State Spelling Bee Goes 26 Rounds

Fergus Falls -- The state Spelling Bee lasted 26 rounds before announcing Mesabi East-Aurora, 8th grader, Emma Greenlee as the champion Tuesday.

Twenty-one spellers from across the state competed through 16 rounds before it was narrowed down to Greenlee and Fulda School 8th grader, Millie Piper.

Greenlee spelled words like, "thalassic" and "mukhtar," while Piper correctly spelled words like, "slumgullion" and "promethean" before misspelling "labyrinthine" in the final round.

Greenlee will go on to represent Minnesota at the The National Bee competition held in Washington, D.C. at the end of May.

Minnesota's last National Bee champion was in 2001.

Adam Johnson of Sartell and Ali Ophoven of St. Joseph both competed in yesterday's State Spelling Bee in Fergus Falls.