Spelling is a family affair for Upshur County Spelling Bee champ Lila Wright
The winner of Wednesday’s Upshur County Spelling Bee, Lila Wright, works to spell the winning words, ‘crayon’ and ‘cowlick.’ Lila said she is excited to ‘bee’ the top speller. Lila said she comes from a spelling family – her brother won the Upshur County Spelling Bee two times when he was younger and mom, Daya and her team have been top spellers at the Upshur County Community Spelling Bee for the last two years. Lila is in sixth grade at Buckhannon-Upshur Middle School.
Beth Christian Broschart
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TENNERTON — The sixth-grade winner of Wednesday’s 32nd annual Upshur County Bee knows a thing or two about words.
Lila Wright, who correctly spelled the words ‘crayon’ and ‘cowlick’ to capture the winning title said her older brother won the spelling bee twice when he was younger. In fact, her mom, Daya Wright, and her team ‘Highway to Spell’ have claimed the top spot in the Upshur County Arts Alliance’s now-annual adult spelling bee for the past two years.
The adult spelling bee is set for 7 p.m. tonight, Friday, Jan. 24 and the Event Center at Brushy Fork. Will Highway to Spell dominate the field for the third consecutive year? That’s yet to be determined, but s-t-a-y t-u-n-e-d.
In the meantime, Wednesday’s top five spellers (plus one alternate) will advance on to the regional spelling bee in March at Fairmont State University.
The winners and an alternate will go on to represent Upshur County at the regional spelling bee held in March at Fairmont State University. Those spellers who ‘buzzed’ to the top include first place, Lila Wright, sixth grade, B-UMS; second place, Kari Gay, eighth grade, B-UMS; third place, Gracelynn Rowan, fifth grade, Washington District; fourth place, Kaylee Cornell, eighth grade, B-UMS; fifth place Rebecca Pastorius, fifth grade, Union; and alternate Jackson Shepherd, fourth grade, Union (not pictured). Top spellers from Upshur County elementary and middle schools spelled their way to victory on Wednesday evening at Buckhannon-Upshur High School. The top 20 spellers in the 32nd Annual Upshur County Spelling Bee, sponsored by Upshur County Schools, The Record Delta and the Rotary Club of Buckhannon-Upshur include fourth-graders Landon Cole of Buckhannon Academy, Kenton Stump of French Creek, Kaidin Wagner of Hodgesville, Samuel Beckner of Rock Cave, Bella Snyder of Tennerton, Jackson Shepherd of Union and Matthew Hawkins of Washington District. Fifth-grade spellers in Wednesday’s competition include Bailee Lowther of Buckhannon Academy, Sylas Knight of French Creek, Brooks Triplett of Hodgesville, Kallie Perry of Rock Cave, Kaleb Kowalkoski of Tennerton, Rebecca Pastorius of Union and Gracelynn Rowan of Washington District. Buckhannon-Upshur Middle School spellers include Domenick Castillo and Lila Wright, sixth grade; Amelia Griffith and Braiden McKisic, seventh grade; and Kaylee Cornell and Kari Gay, eighth grade. Participant Amelia Griffith, a seventh-grader at Buckhannon-Upshur Middle School, selects her number as she registers. Bee organizer Cynthia Nesselroade, Upshur County Schools Nutrition Director, welcomes the 20 spellers. Each Upshur County elementary school sent their winners to compete for the top five spots, plus one alternate, at the regional spelling bee which will take place in March at Fairmont State University.
Clifford Edward “Ace” Blagg, 63, of Buckhannon, WV, went to heaven on March 3, 2026, from St. Joseph’s Hospital. He was a tree surgeon who loved the outdoors and cherished time with family and friends.
Buckhannon-Upshur finished eighth in the final regular-season WVSACA Class AAAA coaches’ poll after a 1-1 week, falling by one to No. 2 Morgantown before beating rival Lewis County. The Bucs are 14-8 and open South Regional Tournament play Friday as the No.
Frostburg State’s Trey Simmons was voted MEC Player of the Year after leading the league at 23.9 points per game, while Concord’s Boubacar Djigo earned Defensive Player of the Year.
Wesleyan softball opened its Space Coast Tournament spring break trip by splitting four games in Melbourne, Fla., beating Walsh and Roosevelt while falling to Tiffin and Jamestown.
West Virginia Wesleyan earned its first win with a 5–2 road victory over Greensboro, powered by Nyah Elmer’s hat trick and Wiktoria Walska’s two goals. Ella Gomez made eight saves as the Lady Bobcats forced 37 turnovers and held Greensboro to one goal through three quarters.
Teresa Mason, a Buckhannon pastel artist known for animal portraits, recently earned two national honors from Dakota Pastels for her painting “Good Boy!” The work was also featured in Pastel Journal.
