Jessica Eberstein (left) and Jalen Dolph are pictured during the Donkey Basketball game February 18 at G-A High School.
Game brings entertainment,
raises funds for G-A teams
By Bruce Rolfe
Friendly competition and plenty of laughs were all part of a donkey basketball game played at Galesburg-Augusta High School February 18.
Dairyland Donkey Ball LLC from Chippewa Falls, Wisconsin provided the donkeys and funds raised from the game went to the G-A girls and boys basketball programs.
Event organizer Jessica Eberstein said 528 tickets were sold for the event. She said feedback was very positive and the school district would like to host a donkey basketball event in the future.
“It was incredible to see our community come together for such a fun event. We’ve had so many people reach out to share how much they enjoyed the night. We truly love our Ram Fam and are
so grateful for the opportunity to bring everyone together. Nights like this remind us how special G-A really is,” said Eberstein.
There were four teams that saddled up. Two 16-minute elimination games between two teams were played.
Friendly competition and plenty of laughs were all part of a donkey basketball game played at Galesburg-Augusta High School February 18.
Dairyland Donkey Ball LLC from Chippewa Falls, Wisconsin provided the donkeys and funds raised from the game went to the G-A girls and boys basketball programs.
Event organizer Jessica Eberstein said 528 tickets were sold for the event. She said feedback was very positive and the school district would like to host a donkey basketball event in the future.
“It was incredible to see our community come together for such a fun event. We’ve had so many people reach out to share how much they enjoyed the night. We truly love our Ram Fam and are
so grateful for the opportunity to bring everyone together. Nights like this remind us how special G-A really is,” said Eberstein.
There were four teams that saddled up. Two 16-minute elimination games between two teams were played.
The cardinal team defeated the gray team 8-4 in the first elimination game. The yellow team defeated the white team 10-4 in the second elimination game and then the yellow team defeated the Cardinal team 8-0 in the championship game.
There was a 15-minute intermission in between the two elimination games when kids had an opportunity to ride the donkeys, bringing lots of smiles.
The Balling Burros (white T-shirt team) consisted of riders Amy Pratt, Jacob Bauman, Chad VanDyk, Anna Collins, Lindsey Newton, Ken Case, Ben Overgaard, and John Klimp.
The No Brayin’ No Playin’ (gray T-shirt) team consisted of riders Bo Brady, Darren Webb, Amilia Martin, Michael Ball, Kathryn Dooley, Odalys Pines, Nate Smelter, and Trevor Eberstein.
The Dunking Donkeys (cardinal T-shirt team) consisted of riders Brian Dolph, Laura Jones, Zach Eberstein, Rob Kuiper, Dontrell Bowden, Brandi Smith, Shay Mavis and Anna Smitchols.
The Mule Madness (yellow T-shirt team) consisted of Jessica Eberstein, Jalen Dolph, Nichole Phillips, Avery LaBrie, Josh Jager, Michael Armock, Scott Rogers, Sarah Baker, and Haylee Case.
Pfizer, which gave the G-A School District a $2,500 grant, had five employees participate in the game, including three G-A graduates. The five employees included Laura Jones (1999 G-A graduate) Jessica Eberstein (1998) Ken Case (1980s), Anna Smitchols, and Odalys Pinell.
There was a 15-minute intermission in between the two elimination games when kids had an opportunity to ride the donkeys, bringing lots of smiles.
The Balling Burros (white T-shirt team) consisted of riders Amy Pratt, Jacob Bauman, Chad VanDyk, Anna Collins, Lindsey Newton, Ken Case, Ben Overgaard, and John Klimp.
The No Brayin’ No Playin’ (gray T-shirt) team consisted of riders Bo Brady, Darren Webb, Amilia Martin, Michael Ball, Kathryn Dooley, Odalys Pines, Nate Smelter, and Trevor Eberstein.
The Dunking Donkeys (cardinal T-shirt team) consisted of riders Brian Dolph, Laura Jones, Zach Eberstein, Rob Kuiper, Dontrell Bowden, Brandi Smith, Shay Mavis and Anna Smitchols.
The Mule Madness (yellow T-shirt team) consisted of Jessica Eberstein, Jalen Dolph, Nichole Phillips, Avery LaBrie, Josh Jager, Michael Armock, Scott Rogers, Sarah Baker, and Haylee Case.
