NEWS RELEASE
(ALBEMARLE COUNTY, Virginia)—It all came down to “supersonic” and “extemporaneous.” On Tuesday, January 30, 15 elementary school spellers and six middle school spellers took to the stage to compete for the title of ACPS Spelling Champion. Enoch Lyu of Hollymead Elementary School was named the elementary school level champion after correctly spelling “supersonic” at the end of the ninth round of words, and Claire Meng of Lakeside Middle School was named the middle school level champion after correctly spelling “extemporaneous” at the end of the fourth round of words.
“We had such a wonderful showing of spellers from our schools,” Michele Castner, Director of Elementary Education, said. “We are incredibly proud of all of them and hope to see them continue onto the next level of bees to continue showing off their hard work.”
With the school division’s new partnership with Scripps National Spelling Bee, all school bee winners will be able to test their spelling skills with the Scripps Online Regional Qualifier between February 5 and February 12 for a chance to make it to the Scripps Regional Spelling Bee.
“It is such a treat to be able to see our students’ hard work and dedication play out on the stage,” said Superintendent Dr. Matthew Haas. “We’re always working to provide our students with new opportunities to excel, and we are excited for more of our spellers to have the opportunity to qualify for the regional bee.”
Scripps will invite the high performers of the qualifier held in February to compete in the Scripps Regional Spelling Bee on Saturday, March 2, on Zoom. Regional champions will be invited to the National Competition in Washington, D.C., in May.
Elementary School Spelling Bee Winners:
- Hesham Mawlood, Agnor-Hurt
- Dhiya Nagappan, Baker-Butler
- Samuel Pryse, Broadus Wood
- Hadley Viele, Brownsville
- Nehir Celebi, Crozet
- Alexander Kalergis, Greer
- Enoch Lyu, Hollymead, ACPS Elementary Spelling Bee Champion
- Felix Dong, Ivy
- Keagan McElroy, Mountain View
- William Gilbert, Murray
- Charlotte Meyer, Red Hill
- Ulric Ordendorff, Scottsville
- Terina Opoku, Stone-Robinson
- Bryce Hartman, Stony Point
- Logan Paparella, Woodbrook
Middle School Spelling Bee Winners:
- Sebastian Carlock, Burley
- Samuel Dalimonte, Community Lab
- Finnian Lodge, Community Lab (runner up, competed in ACPS Middle School Spelling Bee)
- Saurish Srimath Tirumala, Henley
- Ian Hirst, Journey
- Claire Meng, Lakeside, ACPS Middle School Spelling Bee Champion
- Lyla Thiede, Walton
Pictured: Enoch Lyu (top-right) and Claire Meng (left)
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PHONE: 434-987-8442