MADISON — After more than 300 words, defending champion, Martius Bautista, a fifth grader at Edgewood Campus School, Madison, won the 2015 All-City Spelling Bee by outspelling 46 other spellers.
The event was held at the Mitby Theater on the Madison College campus.
The first word in the final round was “abhorrently,” which Bautista spelled correctly, and he went on to win the All-City Spelling Bee by spelling “lipogram.”
There are two major changes to the spelling bee in recent years. Vocabulary was added to the competition a few years ago, and for the first time this year, the Wisconsin State Journal, sponsor of the Badger State Spelling Bee, will send the top three student spellers to the Scripps National Spelling Bee in Washington, D.C.The Badger State Spelling Bee will be held March 28 at the Mitby Theater on the Madison College campus. The top 48 spellers from the 13 district bees in Wisconsin will compete to advance to the final Bee in Washington, D.C.
“Edgewood Campus School is very proud of our two-time winner. We wish Martius good luck and good spelling at the Badger State Spelling Bee,” said Sr. Kathleen Malone, president and principal of Edgewood Campus School.
Martius is the son of Ryndon and Shiela Bautista of Janesville.
This year there were 21 girls and 26 boys competing in the spelling bee. They were invited to participate after winning spelling bees at their schools.
Other Catholic school competitors included: Regan Banaszak, St. Maria Goretti School; Suzannah Kirchner, Blessed Sacrament School; John Marsland, St. Ambrose Academy; Anthony Pope, St. James School; Gen Nagamatsu, Our Lady Queen of Peace School; and Ben Probst, St. Dennis School. Aidan Howard also represented Holy Family Homeschoolers.