BG Says: SHIMMER Women Athletes – Volume 9

Your hosts are Dave Prazak & Allison Danger

Sara Del Rey starts the show by talking about her winning streak ending at the hands of Mercedes Martinez. Tonight she’s going back to her winning way s against Cheerleader Melissa.

VS.
Rain VS. Eden Black
Black gets a roll up to start. They lock up and Rain grabs a wristlock. Black returns the favor but Rain comes back with an armbar. Black goes after the leg but Rain shrugs her off. Rain puts on a headlock but Black counters to a pair of armdrags and a triangle choke. Rain gets to the ropes and bails so Black dives onto her from the top rope. Back in the ring Black gets 2. Rain hits an inverted lungblower for 2. She hits a knee in the corner for 2. She tosses Black around the ring by hear hair for 2. She hits a bodyslam for 2. Black comes back with a sunset flip for 2. Rain hits a clothesline for 2. Black hits a neckbreaker for 2. She hits a roaring forearm and a pair of clotheslines. She hits the Blaxploitation for 2. Rain hits a neckbreaker for 2. She goes for the Acid Rain but Black counters to the Garden of Eden for the win at 12:08. Sloppy as hell and boring after the first few minutes.
Rating: *¾

Cheerleader Melissa proves she can’t cut a promo backstage. Awkwardly as all hell she says she’s going to beat Sara Del Rey just like she beat Daizee Haze two volumes ago.

VS.
Ariel VS. Alexa Thatcher
Thatcher has great theme music. I like Jem, so what? They lock up and Thatcher grabs a wristlock. She hits a hiptoss and an armdrag before putting on an armbar. Ariel hits a hiptoss and an armdrag and finishes up with a bodyslam for 2. She hits a clothesline and a back elbow for 2. They trade strikes in the corner until Ariel slugs Thatcher down to regain control. She hits a side slam for 2. Thatcher hits a head scissors takedown for 2. They clothesline each other down giving me a chance to play a little Minesweeper. They trade forearms and Thatcher hits a snap suplex. She hits a standing bulldog for 2. Aries comes back with the Dariel out of nowhere for the win at 5:56. Short, but pretty entertaining.
Rating: **¼

Eden Black is excited about beating Rain in her debut. She wants each match to end the same way this match did, with her opponent tapping to the Garden of Eden.

VS.
Malia Hosaka & Lexie Fyfe VS. Cindy Rogers & Allison Danger
Rogers and Fyfe start. They lock up and trade holds. Danger tags in and puts Fyfe on the mat with a wristlock. Fyfe comes back with a full nelson but Danger goes back to the arm. Danger gets a roll up for 2 and puts on a front facelock. Hosaka tags in and they trade surfboard stretches. Rogers tags in and puts on a headlock. She gets a jackknife pin for 2. Hosaka drops a leg on Rogers’s arm and puts on an armbar. Fyfe tags in and puts on a hammerlock. Hosaka tags in and stays on the arm. She hits a kick to the face for 2. Fyfe tags in and walks into a clothesline. Danger tags in and cleans house as everyone trips over their own feet. She hits a vertical suplex on Fyfe for 2. Hosaka tags in and puts on a seated full nelson. She floats into a camel clutch and then switches to a Boston crab. Danger tries to crawl to Rogers but Hosaka pulls her into the Experience corner. Fyfe tags in and they hit a double clothesline for 2. Danger gets to her corner but Rogers is distracted with the fans and misses the tag opportunity. Fyfe works over Danger’s back and gets a lateral press for 2. Hosaka tags in and hits a leaping chop. He jabs Danger’s neck and taunts her. Fyfe tags in and, in a horribly choreographed looking spot, gets kicked by Hosaka. Danger dumps Hosaka to the floor and hits a neckbreaker on Fyfe for 2. Rogers runs in and hits the X-Factor on Danger out of nowhere. The Experience hits the double facebuster on Danger for the win at 15:13. The storytelling was good until the end when the timing just felt way off. Fyfe and Hosaka may be experienced but they have nothing interesting to offer in the ring and if this is the beginning of a push for Rogers then I might as well check my sanity a the door because Danger hasn’t impressed in a while and Rogers isn’t attention-grabbing in the slightest.
Rating: **

After an ad for ROHWrestling.com’s merchandise store Allison Danger has a few words for Cindy Rogers. She thought she’d gotten through to her when she told her to stay on the right path in wrestling. After walking the fine line between good and evil Rogers obviously fell into the hands of evil. Danger doesn’t understand why she turned on her, but now she’s going to put her in her place. Danger came off sounding really gay in this promo.

