Henley student spells his way to national bee

One by one, the 26 contestants at Saturday’s regional spelling bee left the stage when the sound of a bell told them they had missed a word.

Eric Xu, an eighth-grader from Joseph T. Henley Middle School in Albemarle County, was headed back to his place onstage after spelling “amicable,” when he heard the dreaded ding. He stopped in his tracks and threw the judges a confused look. The judge in charge of the bell quickly waved off the false alarm, and Xu stayed on stage to fight another round.

Nineteen rounds later, he was the last speller standing. “Bolshevik” was the only word left between him and a trip to compete in the Scripps National Spelling Bee in Washington, D.C.

Did he know it?

“Yes, I did,” said Xu. “I remember studying that very well and I was glad it came up.”

The 14-year-old correctly spelled the word, a noun meaning a member of the Communist faction that came to power in the Russian Revolution of 1917, without asking a single question about its definition or roots.

After 37 rounds, Xu stood at the head the class of top spellers from across Central Virginia who converged on the Monticello High School auditorium Saturday to compete in the bee.

His road to victory wasn’t as easy as the championship word.

Eighth-graders Sarah Traylor, a homeschooler from Augusta County, and Rowyn Brunner of Tandem Friends School, were locked in a three-way battle with Xu for 18 rounds. Brunner was tripped up by “inselberg,” meaning an isolated mountain rising from an even plain. Traylor held on for another five rounds before going out on “coloratura,” meaning brilliant runs or trills used to display a singer’s skill.

“I was kind of nervous, because you could tell that they really knew their stuff,” Xu said.

The regional competition was open to students from Charlottesville, Staunton and Waynesboro as well as the counties of Albemarle, Augusta, Greene and Fluvanna. The bee was sponsored by The Daily Progress, the News-Virginian, NBC29, Better Living Inc., New Dominion Bookshop, Teacher’s Edition, Evergreen Lawn Care and Hill & Wood Funeral Services.

The pronouncer was Dr. David Larrick, a language expert who teaches Latin at Piedmont Virginia Community College. The judges were Caroline Emerson of the United Way-Thomas Jefferson Area, Jane Norris of The Daily Progress and André Luck, also of PVCC.

For his first-place victory, Xu will receive a paid trip to the national bee June 1-2, $240 in savings bond and gift cards, a copy of Webster’s Third New International Dictionary and a one-year subscription to Encyclopedia Britannica Online.

Xu said he studied two hours a day for the last six weeks to prepare.

“This is my last chance and I really want to win the nationals,” said Xu.

Proud father Zhiyuan Xu, a research assistant professor in gamma knife neurosurgery at UVa, said Eric’s spelling skill comes from his love of reading across a broad range of subjects.

“The only thing we do is just tell Eric it’s lunchtime, it’s dinnertime,” said Xu. “He’ll lock the door and lock himself in his room, reading a lot of things. I don’t know how he prepared, but we didn’t do anything.”

When asked what he’ll do to prepare for the national competition, Xu hoisted one of his prizes.

“Well, I guess I’ll have to read this dictionary,” he said.