The Finalists of the Scripps National Spelling Bee are set: a dozen brilliant spellers who will compete tonight for the Scripps Cup.
The spellers are:
Speller 1, Sahasrad Sathish
Speller 65, Ekansh Rastogi
Speller 76, Vikram Raju
Speller 87, Aliyah Alpert
Speller 104, Abhilash Patel
Speller 178, Sahana Srikanth
Speller 189, Kirsten Santos
Speller 197, Nitya Kathiravan
Speller 205, Vihaan Sibal
Speller 206, Saharsh Vuppala
Speller 231, Harini Logan
Speller 234, Shijay Sivakumar
Harini said making the Finals was “such a surreal moment,” while Shijay and Ekansh said they were excited and relieved.
Both competed as fifth graders, but haven’t been back in person since 2019. They’re eighth graders now, in their last year of eligibility.
“It means a lot to capitalize on my last opportunity,” Shijay said. “Last year, I was so bummed. It feels good to have redemption this year.”
And Aliyah, who was sporting a bee-themed dress Wednesday and planned to wear another today, said she was feeling excited to move on.
“I was not expecting to get to Finals. Finals were definitely my dream,” she said. “It’s been super fun.”