Local communities come together for 'Brawl for the Ball'
Photo by JOSH MCDONALD The Kellogg High School student body cheers on the girls varsity basketball team during their game at Brawl for the Ball.
Courtesy photo Kellogg High School spirit Queen Maddie Bush and King Drake Duce.
Photo by JOSH MCDONALD Ashlynn Forsberg in her 50’s attire during the battle of the bands competition.
Photo by JOSH MCDONALD Students from both KHS and St. Maries High School struggle during the tug-of-war competition.
Photo by JOSH MCDONALD Danny Zuko (Chase Jerome) and Sandra Olsson (Kat Rauenhorst) tell everyone that they’re the one that they want during the Brawl for the Ball pep rally.
Photo by JOSH MCDONALD Chase Jerome, Ryan Morgan, and Kaen Nelson explain Greased Lightning to the thrilled KHS student body.
By JOSH MCDONALD
Staff Reporter
KELLOGG — Much of the student body and local community from Kellogg High School was on the road this past Saturday as they migrated south to St. Maries High School to support their basketball teams and show off their school spirit at this year’s edition of Brawl for the Ball.
The annual basketball and school spirit competition went on without a hitch, thanks in large part to the work of the Kellogg High School Leadership team.
“Brawl seemed to go very smoothly this year,” KHS leadership teacher Kelton Enich said. “Although we didn't win the ball, we put forth an incredible effort in every single category up for scoring. The leadership class put a ton of time and organization into the planning of the pep rally dance, the cheers, the music and the decorations.”
The day-long event featured some big time basketball games, exciting student competitions, a little bit of hand jiving, and a ton of community support.
Early in the day, Kellogg girls JV team needed a big time 3-pointer from Piper Rainio to send the game into overtime, but they got the job done and won 45-41.
The boys JV game looked to balance the scales back to the St. Maries Lumberjacks after they jumped on top of Kellogg early. The Wildcats would rally, though, and complete the comeback to take the second game 42-34.
Kellogg then decided to throw things back to a bygone era when they ignited the entire gymnasium with their “Grease”-inspired pep rally.
Kellogg star basketball player Chase Jerome really got the crowd amped up as he channeled his inner Danny Zuko, while Kat Rauenhorst showed off her Sandra Dee.
The Kellogg girls basketball team had to make the quick change from “Grease” to game time, but just like the “Greased Lightning” they were dancing to, they raced to a big 55-40 win over the lady Lumberjacks.
Kellogg’s band showed their ability to step back in time as well as they performed a mash-up of the hits from the musical that netted them the top spot in the battle of the bands.
The Kellogg Boys took the court last that night and survived a tough offensive outing, but were able to force overtime and effectively steal the final game from the jaws of St. Maries by a score of 57-52.
Following the clean sweep of the basketball games, the Wildcat faithful anxiously awaited the results from the rest of the competitions.
Competition judges revealed that Kellogg won the dodgeball competition, but lost the tug-of-war to split the student body games.
Kellogg would go on to win the pep rally, the battle of the bands and the mascot dance-off.
However, St. Maries was able to snag the cheerleading competition, the school spirit award and the sportsmanship award.
The community activism portion of the event was not so divided though.
KHS raised 4,026 pounds of food in their food drive, but St. Maries was able to raise nearly seven tons for the local food bank.
The Wildcats also brought in $1,300 in funds for their 50/50 raffle ticket drawing, but the Lumberjacks brought in more than $3,000.
Kellogg’s money will go toward Pinehurst Elementary School’s “Weekend Backpack Program” which provides elementary students in need with food for the weekend.
In the end, sweeping the games and nabbing several of the spirit awards wasn’t enough for the Wildcats to win the overall spirit competition and bring the ball back home.
KHS student body president Rylee Riekena was thrilled with how the event came out, even with the loss of the coveted ball.
“As this being my last year being involved in Brawl for the Ball, I have never experienced so much excitement and intensity at an event like this,” Riekena said. “I can hands down say that this was my favorite by far and I am so proud of my school’s spirit.”
KHS principal Curt-Randall Bayer enjoyed watching the student bodies battle back and forth in both the spirit competitions and the basketball games.
“I enjoyed the cross section of students who attended the games,” Bayer said. “It was great to see all of them in the Brawl for the Ball activities. I was very impressed overall by the sportsmanship between St. Maries and KHS. They were hard fought, but even during the games there was a positive spirit between the players. The Silver Valley should be proud of the students efforts not only on Saturday, but the days leading up to it.”