Words pertaining to the senses were good luck for a fourteen-year-old eighth grader from Paul Dunbar Middle School who successfully spelled his way through quarterfinals competition Wednesday morning and advanced to tonight's semifinals for the 100th Scripps National Spelling Bee.
There are 57 young spellers taking part in the semifinal spelling activities, held in Oxon Hill, Md., a suburb of Washington D.C., that will air tonight on cable network Ion.
Nicasio David, winner of the 2025 Lee County Spelling Bee, successfully spelled tintinnabulary (relating to, or characterized by bells or their sounds), censer (a container in which incense is burned) and phosgene (a colorless poisonous gas) to advance to the semifinals tonight.
He previously competed in 2024 and tied for 60th place.
A second Southwest Florida Student also was competing. Thirteen-year-old Sophia Schoenrock, an eighth grader from Marco Island Charter Middle School, was representing Collier County Public Schools.
She fell in the first round Wednesday on the word zortzico, a Basque word referring to a song or dance in 5/8 time with a dotted rhythm.
The two-night semifinals event begins tonight at 8 p.m. Finals air live Thursday at 8 p.m. ION is available free over the air, as well as on most cable, satellite and streaming providers.
The National Spelling Bee began in 1925 when nine newspapers joined together to host a spelling bee.
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