Northern Kentucky’s roller derby team, the Black-n-Bluegrass Rollergirls, hosted their first post-season tournament a few teams short at the Bank of Kentucky Center on Oct. 20. Although the Black-n-Bluegrass Blackouts skated away champions of the 2012 Roller Derby Unbridled Tournament, only four of the seven teams invited were there to compete.

The tournament was originally supposed to feature all of the roller derby teams in Kentucky, according to Black-n-Bluegrass jammer Debbie “Neva Shakeababy” Scheibley.
“It sort of fell through because some of the teams backed out,” Sheibley said. “Next year we will know how to organize it better.”

The event included the Black-n-Bluegrass Blackouts and the Black-n-Bluegrass Shiners; the Rollergirls of Central Kentucky, based out of Lexington; and the Vette City Rollergirls, out of Bowling Green. Louisville’s Derby City Rollergirls and Paducah’s Radioactive City Roller Girls, were among the teams not present.

Tournament brackets began at 11 a.m., but the championship bout did not start until 8:45 p.m. Over the course of the day, six bouts were played between the four teams, with Vette City up against the Blackouts for the championship win. Even the announcer commented, “We’ve all been here since this morning and there is still fight left in every single person.”

Vette City kept up during the first period of the championship bout, but the Blackouts’ defense would not give them a chance to get ahead. Even after Vette City caught a break to gain some points when the Blackouts’ jammer went to the penalty box and Vette City got an opportunity for a power jam, the Blackouts’ blockers did not let Vette City’s jammer through the pack. The score was 91-53 at halftime.
During the second period, the Blackouts came back with some extra steam. The jammers worked together with a tight defense and pulled ahead even more, with the final score 188-92.

The Black-n-Bluegrass Rollergirls sported gray throwback jerseys for the final event of the season, many featuring the skaters’ original skate names. According to Scheibley, whose jersey and panties featured her original skate name “Miso Sori,” it was something different and fun to do for the tournament.

The Black-n-Bluegrass Rollergirls have spent their first season at the Bank of Kentucky Center working to build up their fan base in their new home. “This was our first outing as a league in a tour,” blocker Amanda “Mama Crass” Wilson explained. “I think it turned out relatively well. I can’t wait to see what happens next year.”
Though the schedule has not been confirmed, the 2013 season will begin in May.