Kittanning Bible Bowl In Position to Advance to Regional Playoffs

by Jonathan Weaver

Memorizing five Books of the Bible might help a group of teens from the Kittanning Salvation Army corps advance to a New York competition in May.

Kittanning Salvation Army is one of six teams that competes monthly at Camp Allegheny in Ellwood City answering questions regarding the New Testament Books of Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians and Philemon.

While sometimes questions can come from individual books of the Bible, others can require teams to recite the remainder of an exact verse.

Lieutenant Amber Imhoff said the team studies different books each year. Kittanning has had a team for four years.

“This year, (student study five books) because the books are shorter,” Lieutenant Amber said.

Andrew Fornell, 13 of Rayburn Township was on the team last year, and said the whole season focused on the Book of Acts, the New Testament book of 28 chapters and more than 1,000 verses.

Lieutenant Amber predicted the group of teams would never focus on the Old Testament Book of Psalm because of the 150 chapters and more than 2,500 verses.

Fornell and Gabrielle Jones, 13 of Ford City said the five-member team studies each Wednesday, with each member responsible for answering questions on a specific book.

Jones is glad she was assigned what she perceived as a relatively-simple Book – Philippians.

Shayla Lloyd, 17 of Kittanning - who has competed in Bible Bowl the past four years - said the standings through this month’s competition will determine if Kittanning is seeded in April’s playoff round.

Whichever team wins in the April playoffs moves on to compete against Salvation Army branches in New York – including teams from all of the New England states, Ohio, Kentucky, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
The team has excelled, making the playoffs the past two years and finishing second and third, respectively.

Scores from last month’s competition will determine if the team is in second or third place going into the March 18 competition.

During January’s competition, the team scored a personal-best 240 points.

Since it is her senior year at Lenape Tech in Manor Township, Lloyd is competing in her last few rounds but may coach the team next year while she is in college.

“We did really good our first year so that made me want to keep doing it and try to get better and better at it,” Lloyd said. “It’s something I enjoy.”

As team captain, Lloyd studies all five Books of the Bible.

“Whenever I read, I always start at the beginning and work the whole way through it,” Lloyd said. “I’ll read everything once a week, maybe twice.”

Even though only four students are allowed to play in a particular round, Kittanning’s team substitutes in a fifth player every other game.

Lloyd said she thought the team’s chemistry, along with blasting the song “Jesus Freak” by Christian pop/rock band Newsboys, helps them excel. The students also hang out with one another in other Salvation Army activities.

“Most of the teams know one other and socialize with one another,” Lieutenant Amber said. “They goof off with one another in-between games.

“They have this friendship, this bond that’s hard to break.”

Captain Delia Carroll, Divisional Youth Secretary at the Carnegie headquarters, acts as quizmaster.

Of the nearly-40 regional Salvation Army corps, Kittanning competes regularly against Greensburg, Allegheny Valley (in Natrona Heights), Huntingdon, Pittsburgh North Side and Oil City.

A New Kensington team attended the territorial playoffs last year, and Allegheny Valley advanced in 2014.