Sophia Nguyen, Speller 219 and a Missouri seventh grader, correctly spelled "synecphonesis," which is contraction of two syllables into one.
Sophia wasn't confident that she would make the finals. After all, there are so many good spellers here.
When she found out, she said, she had to work to keep herself “cool as a cucumber.”
“Oh my gosh, this is happening,” she said.
Sophia said she knows the spellers on stage are supposed to be the best, but she thinks everyone who made it to the Scripps National Spelling Bee is a winner.
“Everyone here is such a good speller,” she said. “I admire everyone here.”