Steel City Roller Derby or SCRD, is a women's flat-track

roller derby Roller derby is a roller skating contact sport played by two teams of fifteen members. Roller derby is played by approximately 1,250 amateur leagues worldwide, mostly in the United States. Game play consists of a series of short scrimmages (jam ...

league based in

Pittsburgh Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, Allegheny County. It is the most populous city in both Allegheny County and Wester ...

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

. Founded in 2006, the league celebrated its tenth anniversary in 2016. Steel City is a member of the

Women's Flat Track Derby Association The Women's Flat Track Derby Association (WFTDA) is the international governing body for the sport of women's flat track roller derby, and association of leagues around the world. The organization was founded in April 2004 as the United Leagues Co ...

(WFTDA).

History and league structure

Steel City was founded as the "Steel City Derby Demons" in 2006, after Natalie "Busty Brawler" Gilchrist, Pam "Suzy Sydal" Simmons, and Becky "Elsa Slam" Bauer were inspired to recruit skaters for a potential roller derby team after hearing from a friend about the L.A. Derby Dolls. By early 2007, Steel City was ready to hold its first public games at BladeRunners in Harmarville, and was announced as a new member of the

(WFTDA) in May 2007. Upon its founding, Steel City had four teams, the Bitch Doctors, the Hot Metal Hellions, the Slumber Party Slashers and the Wrecking Dolls. As of 2016, SCRD features two travel teams, including the WFTDA all-star A-team, Steel Hurtin', and the B-team (formerly known as the "Blitzburgh Bombers"), Steel Beamers. Steel City also has a three team home league comprising the Allegheny Avengers, the Mon Monsters, and the Penn Bruisers. Then-league member Jennifer "Snot Rocket Science" Gaskins was a member of

Team USA The United States national team or Team USA may refer to any of a number of sports team representing the United States in international competitions. Olympic teams Additionally, these teams may compete in other international competitions such as ...

at the 2011 and 2014 editions of the

Roller Derby World Cup The Roller Derby World Cup is an international women's roller derby tournament formerly organized by ''Blood & Thunder magazine'', and currently organized by the Roller Derby World Cup Committee. Teams of amateur skaters from around the world ...

. In 2011, Pittsburgh city councillor Natalia Rudiak sponsored a proclamation at

Pittsburgh City Council The Pittsburgh City Council serves as the legislative body in the City of Pittsburgh Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Allegheny County. It is the most populous city ...

that led to a declaration of September 13, 2011 as "Steel City Derby Demons Day" in recognition of the league's "community involvement, commitment to athleticism, and positive international representation of Pittsburgh". For much of its history, Steel City played its home games, and practiced at Romp N Roll, a roller rink in Glenshaw, which was announced to be closing in late 2016. As of 2017, Steel City is holding its home events at the Pittsburgh Indoor Sports Arena in Cheswick.

WFTDA competition

After gaining WFTDA membership in 2007, Steel City first qualified for WFTDA Playoffs in 2009, as the seventh seed at that year's Eastern Regional Tournament. After opening the weekend with a sound defeat against

Philly Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...

, Steel City bounced back with victories over the

Dominion Derby Girls Dominion Derby Girls is a women's flat-track roller derby league based in Virginia Beach, Virginia. The Dominion Derby Girls is a member of the Women's Flat Track Derby Association (WFTDA. History and organization Home bouts for DDG are held at ...

and

DC Rollergirls DC Rollergirls is a women's flat track roller derby league in Washington, D.C. DC Rollergirls is a member of the Women's Flat Track Derby Association (WFTDA). History DC Rollergirls was founded in early 2006 by Ginger Park, Shannon Flowers and ...

to finish the weekend in seventh place. In 2010, Steel City improved their Eastern Regional performance by taking the fifth-place game 151-121 over the

Carolina Rollergirls Carolina Roller Derby is a women's flat-track roller derby league in Raleigh, North Carolina. Operating as a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization and founded in January 2004, Carolina is a founding member of the Women's Flat Track Derby Association ...

, and improved yet again in 2011, losing the third-place game 189-94 to

Charm City Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic, and the 30th most populous city in the United States with a population of 585,708 in 2020. Baltimore was d ...

to finish in fourth place. At the final East Region Playoff in 2012, fifth-seeded Steel City lost their first games to Charm City and DC, but rebounded to set a then-new Playoffs record by defeating the

Dutchland Rollers Dutchland Derby Rollers or Dutchland Rollers, is a women's flat-track roller derby league based in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. Founded in 2005, the Dutchland Rollers have been a member of the Women's Flat Track Derby Association (WFTDA) since 200 ...

476-107 to take ninth place. In 2013, the WFTDA moved to a top-40 Division system for Playoffs, and Steel City qualified at the Division 1 level for the tournament in Asheville, North Carolina, where they entered as the fifth seed and finished in fifth place with a 202-185 victory over

Houston Roller Derby Houston Roller Derby (HRD) is a women's flat track roller derby league based in Houston, Texas. HRD was founded in early 2004, and is a founding member league of the Women's Flat Track Derby Association (WFTDA). History Originally formed in earl ...

. At the 2014 Division 1 Playoff in Evansville, Indiana, seven-seed Steel City finished in eighth place with a 184-170 loss to

Toronto Roller Derby Toronto Roller Derby (ToRD), is a women's flat-track roller derby league in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Formed in 2006, the league started play in 2007, and held its tenth season in 2016. Operated and managed by its skaters and members, ToRD has f ...

. Steel City took seventh place at the 2015 Division 1 Playoff in Jacksonville with a 281-134 win over

Charlottesville Derby Dames Charlottesville Derby Dames (CDD) is a women's flat-track roller derby league based in Charlottesville, Virginia. Founded in 2007, CDD is a member of the Women's Flat Track Derby Association (WFTDA). History and organization Following a social ...

, and as the tenth seed in 2016 in Columbia, South Carolina, Steel City defeated Ann Arbor Derby Dimes 258-105 to finish in ninth place.

Rankings

References

External links

SCRD Official Website
{{Pennsylvania Sports Roller derby leagues in Pennsylvania Women's sports in the United States Sports in Pittsburgh Roller derby leagues established in 2006 2006 establishments in Pennsylvania Women's sports in Pennsylvania