BEDFORD – With day one of the 49th annual Lawrence County Spelling Bee in the books, the field for the championship round has been set, with Parkview fifth grader Kirra Morris emerging victorious from the grade 3-5 field.
After five rounds on Monday evening at Bedford Middle School’s Schafer Auditorium, it was the word amusing, which sealed the win for Morris.
Behind her was Michael Allbright, third grade at St. Vincent, who defeated third place finisher Kane Schmeichel, fifth grade at Dollens, in a spell down to secure second place. In the spell down, Allbright successfully spelled strident, as Schmeichel misspelled intersect.
Back Row (left to right): Emma Manzenberger, Silas Cobb, Mason Hutton, Braden Ritter, Anna Burrus, Lily Brinkworth, and Carleigh Price
Morris will move on to day two of the spelling bee, February 28, where she will compete with the top spellers from Lawrence County schools in grades 6-8.
The championship will be hosted at Schafer Auditorium on Tuesday at 4:30 p.m. and is free and open to the public.
The champion will receive $100 provided by Bedford Federal Savings Bank, a pizza party for their homeroom class provided by Papa John’s Pizza along with a trophy, certificate, and t-shirt provided by WBIW 1340 AM.
All participants receive a 1340 AM WBIW Spelling Bee t-shirt and a participant certificate.
Day Two Competitors
- Paige Voigtschild, 8th Grade – Homeschool
- Brooke Barr, 6th Grade – St. Vincent
- Demetrius Collins, 8th Grade – Bedford Middle School
- Eyan Gilstrap, 8th Grade – Mitchell Junior High
- Amelia Burgess, 6th Grade – Needmore
- Chloe Collins, 7th Grade – Oolitic
- Jaxson Carter, 6th Grade – Parkview
- Lexi Ritter, 6th Grade – Shawswick
- Kylar Hughes , 6th Grade – LCIS
- Thomas Harper, 6th Grade – Lincoln
Day One winner: Kirra Morris, 5th Grade – Parkview
A playback of the competition will be aired on 1340 WBIW AM & online at www.wbiw.com/listen-live at 6:30 p.m. Additionally, live streaming on the WBIW Facebook page will be provided.
