Machiasport 13-year-old finishes among top 25 spellers at Washington, D.C., bee

WASHINGTON – As the pressure mounted Thursday in the final day of the 75th National Spelling Bee, Maine’s champion speller found herself surviving until being stumped by “chamfer,” an obscure word that describes a furrow or groove.

By that time, the 13-year-old from Machiasport, Molly Nichols, was among the remaining 25 contestants in the two-day event that began Wednesday with 250 spellers from around the nation and neighboring countries.

As the bee continued into Thursday afternoon, the number of contestants fell rapidly until 13-year-old Pratyush Buddiga of Colorado Springs, Colo., was the last speller left standing in the 11th round. He won first place after spelling “prospicience” and will be awarded a $12,000 cash prize and a trophy cup.

That’s just fine with Molly. The seventh-grade Elm Street School student said that getting beyond the first round was as much as she had hoped for.

Earlier in the day, Molly survived several rounds by expertly handling the words “dulosis” and “toreutics” in her characteristic way: She sways slightly from side to side at the microphone with her hands behind her back as she spells.

Thursday’s final rounds were televised on the cable and satellite channel ESPN.

“It’s pretty cool being on TV,” she said, “but I never watch it.”

In fact, her family doesn’t own a television, which is one reason Molly spends so much time studying the origins of words and how to spell better, she said.

“She didn’t know the first two words she was asked to spell today,” said her great-uncle Lauren Brubacker, who dropped by to see Molly’s appearance. “She just figures them out.”

Because Molly lasted into the fifth round, she will receive a $300 prize along with a $100 U.S. savings bond and commemorative watch.

“I have no idea what I’ll do with the money,” she said. “I’ve never had so much before.”

Top spellers between the ages of 10 and 14 from almost every state in the nation (except Vermont and Utah) took part in the contest sponsored by newspaper publisher Scripps Howard. Youths from Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, Bahamas, Jamaica and Mexico also competed in the event.

The spelling bee was held in the spacious Independence Ballroom of Washington’s Grand Hyatt hotel.

This is the first year the bee has featured a written test, which Scripps-Howard organizers added in order to keep the competition limited to two days. Bee staffers observed that spellers have spent more time at the microphone in recent years.

The Bangor Daily News sponsored Molly’s six-day trip to Washington. She was joined by her parents, Lynn Brubacker, first violinist with the Bangor Symphony Orchestra, and her father, Gene Nichols, who teaches at the University of Maine in Machias

Taped comments from first lady Laura Bush opened Thursday’s live broadcast on ESPN and included encouraging words for the contestants.

“I hope you’ll always work hard at spelling and at reading,” she said. “The more you read, the better your spelling will become and the more your vocabulary will grow.”

The winner of the first National Spelling Bee in 1925, Frank Neuhauser, 88, also made an appearance. When he won the bee 75 years ago, Neuhauser was invited to meet President Calvin Coolidge. That established a tradition that will be continued when this year’s winner meets with President George W. Bush.