VS.
Josie VS. Portia Perez
Neither of these women has won a match in SHIMMER yet. Josie gets a wristlock to start. Perez gets a roll up for 2. Josie comes back with a roll up for 2. Perez cradles Josie for 2. They lock up and Josie puts on a headlock. Perez puts on a full nelson but Josie rolls her up for 2. She slams Peres to the mat and rolls her up again for 2. She goes back to the headlock and hits a series of armdrags. Perez comes back with a cheap shot in the corner. Josie gets a jackknife pin for 2. Perez opens up with kicks but Josie catches her with a capture suplex. She hits a clothesline, a back elbow and a leaping chop. She hits a pumphandle slam for 2. Perez goes to the floor and grabs a chain from under the ring. Back in the ring she nails Josie with it behind the referee’s back for the win at 7:39. Total mess of a match. I’ve noticed that women who can’t wrestle do a little hop before each move. There were a lot of hops in this match. Sad, because I usually like Josie’s matches.
Rating: *

In the ring Rebecca Bayless is introduced as the newest member of the SHIMMER announce team. Bayless then brings out Daffney Unger to have a few questions answers. Bayless asks Daffney to reveal her motivations in SHIMMER. Daffney puts herself over as knowledgeable due to her exposure in bigger companies around the world before promising to one day wrestle in a SHIMMER ring. But for now she’s going to manage a wrestler or two. Meh, I Daffney has her moments but why bring in Bayless at all?

VS.
Amber O’Neal VS. Daizee Haze
O’Neal stalls to start so Haze rolls her up for 2. O’Neal comes back with a wristlock but Haze counters the hold and gets a takedown. She hits a shoulder tackle for 2. She gets a head scissors takedown and hits a pair of clotheslines for 2. O’Neal tries to bail but Haze drags her back in the ring. O’Neal drops Haze’s neck on the top rope and then pulls on her jaw. Haze comes back with a roll up for 2. O’Neal hits a clothesline for 2. Haze kicks at O’Neal’s head and gets a roll up for 2. O’Neal forces Haze to the mat for 2. She hits a suplex for 2. She puts on a chinlock but Haze hits a stunner to escape. She hits a series of clotheslines and the STO for 2. She hits a northern lights suplex for 2. O’Neal hits the STO for 2. Haze comes back with a roll up for 2. O’Neal rakes the back and goes for an airplane spin but Haze escapes and hits the heart punch and a big boot for the win at 8:29. Decent enough match. Maybe it’s just being on a smaller stage but Haze never looks like a deer in headlights in SHIMMER the way she does in ROH.
Rating: **½

Backstage Rebecca Bayless asks MsChif why she challenged the Amazing Kong. MsChif, who I guess only screams during her promos, says that she shouldn’t be doubted and that she will defeat Kong tonight. I doubt it.

VS.
Tiana Ringer VS. Nikki Roxx
Roxx gets a takedown to start. They lock up and Roxx puts Ringer in the corner. Ringer runs into a drop toehold and Roxx hits a pair of clotheslines and a dropkick. She hits a flapjack for 2. She hits a hiptoss from the apron into the ring and gets a backslide for 2. Ringer shoves Roxx down with her foot for 2. She slams Roxx by her hair for 2. She hits a clothesline for 2. She hits a European uppercut and kicks at Roxx’s leg. She slams the leg against the apron and then hangs it on the middle rope for another kick. She hits a dragon screw for 2. She blocks a blind charge and rolls Roxx up for 2. She stretches Roxx’s back and hits a legdrop for 2. She kicks at Roxx’s back and hits a snapmare for 2. She slams Roxx’s knee into the mat a couple times but Roxx comes back with a roll up for 2. Ringer hits another European uppercut and puts on an armbar. Umm, why? She gets a legsweep for 2. Roxx comes back with clotheslines and a swinging slam for 2. Ringer hits a crescent kick and a spinebuster for 2. She hits a dropkick off the second rope for 2. Roxx ducks a kick and hits the Barbie Crusher for the win at 10:24. Ringer spends the whole match working the leg but then stretches the arm and back. I don’t get that strategy. Aside from the illogical nature of the match this was refreshing due to the fact that these two women actually looked like wrestlers, not like women wrestling for the first time.
Rating: **¾

Rebecca Bayless catches up with Roxx after the match and asks her about her goals. Roxx says she’s been trying for over a year to work her way up the card. Lately she’s been picking up quite a few victories and now it’s time to prove she belongs in the main event. She challenges the winner of tonight’s main event to a match on Volume 10.

The Amazing Kong is backstage. She’s not sweating MsChif, even if she did have the number three match of the year in Japan. Can someone elaborate on that for me? She’s going to show MsChif her knuckles. Kong was way more interesting and intimidating before she talked.

