The youngest speller in the competition, 6-year-old Akash Vukoti -- number 238 -- endeared himself to the crowd by trying to make the microphone a little more accessible.
"No you can't go and unscrew it, just pull it down," Dr. Bailly told the Texas first grader.
He gripped the mic, then spelled "inviscate" correctly to stay in. When Akash got the thumbs up, he pumped his fists, put his hands to his head and high fived his fellow spellers.
