Confluence Crush: A look inside the metro-east’s only roller derby team

In most sports, names won’t like “Swamp,” “Jupiter” and “Capt’n Blackout” aren’t ones you’d find on the back of a player’s jersey.

Roller derby is a different story.

Confluence Crush, a 501(c) non-profit and the metro-east’s only roller derby team, has been active since 2011. The team competes in the metro-east often, but also travels throughout the season.

Joining the team is easy and open to all women, trans people and nonbinary people looking to be part of the sport. Each month the team hosts a “new skater night,” where prospective teammates can learn about the team, the sport’s history and its rules.

Inclusion has long been a significant part of the sport, but now more than ever, teams put that into their founding principles. Confluence Crush takes that to new heights, sponsoring different charities involving social, environmental and animal welfare cases.

“I think the thing I love the most about it is the community,” said Laura Dean, a recently joined member who goes by the name “Murphy’s Law.” “It’s just so supportive. In fact, I think we’re going to hang out with the girls from the other team after this match.”

Inclusivity is a principle that goes beyond mere tolerance, and different positions or roles are available to anyone, including “dozens of skating referees, non-skating officials, jeerleaders, and other volunteers.” you don’t even have to have any skating experience as long as their willing to learn and commit.

“I just started after our last new skater session,” said Dean, who had no skating experience prior to joining Confluence Crush. “They really just kind of throw you in there and immediately start teaching you new skills.”

The team practices three times a week. Players come from Mascoutah, Belleville, Fairview Heights and beyond. They meet in Troy to work on their stops, twists and transitions. The club has 43 total members divided into an “A” and “B” team. Some members’ positions are yet to be determined.

Roller derby bouts are played in two 30 minute halves, broken up into two minute rounds known as “jams.” In each jam, a scoring “jammer” attempts to break through an opponent’s line, assisted by four defending “blockers,” to circle around the track and score points by passing the other team’s skaters. One blocker, known as a “pivot,” is allowed to switch between the role of blocker and jammer.

Confluence Crush plays “at least” six matches per year, and is a member of the Women’s Flat Track Derby Association, the international body governing the rules of roller derby.

Team rankings are determined by the weighted average of points they’ve scored each game of the season. As of June 2025 the team is in the middle for the North American Northeast conference, ranking 65th out of 144 teams in the region, with a total “GPA” of 26.37. Its highest rank was 37th.

The highest ranked team in the conference, Arch City Rivals, are just across the river in St. Louis, but the Crush members say they don’t have an “official” rival.

“We don’t really have a nemesis per say,” said Cailyn Tegel, also known as “Swamp Smasher,” who manages team communications.

“Our closest thing to a rival is probably Columbia (Missouri), since we’ve had a lot of close-scoring games and we keep beating and losing to each other.”

Roller derby has been around since the 1920s, when it was first invented in a pro-wrestling style format of scripted bouts and planned winners. Over the course of the century, the sport grew as more of a theatrical experience than an athletic one. A 21st century amateur revival of the sport, however, has brought new, professional regulations and governing bodies.

Still, many teams, including Confluence Crush, have chosen to keep the punk and camp aesthetic. Sparkles, snarky slogans and iconic makeup are in abundance. During the match, a playlist of high-energy, multi-genre songs add an upbeat background to the event.

“We like to keep positive vibes,” said Elisabeth Meadows, aka “Jupiter,” who started her roller derby career in Huntsville, Alabama. “It’s hard not to be — we’re outside, we all get along, and we’re all hanging out after.”

If you want to learn more about the team or see their upcoming schedule, visit their website.