SMS Student advances to Regional Spelling Bee

Tension filled the air as the competing students apprehensively awaited their turn. One by one each participant in the Seneca Middle School Spelling Bee heard the announcer say their assigned word and then tried their best to spell it correctly so as to remain in the competition. However, one by one the field was narrowed as the words grew ever more difficult. In the end, seventh grader Luke Bleuel emerged victorious. He will now move forward to the regional Scripps Spelling Bee in Anderson to compete against other school-level winners from Abbeville, Anderson, Greenville, Greenwood, Oconee, and Pickens counties. The regional bee will be held on March 3, in the Henderson Auditorium at Anderson University. The winner of a regional bee will advance to the National Spelling Bee, which will take place during the week of May 27, through June 1, 2018, in the Maryland Ballroom at Gaylord National Resort and Convention Center in National Harbor, Maryland. The runners-up to Bleuel were Kyrsten Carl and Olivia Sires. Also competing were Gracie Grandi, Hailie Tedford, Yaira Johnson, Taylor Sires, Chloe Simmons, and Alyssa Crooks.