Fort White 8th grader advances to quarterfinals of National Spelling Bee

Tucker Ayers of Fort White Middle School advanced past the third round of the competition on Tuesday
Published: May 27, 2026 at 2:30 AM EDT

FORT WHITE, Fla. (WCJB) - An 8th grader from fort white will compete in the quarterfinals of the national spelling bee in Washington DC Wednesday morning.

Tucker Ayers of Fort White Middle School advanced past the third round of the competition on Tuesday, and it consisted of a written test.

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So far, 150 of the 247 contestants have been eliminated.

Tucker correctly spelled “Zemi” and named a correct synonym for the word “Assiduous”.

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