Four students from West Michigan are making a buzz at the 2023 Scripps National Spelling Bee.
Over 200 top spellers in the United States and beyond traveled to Maryland this week for the 95th annual competition, according to CNN.
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All spellers came from all 50 states, as well as the Bahamas, Canada, Germany, Ghana, the U.S. Virgin Islands, Guam, and Puerto Rico, CNN reported.
This includes the following West Michigan students:
- Emily Demlow - 14, Battle Creek
- Brady Bowers - 13, Grand Rapids
- Clara Mervak - 11, Kalamazoo
- Sidhanth Vetrivel - 11, St. Joseph
In this year's competition, the youngest speller is 9 years old and the oldest is 14 years old, according to CNN.
The final round of the spelling bee takes place Thursday night, CNN reported.
The winner takes home $50,000, a trophy, and bragging rights, according to CNN.
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Last year, 14-year-old Harini Logan from San Antonio, Texas won in the first-ever spell-off tie breaker, CNN reported.
The winning word was "Moorhen," which is a bird, according to CNN.
Meet more of this year's spellers online.