Bethlehem

BARDSTOWN - Tyler Ray scored two touchdowns and junior Jansen Penman had what coach Steve Stonebraker called his "best game ever" to lead Garrard County to a 20-6 victory over host Bethlehem on Friday. Ray scored in the first and fourth quarters, and Penman tallied in the second quarter. "Penman had six tackles, broke up two passes and made two key defensive plays," said Stonebraker. "He also did an excellent job running the ball to help us chew up the clock. "We were up 20-6 and Bethlehem had a first down at our 13. Jansen made a huge stop for a 3-yard loss and we held them out of the end zone.

BARDSTOWN - Billy Jackson rushed for 249 yards and four touchdowns Friday night to lead Bethlehem to a 49-13 win over Casey County. Bethlehem (6-0) rushed for all 345 of its offensive yards and scored twice in the second half after intercepting Casey passes to pull away from a 28-6 halftime lead. Casey (1-5) compiled 302 yards, including a season-high 106 yards passing, but couldn't score often enough to keep pace. "We had a couple of opportunities to get ourselves back in the game (in the third quarter)

Let's start by making two things perfectly clear. One, Danville's win last week at Frankfort surprised me. After the way the Panthers handled the Admirals during the regular season, I made the mistake of doubting Danville coach Sam Harp when he told me his team would come back and win - a fact Advocate page designer Amanda Brannock has been reminding me of for the last six days. Two, there's no way I thought Danville would be playing Bethlehem, a small private school, instead of Bardstown this Friday.

Nikki Bugg struck out nine batters, allowed just three hits and walked just two Friday and Burgin snapped a three-game losing streak, beating visiting Bethlehem 3-1. Paisley Carey had a double for the Bulldogs (5-3). Burgin got a run in the third and two more in the fourth. "We started off the week playing about as poorly as we could against a very good Danville team and finished it up with a solid effort tonight," Burgin coach Matt Grimes said. "This group of girls is resilient and bounced back well.

HARRODSBURG - Burgin dropped a 3-0 decision to Bethlehem its season opener after giving up three runs in the sixth inning. Two Burgin pitchers allowed only five hits, and Burgin coach Terry Pitman said four of those hits were bloopers. Zack Gross pitched five shutout innings before eighth-grader Josh Carey gave Bethlehem its three fifth-inning runs. Gross struck out 12 batters and allowed two hits, four walks and two hit batsmen; Carey allowed three hits and fanned two. The Bulldogs had five hits of their own and managed only a lone seventh-inning run. "Being our first game, it was a way to get the rust off," Pitman said.

A triple play forced Burgin into extra innings, but the Lady Bulldogs defeated Bethlehem 7-6 on a bases-loaded walk in the eighth inning to snap a five-game losing streak. Burgin (6-14) rallied from a 6-0 deficit to tie the game with three runs each in the fourth and fifth innings, then won on consecutive walks to Abbey Worley, Hannah Harley and Elizabeth Harlow after Tiffany Shewmaker started the extra inning at second base thanks to softball's tiebreaker rule. "We have proven to ourselves that we can play with just about anyone for three or four innings.

The Harrodsburg boys lost their second game in as many nights Saturday, following a season-opening loss to East Jessamine with a 70-67 loss to Bethlehem at Harrodsburg. The Pioneers (0-2) trailed 34-29 at halftime but stayed close to Bethlehem (1-1) in the second half. "It was one of those games where we came out after a tough loss to east Jessamine and wandered around in the first half. But in the third quarter we really sparked up," Harrodsburg coach Chad Luhman said. "With 30 seconds to go, we had numerous opportunities to win the game, but we couldn't put the ball in the hole at the end to take the lead.

For a few minutes, Danville coach Sam Harp found little reason to smile. His team fumbled five times and lost one, threw two interceptions and gave up a long kickoff return. If that wasn't enough, the postgame ceremony was delayed after his Admirals beat Bethlehem 33-14. "But with all of that, I am proud of where we are. It's a lot better than this time last year," said Harp. That's because a year ago, Danville lost 21-0 to Bardstown in the third round of the Class A playoffs and got to spend Thanksgiving week putting its equipment away.

