72 in the 73rd event

72 in the 73rd event
The 73rd annual Vindicator Regional Spelling Bee had exactly 73 spellers qualified to participate but ended up with only 72 in the competition.
One pupil failed to appear and no substitute was entered in the competition.
The young people represented public, parochial, private, charter and home schools in Mahoning and Trumbull counties.
Fairly even matchup
The event drew nearly an even gender matchup.
There were 37 girls and 35 boys who were champions of their home school bees, with 60 from Mahoning County and 12 from Trumbull County schools.
Wide range of ages
The spellers represented a wide age group, from the third grade through the eighth grade.
There were four third-graders.
Only one them made it as far as the second round.
Repeat competitors
Many of the participants had also competed in past Vindicator bees.
Thirteen were going for the top prize for a second time and seven were competing for the third time.
One was in her fourth competition.
Early dismissals
The majority of the participants didn't past the second round.
Twenty-three missed their first word and 25 others missed their second word.
A big show of support
The 72 spellers came with support groups of family, friends and relatives.
It was a polite crowd, applauding each speller's performance, even when they missed a word.
Didn't go empty-handed
Each contestant received a Merriam-Webster 11th Edition Collegiate Dictionary, a T-shirt, a school champion certificate and other mementos of their participation.
Early arrivals
The event didn't begin until 9 a.m., but some spellers were in their seats by 8:15 a.m.
Some kept to themselves, appearing nervous, while other chatted with friends and other competitors as mom and dads snapped photos and got their video cameras ready for the big moment.
What nerves can do
That nervousness continued on stage for some, including one young man who briefly misnamed the school he was representing when he identified himself the first time he got on stage.
He drew a good laugh from the crowd and was able to compose himself to spell his word correctly.
Time for the wave
At one point, in an effort to help the participants relax, the Rev. Lewis Macklin, a floor manager for the bee, had the remaining spellers do the wave in their seats while they waited for competition to resume.
The Vindy 500?
The organizers of the bee had a list of 500 words prepared, in the event that the competition took that long to find a winner.
The bee went through more than 200 words before it ended.
That 500th word? Panguingue.