The second of two Nevada representatives in the 2026 Scripps National Spelling Bee being held in Washington was knocked out in the third round of the quarterfinals on Wednesday.
Priya Konduru, 14, a recent eighth grader at Davidson Academy in Reno, finished in a tie for 55th place out of 247 spellers competing.
Konduru started the quarterfinals by correctly spelling “monocyte” (the largest type of white blood cell) and then correctly defining “comeuppance” (a deserved penalty) in the second round.
She was eliminated in the third round of the quarterfinals when she misspelled “gravamen” (a legal term referring to the core issue, essential element or substantial part of a grievance or lawsuit). She spelled it “gravamin.”
Nevada’s other representiave, Sophia Garcia, 14, a recent eighth grader at Our Lady of Las Vegas, was eliminated in the second round of the three-round preliminary competition on Tuesday.
Konduru and Garcia were sponsored by the Public Education Foundation.
