Friday, March 6, 2026
The CSC Eagle Newspaper – Chadron, NE
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The CSC Eagle Newspaper – Chadron, NE
Lifestyles

Duck and Cover

Jordyn Hulinsky
John Templar, 18, freshman of Springdale, Florida, takes aim at Dylan McCoy, 23, graduate student of Hattiesburg, Mississippi, Saturday during Bongo Ball. —Photo by Jordyn Hulinsky
John Templar, 18, freshman of Springdale, Florida, takes aim at Dylan McCoy, 23, graduate student of Hattiesburg, Mississippi, Saturday during Bongo Ball. —Photo by Jordyn Hulinsky

Bongo Ball Mania crash-landed at CSC this weekend, thanks to CAB’s sponsorship.

Cutting Edge Production, a novelty entertainment company and the inventors of Bongo Ball, traveled from Grand Rapids, Michigan, to provide a stress-relieving program for CSC’s students.

CEP is a company that hosts novelty games for schools and colleges across the United States. At the college level, CEP hosts Bongo Ball Mania, Battleball, and Zorbs.

“Bongo Ball is like paintless paint ball and we play any of the paint ball games with Bongo Ball,” Scott Kibby, CEP employee, said.

Dressed in facemasks and carrying air cannon guns, students split into two teams of three, four, or five and faced off at opposite ends of the course. Ducking, dodging, and hiding behind giant inflated obstacles, players take aim and shot at the opposing team until there is only “one man standing,” or an entire team has been eliminated.

“A couple friends and I were eating in the Student Center when Chris (Green), the director of the NPAC (and director of student activities) walked up to us and asked if we wanted to play Bongo Ball,” Brandon Pippenger, 21, senior of Banning, California, said. “They needed a few more players for a full game. We didn’t know what it was, but after (Chris) said we could shoot each other with foam balls, we were sold. We originally started out

Ty Grasz, 21, senior of Brady, crouches to pick up a ball for ammunition Saturday during Bongo Ball. —Photo by Jordyn Hulinsky
Ty Grasz, 21, senior of Brady, crouches to pick up a ball for ammunition Saturday during Bongo Ball. —Photo by Jordyn Hulinsky

playing every man for himself, and it ended up turning into chasing each other around and shooting each other at point blank range. After we got tired from running around, we began playing games with teams of four, and we started being more strategic because once you were shot, you were out of the game.”

Prior to the match beginning, the foam “nerf balls” are thrown out into the playing field and the teams must collect the ammunition during game play while avoiding being shot.  Bongo Ball Mania was named the “Game of the Year” in the 2011 Campus Activities Magazine, according to CEP Inc.

“The most challenging part of Bongo Ball was leaving your bunker to go fetch balls for ammo,” Pippenger said.