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It was over 10 minutes after it began - Chris Breault, a sixth-grader at Eisenhower Elementary School, was crowned the 1999 Kosciusko County Spelling Bee champion.
The contest between Breault and Joshua Nifong, eighth-grader from Triton Junior-Senior High School, lasted eight rounds, with both boys missing some words and then correctly spelling others. The final competition was broadcast live on WRSW AM and FM Wednesday.
The spellers faced some tough words, with Nifong's opening round requiring him to spell "geodesy." In the second round, Breault spelled "redolent" incorrectly, and the word went to Nifong, who also spelled it incorrectly.
The students breezed through the next couple rounds, spelling such words as "persuasively" and "juggernaut."
In the sixth round, both boys misspelled "ombrometer," and in the seventh round, Nifong missed "erg" and Breault spelled it correctly.
Finally, Breault correctly spelled "mutable," winning the match and the county championship.
He will represent Kosciusko County this spring at the regional spelling bee in Fort Wayne.
Breault, the son of Mike and Mary Breault of Warsaw, won the elementary spelling bee Monday against Jason Seaberg, a sixth-grader from Madison Elementary.
Nifong, the son of Everett and Bobbi Nifong of Etna Green, bested Ashley Wireman in the middle school bee Tuesday.
Both Breault and Nifong received $2,500 Richard Long scholarships, which will be held for them until they graduate from high school. Breault also received a plaque, and each boy got a WRSW hat for being on the radio.
