DALLAS - A sixth grader from the Austin area is the only Texan among the finalists in this year’s Scripps National Spelling Bee.
So far, 12-year-old Tarini Nandakumar has spelled every word correctly. She’s also answered new vocabulary questions correctly to advance to the championship round.
Nandakumar is one of 11 spellers still competing.
This is her third time in the competition. She tied for 16th place in 2021 and tied for 49th place in 2022.
2 North Texas spelling bee contestants advance to quarterfinals
Two North Texans reached the quarterfinal round of the Scripps National Spelling Bee.
Two spellers from North Texas – 10-year-old Brihasa Veduru from Keller and 11-year-old Faizan Zaki from Allen – were eliminated in the quarterfinal and semifinal rounds respectively.
The 2023 spelling bee champion will be crowned Thursday night near Washington D.C.