VS.
Lacey VS. Serena Deeb
They lock up and Lacey powers Deeb into the corner. She does it again and hits a cheap shot. Deeb puts on an armbar and drops a leg on the arm for 2. Lacey comes back with a hammerlock but Deeb catches her with a roll up for 2. Lacey blocks an armdrag but Deeb hits a monkey flip. She goes for another and Lacey drops her on the turnbuckle. She works over Deeb’s arm with kneedrops and puts on an armbar. Deeb gets a fireman’s carry takedown but misses an elbowdrop. Lacey kicks the back and chokes Deeb in the ropes. She hits a neckbreaker for 2. She yanks Deeb to the mat by her arm for 2. She goes to the eyes and hits a reverse DDT while holding a hammerlock for 2. She hits a hammerlock side slam for 2. She hits a Bubba bomb and puts on the leggy nelson. They slam each other to the mat by their hair in an awful looking spot. Deeb dodges a blind charge and hits a forearm. She hits a pair of clotheslines with her good arm for 2. She puts on a seated abdominal stretch and pins Lacey for 2. Lacey hits a chinbreaker but Deeb blocks a blind charge and hits a clothesline off the second rope for 2. Lacey puts on a hammerlock but Deeb escapes and hits a vertical suplex. Lacey dodges the spear and sends Deeb into the post before hitting a neckbreaker and the implant DDT for the win at 15:59. This never got out of first gear, and sixteen minutes is a long time to go without a shift.
Rating: **½

VS.
Amazing Kong VS. MsChif
MsChif ducks a clothesline but Kong knocks her down with her girth. They lock up and MsChif climbs the ropes to bring Kong’s head into the turnbuckle. She hits a head scissors takedown and a drop toehold. She goes for a Boston crab but Kong easily powers out. She tosses MsChif around by her hair and hits a legdrop for 2. She hits a two-handed chokeslam and chops MsChif against the ropes. She clotheslines MsChif against the ropes and tosses her to the floor. She whips MsChif into the barricade and rolls her back into the ring. MsChif counters a bodyslam to a sleeper hold but Kong whips her off. Kong puts the sleeper hold on MsChif and swings her into a slam. MsChif counters a side slam to a DDT for 2. She dodges an avalanche and hits a running forearm. She beats Kong down in the corner and hits the Panic Attack. Kong is too big for MsChif to drag her out of the corner for a pin attempt in a moment that I really appreciated. Kong blocks the Desecrator and puts on an inverted torture rack in which she slams the bottom of MsChif’s feet into the back of her head. She climbs the ropes but MsChif cuts her off and goes for her DVD. Kong easily blocks that and hits a dropkick off the second. She climbs back to the second rope and hits a splash for 2. MsChif hits a swinging DDT and Kong bails. MsChif follows her out with a crossbody off the top. Back in the ring MsChif hits a double stomp and a standing moonsault for 2. Kong comes back with a lariat for 2. She hits the pedigree for 2. She hits a sit-out powerbomb for 2. MsChif gets an ugly roll up for 2. Kong hits a backhand and the spiderbomb for the win at 12:21. The fans cheered loudly for this match, and it couldn’t have been more appropriate. I don’t think Kong is capable of having a bad match in SHIMMER.
Rating: ***½

VS.
Cheerleader Melissa VS. Sara Del Ray
Sara powers Melissa to the corner to start. Melissa puts on a wristlock but Sara puts her on the mat with the head scissors. Melissa counters to a leglock but Sara powers out. Melissa goes to the arm so Sara responds in kind. Sara puts on a chinlock and then floats into a cross armbreaker. Melissa tries to roll Sara up to escape but, failing that, counters to a leglock. Sara goes for the ropes but Melissa pulls her arm away. I love that. Sara eventually gets to the ropes and gets a wristlock takedown. She hits an armbreaker but Melissa comes back with the head scissors. Sara counters to a chinlock and stomps on Melissa’s elbow. She hits an armdrag and rolls Melissa up for 2. She hits the hip check and a bodyslam. She hits a senton for 2. Melissa kicks out her leg and zeroes in on it. She slams Sara’s leg to the mat a couple times and puts on a leglock. Sara kicks her to the floor but misses a somersault dive from the apron. That looked painful. Melissa whips her into the barricade and slams her to the floor. Back in the ring she hits another bodyslam for 2. She hits an axe kick for 2. She hits a Samoan drop for 2. Sara blocks a blind charge and hits a moonsault press for 2. She boots Melissa down for 2. Melissa gets a roll up for 2. Sara hits a kick to the chest for 2. She hits a chimeraplex for 2. She sets Melissa up top and hits a superplex for 2. Melissa counters the Royal Butterfly to the Air Raid Crash for 2 when Sara grabs the ropes. Melissa puts on the Kondo Clutch but Sara gets to the ropes. Sara counters a second Air Raid Crash attempt to the Royal Butterfly for the win at 19:17. This had a great main event feel to it. Both ladies took big bumps and sweat their asses off to put on a good show. The finish kind of washed away all the back damage Del Rey had taken, but even that doesn’t change the fact that these two put on a heck of a match.
Rating: ***½

The 411:  As with every show there is a serious divide between the top of the card and the bottom of the card. The show was pretty rough to get through but those last two matches were pretty great women’s wrestling. I wish there were nine Amazing Kongs so that she could be in every match. Aside from the lousy undercard my only problem with the show was Danger’s annoying obsession with making a huge point of the cheap shots wrestlers would take throughout the show while on commentary. That was incredibly annoying. At any rate, I definitely recommend checking out Kong’s match, and the main event is a good time as well. You can pick this up at ROHWrestling.com.

Final Score:  7.0   [ Good ]