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Eleven Instant Impact Global Prep school students voluntarily participated in a Spelling Bee on Friday morning and were given certificates for their hard word. (Sabrina Robertson | The Natchez Democrat)

From left, Jaron Davis placed first, Ariel Grinnell placed second and Ch'yloe McKeel placed third overall in a Spelling Bee on Friday morning at Instant Impact Global Prep school. (Sabrina Robertson | The Natchez Democrat)

Jaron Davis placed first overall after a flawless performance. (Sabrina Robertson | The Natchez Democrat)

Ariel Grinnell looks up at the ceiling to concentrate during the Spelling Bee on Friday. (Sabrina Robertson | The Natchez Democrat)

Ch’yloe McKeel bounced back to place third overall at a Spelling Bee on Friday. (Sabrina Robertson | The Natchez Democrat)

NATCHEZ — Second-graders Jaron Davis and Ariel Grinnell and third-grader Ch’yloe McKeel were the three finalists in a Spelling Bee on Friday morning at Instant Impact Global Prep School and as such will be allowed to compete at a regional bee. 

But that almost wasn’t the case.

“Your word is ‘cling,’” announced Liz Blalock from the judges’ table. 

McKeel said, “Clean, C-L-E-A-N.”

Her face remained composed when one of the judges said, “That’s incorrect,” and as she took her seat. 

The round continued without pause as she sat silently in her chair. Grinnell correctly spelled the word “highway,” looking up at the ceiling to concentrate. Another student incorrectly spelled the word “squeeze,” hesitating after the letter “Q.” The room kept quiet during each speller’s turn and the students who lost a round sat down quietly without another sound.

At the end of the second round, Blalock pointed out, “I’ve made an error. I was supposed to give the correct spelling of the word after each word that was spelled incorrectly.”

Blalock explained that the word was “cling” and not “clean.” Because of the error, the judges allowed McKeel to return to the competition for the final round. She placed third overall.

Grinnell placed second overall and Jaron Davis placed first overall after a flawless performance. 

He also correctly spelled the word “groves” for the championship round, never pausing as he called out “G-R-O-V-E-S. Groves.”

Participation in the Spelling Bee was optional and each of the 11 voluntary participants spent countless hours studying and preparing for the competition.

For that reason, all 11 participants were handed a certificate for their hard work.

While only the organizer, judges, announcer and the record keeper sat in the room with the students, they knew their parents were watching proudly via Zoom from another room down the hall to ensure the competition was fair.

Davis, who kept a cool face throughout the competition, let himself smile just a little when he’d won. As the students exited the room, applause could be heard from their families and teachers down the hall.

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