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Middle school students compete in, qualify for regional spelling bee

Eighteen sixth through eighth grade students, representing nine area junior high and middle schools, competed in the 33rd annual Knights of Columbus Spelling Bee held Saturday, Feb. 14, at the Knights of Columbus Hall in Arlington Heights.

The first place finisher was Clarissa Gomez of St. James School in Arlington Heights. The second place finisher was Patrick Burns, of St. Emily School in Mount Prospect and the third place finisher was Samantha Corley, of Thomas Middle School in Arlington Heights.

The Bee used 197 words and lasted for a very exciting 27 rounds. The final battle for first place was an intense 22-word battle between the final two spellers, including words such as unctuous, inchoate, pusillanimous, vacuousness and adumbrate. The Bee concluded when Clarissa Gomez spelled both revanche and erstwhile correctly to claim first place.

All three finalists have qualified to compete in the Regional Spelling Bee on Feb. 28, where the top three finishers of the Regional Bee will qualify for the state tournament in April.

Schools and students participating in the Spelling Bee were:

Arlington Heights: Our Lady of the Wayside: Andrew Bremmer and Gigi Licari; St. James Junior High School: Clarissa Gomez and Emily Madden; St. Peter School: Sydney Ayala and Joshua Brown; South Middle School: Joey DeMaria and Camilla Rodriguez; Thomas Middle School: Samantha Corley and Sanjanna Tumma.

Mount Prospect: Holmes Junior High School: Kendra Herrig and Riya Shah; St. Paul School: Ashley Adams and Mark Merrill; St. Emily School: Patrick Burns and Gerard Peña.

Rolling Meadows: St. Colette School: Daniel Fecko and Samantha Shirmer.

The Bee was hosted by Holy Rosary Council #4483 of Arlington Heights, and co-sponsored with Mount Prospect Council #6481 and Our Lady of the Grove Council #13448.

All public and private junior high and middle schools serving Arlington Heights, Buffalo Grove, Elk Grove, Long Grove, Mount Prospect, Prospect Heights, Rolling Meadows, and Wheeling were invited to send two representatives to participate.

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The 2015 Knights of Columbus Spelling Bee finalists are Clarissa Gomez, seated, and standing, from left, Samantha Corley and Patrick Burns. Courtesy of Tom Loch
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