By Florida Catholic staff - Florida Catholic
Photographer: COURTESY PHOTO
Ashley Zelaya (left), a graduate of Sts. Peter and Paul School, poses with her competitors Kiara Rivas-Vasquez and Andres Arreola. The students are the top three spellers in the National Spanish Spelling Bee.
Photographer: COURTESY PHOTO
Ashley Zelaya steps up to the microphone as she competes at the National Spanish Spelling Bee in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Ashley, a graduate of Sts. Peter and Paul School, represented Miami and placed third in the competition.
Ashley Zelaya, the local Spanish Spelling Bee champ from Sts. Peter and Paul School in Miami, travelled to Albuquerque, New Mexico in July to compete at the fifth annual Santillana National Spanish Spelling Bee.
Ashley had earned the right to compete nationally after placing first at the Archdiocesan Spanish Spelling Bee held Feb. 6. It also happened to be the second time she competed at the national level. Even so, Ashley faced competition from 26 other student champs, in grades four through eight, representing Oregon, California, Colorado, New Mexico, Texas, Massachusetts, Virginia and Florida.
To prepare, students were given a list of more than 2,300 Spanish words to study. What makes the contest difficult is that the words must be spelled not only correctly but also include the diacritical marks of the Spanish language, such as accents, tildes, and dieresis.
After three hours, eight out of 26 spellers remained in the competition, among them Ashley. As the number of competitors dwindled, the technicality and complexity of the words increased. Ashley was one of three remaining before she misspelled the word "rehervir." Nevertheless, she earned a third place win.
Andres Arreola, last year's champion from Sunland, New Mexico, repeated history as the 2015 National Spanish Spelling Bee champ. Ashley, who graduated from Sts. Peter and Paul in June, will now continue her Spanish studies at Immaculata La Salle High School in Miami.
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