Pfizer, which gave the G-A School District a $2,500 grant, had five employees participate in the game, including three G-A graduates. The five employees included Laura Jones (1999 G-A graduate) Jessica Eberstein (1998) Ken Case (1980s), Anna Smitchols, and Odalys Pinell.
The clean up crew, who did have to perform clean up duties, consisted of Patrick Armock, Jenni Klimp, Brooklyn James, and Cayden Allie.
The master of ceremonies was David Oliver.
It was hard to determine who was having the most fun, the riders or the large audience.
“It’s fun. Being back at my alma mater, seeing my friends and family. You don’t get to see this a whole lot,” said G-A graduate Jalen Dolph.
“It was definitely a once in a life time (experience). It was really fun to be out there,” adds Zach Eberstein, a 2023 G-A graduate.
Donkeys can be unpredictable.
Some riders found the donkey they were riding stubborn and not very ambitious to move.
There were times when a donkey just lowered the head and the rider slid off the front.
A few donkeys decided to trot up the court like the one G-A graduate Jalen Dolph was riding, offering the G-A graduate a “fast break” opportunity.
“He got moving a couple of times. I think my donkey was moving a little bit more then the rest of them. I got lucky,” said Dolph.
Other times a donkey started bucking, throwing the rider off.
“My first donkey was very wild. I got flipped the first time I tried to get on it. The second one, he was not moving at all. He was very stubborn,” said Zach Eberstein.
Avery LaBrie, a 2022 G-A graduate, said the second donkey he rode in the championship game started out rough and didn’t want to move much. But later in the game LaBrie was able to coax the
donkey to ride faster and he ended up scoring all eight points for the tournament winning yellow team.
“The first donkey I had was chill and listened very well. The second donkey I got, just kept wanting to buck. Wanted to get me off there. We got that sorted and I think I scored every basket for the last game with the donkey that wasn’t really listening but then he got to listening and we cruised right on by,” explained LaBrie.
LaBrie was glad to see an event at the school that brought the community together for a fun and entertaining evening.
“I think it’s a good experience. It gets the kids involved. Gets the community members involved. It’s always good that good things are out there and getting back to involving everybody. That’s what this community needs,” said LaBrie.
The master of ceremonies was David Oliver.
It was hard to determine who was having the most fun, the riders or the large audience.
“It’s fun. Being back at my alma mater, seeing my friends and family. You don’t get to see this a whole lot,” said G-A graduate Jalen Dolph.
“It was definitely a once in a life time (experience). It was really fun to be out there,” adds Zach Eberstein, a 2023 G-A graduate.
Donkeys can be unpredictable.
Some riders found the donkey they were riding stubborn and not very ambitious to move.
There were times when a donkey just lowered the head and the rider slid off the front.
A few donkeys decided to trot up the court like the one G-A graduate Jalen Dolph was riding, offering the G-A graduate a “fast break” opportunity.
“He got moving a couple of times. I think my donkey was moving a little bit more then the rest of them. I got lucky,” said Dolph.
Other times a donkey started bucking, throwing the rider off.
“My first donkey was very wild. I got flipped the first time I tried to get on it. The second one, he was not moving at all. He was very stubborn,” said Zach Eberstein.
Avery LaBrie, a 2022 G-A graduate, said the second donkey he rode in the championship game started out rough and didn’t want to move much. But later in the game LaBrie was able to coax the
donkey to ride faster and he ended up scoring all eight points for the tournament winning yellow team.
“The first donkey I had was chill and listened very well. The second donkey I got, just kept wanting to buck. Wanted to get me off there. We got that sorted and I think I scored every basket for the last game with the donkey that wasn’t really listening but then he got to listening and we cruised right on by,” explained LaBrie.
LaBrie was glad to see an event at the school that brought the community together for a fun and entertaining evening.
“I think it’s a good experience. It gets the kids involved. Gets the community members involved. It’s always good that good things are out there and getting back to involving everybody. That’s what this community needs,” said LaBrie.
A large audience also enjoyed the entertaining event.
“It was a great, fun community event to support our high school basketball program. Amazing support from community and staff to take part and join in the fun,” said lifelong Galesburg resident Joyce Henson.
According to the Dairyland Donkey Ball website, donkeys wear a non-marking, non-scuffing rubber shoe that cannot damage a wood or synthetic gym floor in any way.
Dairyland Donkey Ball is in its 21st year in business, however donkey ball goes way back in the family to the original company Buckey Donkey Ball which started in 1934. Dairyland on average performs about 200 basketball shows/year.
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