WASHINGTON — Van Wert County eighth grader Una VanWynsberghe correctly spelled both of the words given to her on stage at the Scripps National Spelling Bee in Washington D.C., but did not advance to Thursday’s finals.

VanWynsberghe, of Lincolnview Junior High School, correctly spelled “regurgitant” and “refulgence” in Wednesday’s grueling preliminary rounds. She did not score high enough on a written spelling and vocabulary test she took on Tuesday to advance, however. VanWynsberghe was in a group of 291 spellers who were given the opportunity to spell two words on stage.

The top 40 spellers advanced to Thursday’s finals.

It was the second time VanWynsberghe competed in the Scripps National Spelling Bee. She was eliminated during that bee after misspelling a word in the preliminary round.

VanWynsberghe advanced to both bees after winning regional spelling bees in Fort Wayne.

Source: WANE