With temperatures exceeding 100 outside, the B-Keepers and GateKeepers were even hotter as they dispatched opponents from the North and the South on Saturday night at the Midwest Sports Hockey Complex at Queeny Park. The B-Keepers sputtered early but came on strong to defeat the Chicago Bruise Brothers by a score of 218 - 76 and there was no deceiving the GateKeepers as they knocked off the Dallas Deception 340 - 83.

The night started off with a bang as the Chicago Bruise Brothers came to town to take on the B-Keepers. This was only Chicago’s second bout and they were looking for their first win against an undefeated B-Keepers squad that has been very smart and very disciplined. The Saint took the line to start things off for the B-Keepers, beside him stood Justice Feelgood Marshall for Chicago. The Saint grabbed lead jammer and added a quick two points before calling it off. Hand Rail added a grand slam on the next jam while taking on Al-Liminator to make it 7 - 0.

The B-Keepers were first to make a mistake as Screech Around was sent off for a major forearm on the third jam, but not before picking up five points. Princess A Pauling took advantage of the power jam to score nine points and put Chicago on the board. The two teams then would trade a few points on the following quick 3 jams to bring the score to 16 - 13 in favor of the B-Keepers.

Screech Around was again sent to the box for a major after scoring five points and the Chicago squad responded putting up eight of their own and tying the game at twenty-one apiece, forcing the B-Keepers to call a time out to calm things down and attempt to sap the momentum from a surging Bruise Brothers squad. The time out proved to be fortuitous as the B-Keepers then went on an eighty-seven to twenty-three run that featured a fourteen point jam by The Saint and a nineteen point jam by Screech Around that brought the half-time score to 108 - 44 in favor of the B-Keepers.

The B-Keepers started the second half off with a thirty to zero run spanning the first nine jams. At this point Chicago was on their heels, but kept their composure and continued to try to execute their game plan, but the physicality and smart play of the B-Keepers were simply too much for the inexperience Bruise Brothers to handle. When at even strength, the Bruise Brothers were able to pretty much contain the B-Keepers with some nice walls and good cycling of defenders, but as soon as they fell even one man down in the packs, the B-Keepers would pounce and dominate the pack leading to a few big jams while both jammers were on track. When the final jam ended the B-Keepers came out on top by a score of 218 - 76.

Chicago was very impressive and did not play at all like a team in only its second bout. Smart play and disciplined walls were the highlights of a maturing Chicago squad that will likely be a force to be reckoned within a very short amount of time. The B-Keepers played sloppy at times and were often in penalty trouble, but some of the credit must be given to the Chicago team for taking the B-Keepers by surprise with their discipline and derby-smarts. The MVPs were Specs Offender for the B-Keepers and Justice Feelgood Marshall for the Bruise Brothers.

Scoring (Unofficial):

B-Keepers: The Saint - 90; Screech Around - 84; Hand Rail - 40; Specs Offender - 4

Chicago: Princess A. Pauling - 29; Al-Liminator - 14; Perry Hotter - 14; Tim Mature - 10; Justice Feelgood Marshall - 6; Brass Monkey - 3

The B-Keepers will be on the road July 14th as they head to Kansas City to take on the Cowtown Butchers. Then they take a break in preparation for Memorial Day when they head to Sioux City for the Rollin’ Along the River tournament.

The main event of the evening was a battle of number five versus number eight as the GateKeepers squared off against the Dallas Deception. Both teams were looking to improve their standing. Dallas is sitting on the bubble at eight as the top eight teams will get an invite to the MRDA Championships in September. A strong showing here or an upset win would solidify their hold or even move them up in the rankings. The GateKeepers feel they shouldn’t be as low as fifth and were looking to show the rest of the MRDA that they belong higher in the standings.

The first jam would be wild one as Debaucherous Prime faced off against Dr. Feelgood. Debaucherous Prime found the track to be treacherous as he came into the pack a bit hot and slipped and fell into a Dallas defender giving Dallas the first power jam of the evening on a low-block major. It would be short-lived however as Dr. Feelgood would immediately pick up a major back-block and Prime would get right back to action. A victim of the track once again, Prime immediately picked up another major low-block when he slid into the back of another Dallas’ defenders as the jam came to an end.

Ninja Please would go to work on the following jam and open up the scoring on a nineteen point jam that ended shortly after Prime picked up his third major in two jams, this time on a major forearm. The GateKeepers defense then settled down and went to work. After a scoreless third jam, Gnat King Kill got the GateKeepers on the board with an eight point jam. Ninja Please then went to the box on a major track-cut and Bat Wing wasted no time rattling off a twenty-eight point jam and suddenly the GateKeepers were rolling as they went on a 126 - 20 run to finish the half with a 162 - 39 lead. It was a run marred with numerous jammer penalties by both sides, but the GateKeepers defense was solid and the GateKeepers jammers could not be stopped.

The GateKeepers came out of the gate hot to start the second half and went on an eighty-six to seven run over the first five jams that featured a thirty-eight point jam by Shanego Fett. The GateKeepers then went into cruise control and focused on containing the Dallas jammers while letting their jammers go solo against the Dallas defense. This design still worked well for them, but Dallas was able to eke out a few more points in the second half than they did in the first. The GateKeepers controlled the packs and dictated play for the remainder of the game and ended up with a 340 - 83 win over Dallas.

Scoring (Unofficial):

GateKeepers: Shanego Fett - 116; Debaucherous Prime - 93; Bat Wing - 79; Gnat King Kill - 43; Magnum, P.I.M.P. - 9

Dallas: Ninja Please - 37; Ramthrax - 28; B-Rad Isaacks - 12; Dick Diamond - 3; Chuch Riedell - 3

The big loss could be a major blow to Dallas’ chances at making the MRDA Championships. They will need a very strong showing the rest of the season and possibly some help in the form of a loss from a higher-ranked team to hold onto that number eight spot. Twin Cities(9), Mass Maelstrom(10) and Rock City(11) are all looking to make a strong push to slide up into the top eight themselves so as we head down the stretch things are going to be very interesting. The Puget Sound/Des Moines bout on July 7th is definitely one to watch and the GateKeepers will be headed to New York on August 11th with revenge on their minds and then have a hangover bout the following day against Connecticut.

On July 14th the Arch Rival Roller Girls All-Stars will be back in action as the Lunachix take on the Chicago Outfit B-Team and then the ARRG Travel Team takes on the Chicago Outfit! Tickets are on sale now at Brown Paper Tickets.

The Turf Wars resume on July 21st as the Dogtown Rockets look to continue their unbeaten regular season streak when they take on the South Grand Slammers. You will not want to miss an epic expo bout, before the headliner, pitting Superheroes versus Villains. Buy your tickets here!

On July 27th come on down to the Gramaphone for Karaoke night with the GateKeepers. This event will help raise money for the Travel Team and will allow you to force your friends to sing a song or you can pay to bang the gong when someone butchers your favorite tune. Karaoke will last from 7pm - 10pm and then the Chaotic Good will take the stage to rock the house!

Don’t forget that the 2012 Men’s Roller Derby Association Championships will take place right here in St. Louis on October 20th and 21st. Gateway to the Best will feature the top eight teams in the MRDA battling it out at the Midwest Sports Hockey Complex with the last team standing being crowned 2012 MRDA Champions! Tickets can be purchased at a discounted rate right now at Brown Paper Tickets! But you better act fast as the price will increase as we get closer to the event!

See you at the bouts!

Star-Spangled Hammer

Star-Spangled Hammer and Magilla Guerilla are the announcers for the St. Louis GateKeepers!