WASHINGTON, D.C. – Lea Davis, the Oxford eighth grader representing our region in the National Spelling Bee, made it through the third round of competition but missed the cut for the semifinals by just two points.

“I’m very, very proud of her,” said Margaret Davis, mother of the 13-year old. She and her husband David accompanied their daughter to the nations capitol for the week of events surrounding the competition.

In round one’s written exam on Tuesday, each of the 293 contestants were given 50 words to spell. 25 of those words counted toward their preliminary score. Davis scored 20 out of the 25 points possible in the round.

Some of the words were challenging, Davis said. The list included words such as “onychorrhexis,” “Micawber,” “quomodo.” One she struggled with was the Latin word “civitas.”

“I spelled that one wrong,” she admitted.

On Wednesday, spellers competed on stage in the second and third rounds of the bee. Since the rounds were broadcast live on ESPN360.com, the stage was filled with lights and cameras, which made the competition even more challenging.

“It’s really overwhelming being onstage with all of the cameras,” Davis reported, describing a camera boom which swung across the stage among the spellers.