The Free Press, Mankato, MN

Local News

May 30, 2008

Student competes at national spelling bee

Tanner Kent

By Tanner Kent

Free Press Staff Writer

Even though he spelled his word correctly in the first round of oral competition, Windom middle-schooler Nick Riordan will not be moving on in the Scripps National Spelling Bee in Washington D.C.

Riordan arrived in the nation’s capitol early this week and after waiting days for the oral competition to begin, Riordan stepped to the microphone Thursday morning and correctly spelled “fictionalize.”

That wasn’t enough, however, to advance to the quarterfinals.

All contestants were required to complete a 50-word written test before the oral round begins. Only 25 of those words — including Pyrrhic, pinyin, syringe, nonpareil, loquacity and mustard — were actually scored. If a student correctly spells his or her word in the oral round, three points are added to the written score.

For contestants to advance in the competition this year, they needed a combined score of 20. Riordan tallied a combined score of 17.

Riordan earned a trip to the National Spelling Bee when he placed first in a regional bee held at South Central College in March.

The competition continues today with the semifinal and final rounds which will be televised on ESPN and ABC, respectively.

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