, it’s about the girls. I have an amazing family on this team and I wouldn’t give them up for the world. We’re so close and we do everything together. It’s the fellowship. It’s the sisterhood. It’s the love that you have for your team. It makes your heart warm and you get to kick each other’s assess as well.”
