Alexia Vega Franceschi wins back-to-back championships in UCPS Spelling Bee
On Jan. 24, Sandy Ridge Elementary fourth-grader Alexia Vega Franceschi won the 2019-2020 UCPS Spelling Bee, marking back-to-back championships in the past two years that she has competed.
Breezing through 16 rounds, spelling words such as “tarpaulin” and “dactylic” with relative ease, the 9-year-old clinched the competition by correctly spelling the word “ganglion.”
“I am very excited. I wasn’t that nervous until I got to ‘ganglion,’ which was my last word,” Alexia said after the competition. “My sister helped me study the words so that I could be ready for today.”
Alexia’s sister, Eva, who is a sophomore at Marvin Ridge High, won the UCPS Spelling Bee in 2018 and went on to compete at the Scripps National Spelling Bee later that year.
Each of the district’s 39 elementary and middle schools sent their school-level champion to the UCPS Spelling Bee. For two hours, parents, principals and family members in the audience held their breath as the spellers plowed through the 16 rounds, spelling words such as transmogrify, gladiatorial, pruritus, ecclesiology and more.
By the 11th round, Alexia began a head-to-head competition Weddington Middle student Daniel Wei which lasted an additional five rounds. No stranger to spelling bees, Daniel was the 2017 UCPS Spelling Bee champion and won the first runner up title in 2019.
“I was excited at first but as the rounds continued I started to get nervous. There was a lot of tough competition this year,” he said. “I studied a lot to prepare. I’m going to try to come back again next year.”
Now that a district champion has been chosen, Alexia will represent UCPS at the 66th annual Charlotte Observer Regional Spelling Bee, which will be held in February. In the event Alexia is unable to attend the regional competition, Daniel will compete in her place.
Please see the chart below for a list of students who participated in the UCPS Spelling Bee:
NAME |
SCHOOL |
Pranav Premkumar |
Antioch Elementary |
Ana Ramos |
Benton Heights Elementary |
Manvel Gevorgyan |
Cuthbertson Middle |
Marisol Flores Martinez |
East Elementary |
Gabrielle Snuggs |
East Union Middle |
Emily Nunez-Rivera |
Fairview Elementary |
Malik Simpson |
Health Sciences Academy at Monroe Middle |
Ike Burch |
Hemby Bridge Elementary |
Anugraha Sibu |
Indian Trail Elementary |
Duncan Cannon |
Kensington Elementary |
Annabel Ortiz |
Marshville Elementary |
Ashita Munugala |
Marvin Elementary |
David Peterson |
Marvin Ridge Middle |
Lane Stegall |
New Salem Elementary |
Reem Obeid |
New Town Elementary |
Giana Hasbun |
Parkwood Middle |
John Curtis Flynn |
Piedmont Middle |
Benjamin Conway |
Poplin Elementary |
Brihanna Ashcraft |
Porter Ridge Elementary |
Garrett Lents |
Porter Ridge Middle |
Miley Thomas |
Prospect Elementary |
Silas Mayer |
Rea View Elementary |
Blanca Castro Ocampos |
Rock Rest Elementary |
Khloe Hall |
Rocky River Elementary |
Alexia Vega Franceschi |
Sandy Ridge Elementary |
Reece Montgomery |
Sardis Elementary |
Mariella Clark |
Shiloh Valley Elementary |
Rishabh Thatte |
Stallings Elementary |
Christopher Cornejo |
Sun Valley Middle |
Alli Mullis |
Union Elementary |
Reese Kiser |
Unionville Elementary |
Desmond Robertson |
Walter Bickett Elementary |
Macy Otwell |
Waxhaw Elementary |
Mahir Balagovind |
Weddington Elementary |
Daniel Wei |
Weddington Middle |
Elijah Singh |
Wesley Chapel Elementary |
Kendle Griffin |
Western Union Elementary |
Jacob Mascorro |
Wingate Elementary |