Tournament bridges generations and sharpens the mind through classic card game

Sixth, seventh and eighth graders played tricks and made contracts in a tactical game of duplicate bridge at the second Kalispell Middle School Flathead Valley Bridge Center tournament. 

The classic card game bridged generations for three days of competition at the Kalispell center. 

With a lot of rules to learn, Flathead Valley Bridge Center members Susan Okonsky and Ann Koedding have visited the middle school math classrooms weekly since the fall to teach students how to play the complex card game through a free program called Jump Start Bridge. The nonprofit bridge program provides classrooms with free materials, resources and supplies while offering stipends to teachers.   

“We took it step by step each week,” said middle school eighth-grade math teacher Kelli Thomas. 

Duplicate bridge is a game of strategy over luck. 

“It’s all strategy,” eighth grader Katie Scott said. “Sometimes you have — not the best cards — but you can turn it around by the end of the game.” 

Scott and her partner Brooke Hafer went on to rank second among the east and west pairs during the April 28 morning session. 

Bridge can be learned quickly but mastery takes a lot of practice, offering a fun challenge for beginners. 

“It’s a lifetime of learning to master bridge,” Okonsky said. “I am just a beginner. I know everything — but I’m a beginner. Some of these kids are just stellar.” 

THROUGH DUPLICATE bridge, students build math, communication and social skills. Kalispell Middle School sixth-grade math teacher Michelle Steele said the card game also sharpens critical thinking and memory. 

“It’s long-term planning, you have to think the whole time, track patterns notice small details, remember what cards were played,” Steele said. “It is so fun.” 

Perhaps most enthusiastic about bringing bridge in the classroom besides Okonsky is Steele, who planted the seed last school year when she expressed an interest in learning the game to a friend who was a member of the bridge center. The inaugural tournament was planned and attended by her sixth graders. 

“I will tell you I’ve been teaching for 15 years. I have been on billions of field trips. I’ve taken kids to amusement parks and water slides — and last year’s trip to the bridge center, the sixth graders endlessly thanked me. They love it,” she said. 

"I love it because I get to see them playing games together face to face. And when they have time to their self, instead of immediately going to a computer game, they want to get their work done to play bridge,” Steele added. “They’ve grown up with technology and it's nice to see games brought back.” 

During the tournament, hundreds of students would find out if all the instruction and practice paid off. 

On April 28, the students’ enthusiasm for duplicate bridge was evident from the time they entered the building until the left. Okonsky received spirited greetings, high-fives, handshakes and even a drawing.  

As eighth graders filed into the building for the afternoon session, the center once again became a hubbub of activity as students roamed the room to find their bridge partners, get lunch and sit down at a table. 

In the center of each table were trays, known as boards, containing the cards separated into four pockets. The tables were labeled with cardinal directions — north, south, east and west — designating where partners sit opposite each other, which is important for play order, bidding and scoring. 

Bridge involves rules and etiquette that discourage talking at the table. Teammates have to communicate and coordinate nonverbally, which occurs through bidding and play. Thomas said it's a game built on partnership. In some groups, one partner will lean more into strategizing, which was the case for eighth graders Kobe Azure and Stefan Stolt. 

As the students started to play, the noise level became quieter as the students focused on the cards in their hand which they lined up in wooden playing card holders specially made by middle school shop teacher Rich Evans. 

“It's hard sometimes for younger kids to hold 13 cards in their hand,” Okonsky remarked. 

One Flathead Valley Bridge Center member sat near each table to answer questions before rounds, help keep score and offer pointers afterward. 

“You watch them play. You’ll be amazed,” said Flathead Bridge Center member Annie Alex. 

The game begins with bidding.  

“When you’re doing your bidding, it’s kind of giving them an idea of like where your strongest cards are at,” eighth grader Calle Peters said during the morning session when she played.      

“You do bidding to kind of tell your partner about your hand,” Thomas added. “So, if you have a lot of hearts, you can do like two hearts, and that tells your partner what kind of a hand you have.” 

Partners are trying to win tricks for their team. In each trick, every player plays one card. Other players must play a card of the same suit if they have one or any card if they don’t.  

“You have to play in the suit if you can,” eight grader Savannah Ackley said. “There are certain cards that hold more like power than others because the goal is to get higher cards to win the trick.” 

When asked what they enjoy about bridge, Azure succinctly answered with a slight grin, "Winning.” 

Okonsky would like to partner with teachers to start a bridge club at the middle school. She is also working on building bridges with a Lethbridge, Canada, middle school, with a goal of playing together next year. 

