Washington, D.C. (KROC-AM News) - A Rochester eighth-grader had a good run at the National Spelling Bee until he ran into trouble with the word for a type of white marble.

14-year-old Thomas York started off with a “K” instead of a “C” when he attempted to spell “Carrera” and was eliminated in the 4th round of the final contest in Washington DC today. His first three words were “heyschast,” “cuneus,” and “sauger.” After the bell rang for York, there were only 15 contestants still vying for the 2017 National Championship.

The overall competition began with 291 contestants, and that list was narrowed to 40 finalists during the preliminary rounds on Tuesday and Wednesday. Six Minnesotans made it to the National Spelling Bee, but York was the only speller from the state to advance to the finals.

He attends the St. Francis of Assisi Catholic School in Rochester and was sponsored by the Southeast Service Cooperative in Rochester. Thomas is the second member of his family to make the trip to Washington for the National Spelling Bee. His father competed in 1982.

 

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