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Saturday, February 23, 2008
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Eighth-grader from Nisswa becomes top speller in district THE LAKES BEE Staff Writer It came down to two Brainerd students in the final spelldown Friday in The Lakes Bee held at Washington Educational Services Building in Brainerd.
Forestview Middle School eighth-grader Nick Greatens went back-and-forth with classmate Anna Swanson for five rounds before claiming the title and winning himself a trip to Washington, D.C.
Greatens, the son of Todd and Barbara Greatens of Nisswa, outdid 34 other students to win the regional spelling bee in 12 rounds to advance to the national competition on May 29-30 in Washington, D.C.
Thirty-five students in fifth- through eighth-grade - from Crow Wing, Morrison, Wadena, Todd and Cass counties - competed in the regional bee, sponsored by the National Joint Powers Alliance and The Brainerd Dispatch.
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Nick Greatens (left) Tayler Klimek and Zach Hanson paused to think during The Lakes Bee Friday at Washington Educational Services Building in Brainerd. Greatens, a Forestview Middle School eighth-grader, won the regional bee.
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Brainerd Dispatch/Clint Wood
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It came down to the two students in Round 8. Greatens, who took second place last year in the regional bee, spelled his words with ease, as did Swanson, who won the Brainerd School District spelling bee this year.
Then in Round 12, Greatens spelled "homogeneous" correctly, but Swanson misspelled "precipice." Greatens had to spell one more word correctly to win the bee. The rules for The Lakes Bee specify the student has to spell two words correctly in a row to win.
He spelled "verboten" correctly for the win.
"It feels good to win," said Greatens. "I'm pretty excited. I've been hoping to go to Washington, D.C., for awhile."
Greatens, 14, qualified for the regional bee for the past three years. Last year he took second place and the year before he decided not to compete, so he could attend a Math Masters competition.
Greatens said his toughest word was "femininity" and his easiest word was "corporal."
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Nick Greatens, a Forestview Middle School eighth-grader, smiled after winning The Lakes Bee at Washington Educational Services Building in Brainerd. Greatens spelled "homogeneous" and "verboten" correctly.
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Greatens won a "Webster's Third New International Dictionary," a $100 savings bond and a one-year subscription to Encyclopedia Britannica Online.
Swanson said the words in the spelldown were pretty easy, besides the word, "eiderdown," that she spelled correctly in Round 10.
"I didn't like that word," she said. "I didn't think I'd get this far (in the competition). I thought I'd be out immediately."
Swanson won a "Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary, Eleventh Edition," a gift certificate and a one-year subscription to Encyclopedia Britannica Online.
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Anna Swanson, a Forestview Middle School eighth-grader, reacted after being told to spell "precipice" in The Lakes Bee at Washington Educational Services Building in Brainerd. She misspelled it and finished second in the regional bee.
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Brainerd seventh-grader Zach Hanson took third place in the competition.
"This was the first time I've competed in regionals," said Hanson. "I wasn't scared at first (during the competition), but later on when it was the three of us I felt intimidated by their presence.
"I'm surprised I got this far."
JENNIFER STOCKINGER may be reached at jennifer.stockinger@brainerddispatch.com or 855-5851.
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