Bethlehem made a strong showing at the Altamont Circuit Bible Bowl on Sunday (March 13), capturing

the junior high division and finishing runner-up in the senior bracket in a two-hour event which took

place at Immanuel Lutheran Church. The theme of the competition was "The Lives of Abraham, Isaac,

and Jacob," with questions based on Genesis chapters 12-35.

Bethlehem's junior high team, comprised of Kerigan Phillips, Kayla Miller, Lilly Laatsch, and Andrew

Spelbring, avenged an earlier loss to St. Peter in the double-elimination tournament and downed

Immanuel in back-to-back matches to take the championship. Bethlehem led wire-to-wire in each of the

final two showdowns, posting victories of 80-37 and 41-8, respectively.

In the senior division, Bethlehem Team "A" pushed Immanuel to the limit in the title bout before the

latter prevailed by a margin of 67-64. Bethlehem's team members were Josie Phillips, Brianna Yagow,

and Mitchell Wolff.

Bethlehem offers its congratulations to the Immanuel squad, which was comprised of Mark Hendricks,

Allison McGuire, Davey Seidel, Ally Wendling, and Codi Sehi. Hendricks recently led Altamont High

School to an upset victory in the championship game of the National Trail Conference Scholastic Bowl

Tournament.

Other churches which were represented in Sunday's event included Faith (Shumway) and Holy Cross

(Vandalia). Bethlehem also fielded an additional team at the senior level, comprised of Destiny Miller,

Taylor Runge, Klaiton Strullmyer, and Landon Oder.

Bethlehem's junior high team and senior-level Team "A," along with both Immanuel squads, will now

advance to the Central Illinois District Bible Bowl, scheduled for Sunday, April 3, at Lutheran High School

in Springfield. The competition will begin at 3 p.m.

Bible Bowl is an opportunity for Christian youth to fellowship with each other and to enjoy the

excitement and enthusiasm that goes with the competition.

Bethlehem is coached by Lexie Caraway and Justine Phillips