Leader Staff
Karelyn Malliet’s third trip to the Badger State Spelling Bee ended with a top-five finish Saturday but not a trip to the national bee.
Malliet, an eighth-grade student at Shawano Community Middle School, competed with 47 other students Saturday in Madison and finished in a tie for fourth place, narrowly missing her second straight trip to the E.W. Scripps National Spelling Bee.
She won the state bee last year and came up one point short in a vocabulary test of qualifying for the semifinals at the national bee. She finished 11th in the state bee as a sixth-grader.
Ashwin Sankrithi, of New Berlin, placed first Saturday, followed by Martius Bautista, of Madison, and Meghna Datta, of Cross Plains. The state’s top three spellers advanced to the national competition, a first since the Wisconsin State Journal began sponsoring the event in 1949.
Craig Ferch, school psychologist and Shawano School District spelling bee coordinator, said Malliet, who was not available for comment early this week, believed she was told the word “maleta,” defined as a usually rawhide bag, was not a homonym and spelled it “moleta,” which is a Portuguese fishing boat.
A homonym is one of two or more words pronounced alike but different in meaning.
“It was clearly identified as a homonym, and we had three judges observe to make sure it was done correctly,” said Rhonda Reese, state spelling bee coordinator.
Ferch said he also followed up with Reese, who determined all rules were followed, including reading the definition of the word.
“It is, what it is. You can’t change it now,” Ferch said. “That is the nature of competition. … She came up tied for fourth among 48 spellers in Wisconsin, which is still pretty darn good.”
Ferch said the dedication Malliet demonstrated while preparing for the bee over the past few years will serve her well in her future endeavors.
“Any kind of goals that she has in life, she will excel in it,” Ferch said. “She has been impressive.”
Malliet captured her fourth straight school district spelling title Jan. 21 at SCMS and third straight CESA 8 title Feb. 9 at Clintonville High School.
After winning the district bee, the 14-year-old said she had been studying the list of 450 bee words since the start of the school year.