Jillian Fusi officially punched her ticket to the nation’s capital after she correctly spelled the word “occident” Wednesday night.
Jillian, a sixth-grader at Ivy Junior High School, defeated fellow sixth-grader Haider Awan of Sunflower Elementary School in the 17th round of the eighth annual Scripps Regional Spelling Bee at the Jimmie Cannon Theater for the Performing Arts at Southwest High School in El Centro.
“I’m floating on air,” said 11-year-old Jillian after her big win in which she went head-to-head with Haider for nearly 10 rounds.
Jillian was in a similar position last year when she battled Apolonia Gardner, who went on to become the champion.
“I knew I had to stay calm,” Jillian said. “I didn’t want it to have the same ending as last year.”
With the victory, Jillian is set to compete in the national spelling bee in Washington, D.C., in May.
“I’m just looking forward to the whole experience,” Jillian said. “I think it’s going to be fun.”
Despite his second-place finish, Haider said he was happy he competed and looked forward to returning to the spelling bee next year.
“It was really exciting, especially at the end,” Haider said. “It was fun to just come out here and compete against some of the other students from the Valley.”
This year’s spelling bee featured 43 students ranging from second- to eighth-grade.
The competition’s youngest participant was Ericah Sauceda, an 8-year-old second-grader from Seeley Union School.
“It sort of caught us by surprise,” said Ericah’s mother, Alma, with a smile. “We’re a little nervous for her, but we’re just happy and proud she’s here.”
Ericah said she was inspired to enter her school’s spelling bee in part due to her dream of becoming a teacher.
“My teacher helped me study by letting me see words then telling me to spell them with my eyes closed,” Ericah said.
Staff Writer Karina Lopez can be reached at 760-337-3439 or klopez@ivpressonline.com
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