Mentor student wins Lake County Spelling Bee

Following 26 rounds of fierce competition, a student from the Mentor School District was named the 2018 Lake County Spelling Bee champion on Feb. 22.

Beatrice Popescu, who is a sixth-grader at Memorial Middle School, earned the title after correctly spelling “prairie.”

“I feel very excited and happy to represent Lake County at the Tri-County Spelling Bee,” Beatrice said.

Beatrice will advance to the Tri-County Spelling Bee slated for March 8 at the Kirtland Public Library. The winner of the Tri-County Bee will compete in the Scripps National Spelling Bee in Washington, D.C.

Beatrice’s parents were very proud of her, noting that she is also an excellent student.

Although Beatrice made it look easy, correctly spelling dozens of words, she said she studied and practiced a lot.

After round 18, Beatrice faced Bobby Whittaker, a seventh-grader at Kirtland Middle School.

Bobby was eliminated for misspelling “ravel.”

However, he still walked away with a trophy.

Bobby hopes to return next year.

The 35th annual Lake County Spelling Bee, sponsored by Lubrizol and The Lake County Educational Service Center, was held at Auburn Career Center in Concord Township.

There were a total of 14 spellers. By the fourth round, only half of the participants remained in the competition.

Some of the 2018 TriCounty Spelling Bee words included:

Cordial, peroxide, amputation, reservoir, alacrity, contagious, calamine, tapirs, azalea, flabbergasted, sophomore, composure, claustrophobic, impeccable, repugnance, Sherpa, voluminous, proviso, incarcerated, monomania, gargoyle, Seminole, memorandum, pastrami, hallucinations, conspicuous, excruciating, treacherous, appendectomy, sphinx, requisites, bilious, grotesque, cypress, succulent, avocations and concierge.

TAWANA ROBERTS – THE NEWS- HERALD Beatrice Popescu, who is a sixth-grader at Memorial Middle School in Mentor, won the 35th Annual Lake County Spelling Bee on Feb. 22, and walked away with the trophy.