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Appalachian Hell Betties Win First Roller Derby Bout
By: Michael Locklear
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Nearly 900 people turned out for the Appalachian Hell Betties' debut bout at Ohio University's Bird Arena.
The sold-out crowd cheered the Hell Betties to victory against the Toledo Glass City Rollers on Saturday evening.
Team captain Rena Loebker, whose derby name is Mama Sequoia, says she was taken aback by the amount of community support.
"This is amazing," she said. "I heard we turned down a hundred people at the door. This is beautiful."
Loebker says about 20 of her family members from all over the state showed up to support her.
Roxanne Groff went to watch the derby with a group of friends, and they're tossing around the idea of starting a fan club.
The rules were something that seemed to confuse a lot of people watching.
"You know, when they say there's a power jam, and like all of a sudden, all these points go up on the board," Groff said. "It's like what? What was that?"
It was the first roller derby for many in the crowd.
"It's very nerve-racking," said Shelly "Vodka Tonic" Everett, one of the Hell Betties. "There were a lot of people here, and it was very loud, but it was fun. We didn't fall down a whole lot."
The Hell Betties' next bout is set for Sept. 22 in Akron.