81st Vindicator Regional Spelling Bee kicks off Saturday

By Denise Dick | March 9, 2014 at 12:08a.m.

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Can you spell competition? How about tournament? You better bee-lieve the 52 contestants in the 81st annual Vindicator Regional Spelling Bee can.

The event begins at 9 a.m. Saturday in the Chestnut Room in Youngstown State University’s Kilcawley Center and includes 28 boys and 24 girls vying for the trophy.

Participants won their individual school bees and represent public, private and home schools from Mahoning and Trumbull counties. Each contestant receives a Merriam-Webster 11th Edition Collegiate dictionary, courtesy of The Vindicator and a Vindicator Spelling Bee T-shirt, a school champion certificate and other prizes.

Of the 52 competitors, 44 are first-time entrants in the bee.

Six are making their second bee appearances: Judy Garzanich of Boardman Glenwood Middle School, Abraham Rasoul of Brookfield Middle, Mia Bordonaro of Ohio Virtual Academy, Cole McKenna of Struthers Elementary, Zade Al-Shinnawi of West Branch Middle and Taylor Garner of Western Reserve Middle.

Two students, Morgan Smith, a seventh-grader at Youngstown’s Discovery at Kirkmere School, and Bronx Teague, a fourth-grader at Youngstown Community School, are competing for the third time.

Both are studying hard.

“My mom and I sit and look at the dictionary,” said Morgan, 12, the daughter of Jen and Karl Hartzell.

Her mom picks a word and asks her to spell it. If Morgan spells it incorrectly, her mother gives her the correct spelling so that she knows it the next time.

That happens a couple of times each week, and Morgan said the study sessions are helping.

She also enjoys reading, especially fantasy books, and she believes that helps her with spelling.

“I see the same words a lot and I learn them,” Morgan said.

She likes German and French words in particular because the rules help her to remember how to spell the words. A “sh” sound in German for example, is spelled with a “sch.”

Morgan believes she’s ready for the big day.

“I’m still kind of anxious about it because I want to win, but it’s not scary,” she said.

Bronx, 10, was the bee’s youngest contestant in 2011 when he competed as a first-grader. He returned the following year.

“I’ve been studying a lot,” he said.

His mother, Letayia Teague, quizzes him on words for about an hour a day, asking him to spell them. His dad is Brian Teague.

He attributes his spelling prowess to his powers of recall. “I think it’s because I remember a lot of words,” Bronx said. “I picture them in my head. I have a good memory.”

Spelling and math are his favorite subjects, and when he’s not studying, he enjoys football and basketball.

He’s hoping for a good showing at Saturday’s event.

“It’s fun,” Bronx said. “I like competing in it.”

The winner of Saturday’s bee will represent the region at the 87th annual Scripps National Spelling Bee in Washington, D.C., the week of May 25. About 270 spellers from around the country compete in the national contest.

The Vindicator pays for transportation, hotel accommodations and other expenses for the grand champion and an accompanying adult.