“Playing bridge is one thing, but it’s incredibly rewarding to work with the kids because they want to learn and they have fun,” Okonsky said. 

The following are tournament rankings. 

April 23 — sixth grade 

Morning session A 

1. Ray Elmer and Kwintyn Hicks 

2. Kannika Johnson and Skylar Hall 

3. Ruby Lloyd and Teal Woywod 

Morning session B 

1. Ava Paton and Ari Gomez     

2. Brady Owens and Ryan Catlett 

Afternoon session 

North and south pairs 

1. Tristen Brantley and Xavier Castro 

2.  Zoey Roberts and Annalyn Mower 

3/4. (tie) Caleb Sneeden and Bridger Ruonavaara; Riley Ray-Palmer and Sabrina Hallenberg 

East and west pairs 

1. Allie Bain and Camilla Vielma Garcia 

2/3. (tie) Wyatt Brown and Andrew Saunders; Ayden Flink and Carson Valentino 

April 28 — eighth grade 

Morning session 

North and south pairs  

1. Kinley Wilder and Justyce Naranjo 

2. Liam Olmsted and Kwintyn Hicks 

3. Kassidy Speer and Victoria Young 

East and west pairs 

1. Tucker Venche and Ellie Palmer 

2. Katie Scott and Brooke Hafer 

3. Brylie Ferren and Artem Trushchenkov 

Afternoon session

North and south pairs  

1. Serena Carlson and Avery Hoselton 

2. Keaton Hunt and Ethan Ray 

3. Luke Hofeldt and Jake Barber 

East and west pairs 

1. Ayla Miller 

2. Carter Dolan and Ryley Hammer 

3/5. (tie) Camerin Westover and Spencer Bell; Peirson Simmons and Ashton Flores; Stefan Stolt and Kobe Azure 

April 30 — seventh grade 

Morning session  

North and south pairs 

1. Cordelle Stendell and Brooklyn Farrell 

2. Julien Sevier and Bowen Stupack 

3. Lola Beckman and Freyja Hardy 

East and west pairs 

1. Gavin Thompson and Maddox Johnson 

2. Leise Conner and McKala Murphy 

3. Charlese Luka and Colton Jurvakainen 

Afternoon session  

North and south pairs 

1. Embyr Mahrea Zeller and Olivia Oehrtman 

2. Blake Benkelman and Treyden Tryon 

3. Enja Sneeden and Maddy Roop 

East and west pairs    

1. Mollie King and Lauren Foster 

2. Maddox Johnson and Kellen Bigelow 

3. Graeme Patterson and Kylie Welliver 

Reporter Hilary Matheson can be reached at 406-758-4431 or hmatheson@dailyinterlake.com. If you value local journalism, pledge your support at dailyinterlake.com/support. 

    Kalispell Middle School eighth-graders in teacher Kelli Thomas' math class compete in a bridge tournament at Flathead Valley Bridge Center on Tuesday, April 28. (Casey Kreider/Daily Inter Lake)

    Kalispell Middle School eighth-graders in teacher Kelli Thomas' math class compete in a bridge tournament at Flathead Valley Bridge Center on Tuesday, April 28. (Casey Kreider/Daily Inter Lake)

    Kalispell Middle School eighth-graders in teacher Kelli Thomas' math class compete in a bridge tournament at Flathead Valley Bridge Center on Tuesday, April 28. (Casey Kreider/Daily Inter Lake)

    Kalispell Middle School eighth-graders in teacher Kelli Thomas' math class compete in a bridge tournament at Flathead Valley Bridge Center on Tuesday, April 28. (Casey Kreider/Daily Inter Lake)

    Flathead Valley Bridge Club member William Fry gives some instruction to a group of Kalispell Midde School eighth-graders as teacher Kelli Thomas stops by to check on the game at the Kalispell Middle School 2026 Bridge Tournament at the Flathead Valley Bridge Center on Tuesday, April 28. (Casey Kreider/Daily Inter Lake)

    Trophies for first, second and third place finishers at the Kalispell Middle School 2026 Bridge Tournament at the Flathead Valley Bridge Center on Tuesday, April 28. (Casey Kreider/Daily Inter Lake)

    Kalispell Middle School eighth-graders in teacher Kelli Thomas' math class compete in a bridge tournament at Flathead Valley Bridge Center on Tuesday, April 28. (Casey Kreider/Daily Inter Lake)

    Kalispell Middle School eighth-graders in teacher Kelli Thomas' math class compete in a bridge tournament at Flathead Valley Bridge Center on Tuesday, April 28. (Casey Kreider/Daily Inter Lake)
 Casey Kreider