Associated Press TAKES THE STAGE — Francis Kissinger of Steubenville spells during Tuesday's opening round of the Scripps National Spelling Bee. Kissinger, a fifth-grader at Bishop John King Mussio Elementary School, was eliminated in the third round of the competition.

WASHINGTON, D.C. — The quest for the Scripps National Spelling Bee championship has come to an end for a local speller.

Francis Kissinger advanced through the first two rounds of the competition on Tuesday before being eliminated in the third round.

The son of Brian and Courtney Kissinger of Steubenville was one of 72 spellers eliminated in that round.

Kissinger correctly spelled “courgette,” which is the British term for zucchini, in the first round.

In the second round, which was a multiple-choice vocabulary round, he correctly identified hangar as a place for housing and repairing aircraft.

He said he was ready for the challenge when it came his turn to spell.

“At first, when we watched the first group of spellers at the podium, I was intimidated because they seemed to be getting really difficult words,” Kissinger said Wednesday. “As it got closer to my time to spell onstage, I felt more confident because I was hearing more words that I knew.”

He was not able to get past the third round, which consisted of a 30-question written test divided into spelling and vocabulary. A speller received one point for each of the 24 words spelled correctly in the spelling section and one point for each of the six questions answered correctly in the multiple-choice vocabulary section. The minimum score to advance was 13 points.

A fifth-grader at Bishop John King Mussio Elementary School, Kissinger was one of the youngest spellers in the national bee. He earned his trip to Washington by winning the Jefferson-Harrison County Regional Spelling Bee presented by the Herald-Star on March 14. The regional bee and the local spelling bee program are coordinated through the Jefferson County Educational Service Center.

He said Bee Week activities, centered on the J.W. Marriott hotel and the DAR Constitution Hall, have been enjoyable.

“The experience has been a lot of fun,” Kissinger said. “I’ve been able to meet new friends, and Scripps set up a hangout room for us with games like air hockey and foosball. It’s been especially fun cheering for the other spellers, my new friends, as they take their turns onstage.”

His father agreed.

“It’s been an amazing experience,” Brian Kissinger said.

The bee schedule is designed to allow the participants and their families to enjoy time exploring Washington and taking in the sights. Kissinger said that has been a fun part of the trip.

“We traveled down a few days early to visit some museums,” Francis Kissinger said. “During the competition days, we’ve mostly stayed in the hotel and the building where the spelling bee is happening. For meals, my dad and I have had all sorts of food, and that’s been fun as well.”

Competition Wednesday included the quarterfinals and semifinals. The finals are scheduled to begin at 8 p.m. today. They can be watched live on ION and at spellingbee.com.

Kissinger said he’s excited to see the final competition firsthand.

“We’ll be watching in person,” he added.

At 11 years of age, Kissinger will have several years of eligibility left to qualify for future national bees. And that’s something he’s looking forward to.

“Absolutely,” he said. “As a fifth-grader, I have three more years to compete, so I’m hoping to return again to the National Spelling Bee. I want to thank my parents, my friends at school and the Herald-Star for making this trip possible.”