Getting down and derby

Danielle Bevilacqua was always attracted to sports growing up and had no problem joining her two older brothers –– Jerome and Michael –– in neighborhood baseball, basketball, hockey, or football games around Long Island City.

Bevilacqua also played high school softball, but nothing seems to compare to being one of the newest members of the Long Island Roller Rebels. 

“I’ve always been a competitive person and had interest in roller derby for years,” said Bevilacqua, 27, who resides in Merrick and works as a manager at Mineola Animal Hospital. “It’s really exciting and a lot of fun.”

The Long Island Roller Rebels league is in its sixth year of existence and part of the Women’s Flat Track Derby Association. It currently has more than 40 members that are split between two teams, the All Stars and the Rock-A-Betty Bruisers. The league practices two or three times a week in Massapequa and frequently holds scrimmages on Saturdays at Skate Safe America in Old Bethpage.

“It’s a big time commitment,” said Bevilacqua, who last Saturday competed in her third bout — a 169-133 victory for the Bruisers over Shore Points Roller Derby in Atlantic City. “Some practices can be just as intense as a bout or scrimmage,” she added. “It’s a good way to get your aggression out.”

Bevilacqua, who also has a younger brother — Matthew — joined the Roller Rebels last year as a referee in training and became acclimated to the rules. This past winter she tried out to be a member and was accepted as “Fresh Blood,” the league’s definition for a first-year player. She had to pass a skills test, an assessment in which members must prove they can perform basic skills such as skating at a decent speed, hitting, blocking, stopping and jumping.

Speed happens to be Bevilaqua’s biggest asset. “When I was officiating, everyone told me I was a fast skater,” she said. “I was convinced to try out.” 

She chose “Veloce Villain” as her roller derby name. “Veloce means “fast” in Italian, and Villain just rolls off the tongue,” said Bevilacqua, who serves as one of the team’s jammers.  

Similar to a running back on a football field and with the help of four blockers, a jammer is the only skater permitted to score. Each bout consists of two 30-minute periods.

“There’s a lot of strategy involved,” Bevilacqua said. “It’s more than just bodies flying.”

Up next for the Rock-A-Betty Bruisers is an Aug. 6 trip to Ithaca to meet the Blue Stockings. Additional bouts this year include a Sept. 10 trip to face the Jerzy Derby Brigade and visit from the Scranton Roller Radicals on Oct. 8.

For more information on the Long Island Roller Rebels, go to www.longislandrollerrebels.com.