NATIONAL HARBOR, MD. —The Scripps National Spelling Bee preliminaries began Tuesday featuring two local students: Ope Balogun of Shawnee Middle School and Lainey Gardner of Crestview Middle School.
Balogun, sponsored by the Lima News, spelled “esplanade” correctly in the first round, but fell in the second round word meaning challenge with the word “capstan”.
Gardner, sponsored by the Toledo Blade, spelled “luculent” correctly in the first round, but missed on the definition of the word “cognizant”.
The spelling bee will continue Wednesday and conclude with the final rounds Thursday, June 1.
