Brogue, Osprey, Drumlin, Gastronome, Eucalyptus, Rapscallion, Lithophone.

These are a handful of words that secured Spokane Valley’s Gabriel Aguirre one of 243 spots in the upcoming Scripps National Spelling Bee in D.C. on Wednesday and Thursday.

The 11-year-old home-school student finished runner-up in the Inland Northwest Spelling Bee, behind Sandpoint’s 14-year-old Andrew Ford, also home-schooled and also headed to D.C. Competition will be fierce as ever as 14-year-old Navtaj Singh, of Pullman, is competing for the fourth straight year, his final year of eligibility. His best finish was in 2023, when he tied for 12th place.

Gabriel misspelled the word “Sobersides,” while Andrew got it correct in their 12th round at the qualifying contest hosted at North Idaho College.

Asked if he ha

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