By Jacki McCarthy
On Friday, February 20, Harwood Union Middle/High School held its annual Scripps Spelling Bee schoolwide competition. The bee is open to students in grades seven and eight who qualify through rounds conducted in their English classes. Spelling team coach Judi Gross returned as the invited annual guest pronouncer for the competition held in the high school auditorium. This year's seventh-grade bee participants included Jake Lynn, Levi Pratt, Theron Williams, Lily Carleau, Owen Labombard, Sarah Boyden, Chester Baughman, Olivia Carleau, Chapin Roberts, Amelia Allen and Lila Derryberry. Eighth-grade spellers included Ben Russell, Olivia White, Lili Berman, Anna Schmeltzer, Tucker Mays, Brenden Magill, Liam Devereaux, Asher Martley, Aidan Melville, Brianna Messier and Desmond Winthrop.
Spelling coach Gross was pleased but not surprised to see several members of this fall's HUMS VPA spelling team among the initial contestants. Theron Williams, Olivia Carleau, Brendan Magill and Tucker Mays entered the ninth round of competition; the finalists battled it out until only Mays and Magill remained.
The 10th, 11th and 12th rounds consisted of a cutthroat battle between Mays and Magill. After several rapid-fire bonus rounds of words like feng shui, anthropomorphism and pharmaceutical, Brendan Magill spelled his way to victory. Brendan will go on to represent Harwood at the Vermont Scripps Spelling Competition at St. Michael's College on March 19.
