Quarterfinals and Semifinals

After 198 spellers were eliminated in the preliminaries on Thursday, the remaining 90 were left to compete in the Quarterfinals of the National Spelling Bee. Here are a few of the Preliminary words:

cacoethes

sinecure

loquacity

galimatias

Pyrrhic

beignet

In the Quarterfinals, later that day, the 90 spellers were whittled down to 45, due to such words as . . .

anxiolytic
brevicaudate
palingenesis
majuscule
heliophobous
quaquaversal
hippotigrine

Today, (Friday) the spellers competed in the semifinals for a place in the championship rounds of the National Spelling Bee. Three rounds were broadcast live on ESPN. Here are some pictures of the setup:

Over the course of three rounds, the 45 became 12. One five-year repeater, stunned the entire audience when he mispelled secernent. He became a favorite over the years, and many expected him to win this year. He received a standing ovation from the crowd. The semifinals were very exciting to watch. Here are some of the words from the Semifinals:

schnecke
pyelonephritis
trophallactic
bulbul
cryptococcusis
sciuromorph
solidungulate
Krummholz

Tonight, the Championship Finals will air live on ABC at 8:00 P.M.