Delco Girl Competing In Scripps National Spelling Bee

ASTON, PA — The 92nd annual Scripps National Spelling Bee is nearly here and one Delaware County whiz kid is planning to compete this year. More than 560 children from all 50 states will vie for a shot at becoming the nation’s preeminent speller.

Aston's Phoebe Smith is competing in the competition.

Smith, 13, will be Speller No. 375.

She is an eighth grade student at Northley Middle School and is sponsored by the Delaware County Intermediate Unit.

Smith tied for 189th place in 2017 and in 2018 she tied for 10th place.

Preliminary multiple-choice tests will be held Monday, May 27. Onstage spelling competitions will be held all day the following Tuesday and Wednesday, with finalists competing Thursday, May 30. No more than 50 spellers will advance to the finals Thursday.

Interested viewers can watch every word Wednesday on the Watch ESPN app. On Thursday, finalists will begin spelling on stage at 10 a.m. Eastern Time and this part of the competition will air live on ESPN 2. After the field is narrowed down to roughly a dozen finalists, ESPN will air the spelling bee finals live Thursday night.

The event will be held at the Gaylord National Resort and Convention Center in National Harbor, Maryland. The champion will receive a $50,000 prize.

Patch national staffer Dan Hampton contributed to this report.