Jacob Williamson (Speller 38) at first didn't think he would be called as a finalist.
When he was, his response was hyperkinetic. The Cape Coral, Florida eighth grader fell to his knees in excitement.
"When I was the one called, I was legitimately shocked," he said. "I am so excited about that."
Jacob spelled second on stage.
"Did you bring your Bee game?" Dr. Bailly asked.
He spelled his word - rhadamanthine, which means rigorously just - correctly, ending with a fist pump.
Jacob, who at 15 is the oldest speller, said while he knew the two words he spelled in the Semifinals, he did not know many of the ones his fellow spellers received. He was able to figure them out though, he said, as he heard spellers request information about the words.
Jacob said this was more than he expected in his first year of competition.
"It's the first time I ever experienced something like this on a huge scale," he said. "I love being on stage like that. I love the recognition."
