Sounds of Basketballs and Braying at Elk Grove High

The Bill Cartwright Gym was the place to be on February 18th.  That is, if you enjoy watching teachers and students play basketball astride beasts with more on-the-court stubborn attitude than above-the-rim altitude.  

That’s right, for the fifth year in a row donkeys took to the court to fill the lanes, box out, and plod their way to the hoop — and elsewhere — to benefit Elk Grove’s Future Farmers of America (FFA) program.  

Mounting up for Coach Zach Leach’s teacher team were Mike Albiani, Matt Patton, Rudy Ortega, Jason Larin, Courtney Wright, and Laurie Fox.  Hitting the hardwood on hooves for the student team, coached by teacher Brittany Whyler, were the kids who sold the most tickets to the game — Amanda Brown, Michelle Kellman, Kierra Rowland-Bird, Anthony Fashano, Bryan Calicura, DJ Lowery, Taylor Hutchison, Shelby Clifford, Alice Keema, and Gavin Reinwald.

Perhaps the low-scoring final tally of 18-10, with the teachers prevailing, reflects on the fact that, as we all know, it is difficult to force a donkey into doing something it may not want to do at a particular time.  Hence the reputation earned by the long-faced beasts of burden that demonstrated every bit of their mule-headed mindset Friday night.

No matter, it was an evening of great spectacle, frustration, and rowdy fun, as donkey jokes of all varieties filled the air — along with a little friendly verbal chatter amidst the rubber-bootied clip-clopping of the hee-hawing hoopsters.