Mercer County junior Isaiah Burrus took second in the 400-meter dash and third in the 200 Saturday at the Eastern Relays at The University of Louisville. Burrus ran the 400 in 50.15 seconds, finishing behind Henry Clay’s Brandon Nicholas (48.18). Softball Bethlehem 12, Burgin 2 — At Bardstown, host Bethlehem scored five runs in the second innings Friday to break the game open and go on to beat Burgin in five innings. Kaelynn Bradshaw and Kaelin May each had two hits and Liz Marcinek singles for Burgin 93-7)

The Danville and Bethlehem girls were tied at the half Monday night, and that's the way it stayed, as the Admirals and Banshees played to a 2-2 draw at Bardstown. The Admirals (1-1-1) went up 1-0 on Cloe Anderson's goal off an assist from Samantha Sandidge. After Bethlehem (1-0-1) tied the score, Hannah Frankel put Danville up 2-1 at the 22:36 mark of the first half. With 13 minutes left in the half, Bethlehem scored to make it 2-2, and neither team netted another goal. Bethlehem outshot Danville 20-14 and held a 2-1 edge in corner kicks.

Bethlehem used three big innings to defeat Burgin 12-5 on Wednesday at Burgin. The Banshees (9-11-2)¿scored three runs in the second inning to break a 4-all tie, later led 8-4 and broke the game open with a four-run sixth inning. Liz Marcinek, Kaelynn Bradshaw, Kaelin May, Abby Worley and Randi Burke had one hit each for the Bulldogs (5-11), who close the regular season Saturday by hosting a three-team, round-robin event with Casey County and Owen County. Bethlehem    431    004    0    —    12    X    X Burgin    400    010    0    —    5    5    X

Mercer County junior Isaiah Burrus took second in the 400-meter dash and third in the 200 Saturday at the Eastern Relays at The University of Louisville. Burrus ran the 400 in 50.15 seconds, finishing behind Henry Clay’s Brandon Nicholas (48.18). Softball Bethlehem 12, Burgin 2 — At Bardstown, host Bethlehem scored five runs in the second innings Friday to break the game open and go on to beat Burgin in five innings. Kaelynn Bradshaw and Kaelin May each had two hits and Liz Marcinek singles for Burgin 93-7)

Dear Editor, It was an unusual experience. Christmas was a few days away, and excitement was in the air. The room was filled with eager girls and boys ranging in age from 8 to 18 when, unexpectedly, I walked into the room. After greeting the group, I gave each one an index card on which had been written, "Christmas is. " Then, I asked those in that group to finish one sentence that expressed what Christmas meant to them. Eagerly, those girls and boys responded to my request, and the sentences they wrote were both interesting and insightful.

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All are welcome to join Crab Orchard Church of God for services on Sundays at 10 a.m. and 6 p.m. or Wednesdays at 7 p.m. We have classes on Wednesdays for the youth, and there is also a youth choir that can be joined. The Angel Food orders for October are now being taken. For those who are not familiar with this program, it is to help families with groceries in these trying times. The food box begins at $30 and there are also specials each month for various amounts from $15 and up. If you would like more information and a menu on this program you can call Becky at 365-0545 in the evenings.

LANCASTER - Garrard County found out a "Ray" of hope despite the raindrops that fell on the field here Friday night. After being held to just six points against Bell County, Class AAAA's top-ranked team in an opening game-loss, Garrard scored in every quarter here Friday and easily defeated Bethlehem 45-6 on Hall of Fame night at Dyehouse Stadium. Tyler Ray scored three times and Jamarious Merritt ran for 131 yards on just six carries as the Golden Lions rushed for 327 yards.

A triple play forced Burgin into extra innings, but the Lady Bulldogs defeated Bethlehem 7-6 on a bases-loaded walk in the eighth inning to snap a five-game losing streak. Burgin (6-14) rallied from a 6-0 deficit to tie the game with three runs each in the fourth and fifth innings, then won on consecutive walks to Abbey Worley, Hannah Harley and Elizabeth Harlow after Tiffany Shewmaker started the extra inning at second base thanks to softball's tiebreaker rule. "We have proven to ourselves that we can play with just about anyone for three or four innings.

WINCHESTER SONGWRITER, GUESTS TO PERFORM CHRISTMAS CONCERT Winchester singer and songwriter Mary Ann Crane will present "Bethlehem," a Christmas concert, at Macedonia Christian Church on Tuesday night, Dec. 18, at 6:30 p.m. Her special guest that evening will be Grammy and Dove Award winner J.D. Miller. "Bethlehem" will feature musical styles including black gospel, southern gospel, ballads, classical, traditional and old carols and bluegrass. Four of the selections will be Crane's original compositions.

FRANKFORT - It may be a small-school tournament, but winning it is a big challenge. That's the goal for the Danville boys, as it has been for the past few years. The Admirals took the first step in their latest climb toward the top of the All "A" Classic on Saturday by beating Bethlehem in a first-round game, but they know there are more difficult steps ahead today. They will have to win two games in about six hours this afternoon at Capitol View Park to take the title this senior-laden team craves.