Columbiana County 2026 Spelling Bee Champion Caitlin Clonch makes her appearance at the Scripps National Spelling Bee Tuesday afternoon. The Crestview eighth grader missed on the word “triduum.” (Photo by Mary Ann Greier)

LISBON — Crestview eighth grader Caitlin Clonch ended her turn at the Scripps National Spelling Bee on the word “triduum” on Tuesday, but now gets to spend the rest of the week touring D.C. having fun and just relaxing.

“I want to go see everything,” she said.

This was her first trip to Washington and also her first time representing Columbiana County at such a high level, as the 2026 Columbiana County Spelling Bee Champion, joining 247 other spellers from all 50 states, the U.S. territories and several other countries.

“It’s a really, really scary moment. It’s a lot of internally freaking out, ‘what if I miss this?'” she said of her time on the national stage.

The word she misspelled, “triduum,” is a Latin word for three days, most commonly known as the Easter Triduum, representing the passion, death and resurrection of Jesus beginning the evening of Holy Thursday and ending Easter Sunday evening.

Clonch said she did not know the word.

She was one of 52 spellers who faltered in the first round, which required each speller to orally spell the word given by the pronouncer. In round two, the vocabulary round, 28 spellers were eliminated, with 167 advancing to take the round three test, which was worth 30 points for spelling 24 words and answering six multiple-choice vocabulary questions.

Today the quarterfinals take place from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m., airing live on Scripps Sports on spellingbee.com. The semifinals take place from 8 to 10 p.m. today on Ion. The finals air live from 8 to 10 p.m. Thursday on Ion.

Caitlin, 14, is accompanied by her mom, Cassandra, and her 13-year-old sister, Caleigh. Her brothers Cade, 10, and Colt, 9, and dad, Christopher, were cheering her on from home.

An animal lover who has a pet bold jumping spider named Glunchette, an Anatolian shepherd named Tonka, and a couple of ducks and lots of chickens, Caitlin was excited talking about a spelling bee staffer she met with a medical alert service dog named Kage. Sharisse Santos is an administrative assistant and was helping with the spellers while they were in line to go on stage.

Caitlin asked if it was okay to pet the dog, but couldn’t since Kage was on duty, but Santos gave her a card with a photo of Kage wearing a yellow bandana with bees on it as a souvenir. On their day of arrival on Sunday, they attended a welcome for the spellers and their families and on Monday, Cassandra said Caitlin met some fellow spellers during a game called Rule the Word when they were divided into teams and worked together through puzzles.

They also heard a presentation by Peter Sokolowski, chief editor of Merriam Webster who discussed lexicography and a fun presentation by the Academy of Noise on beat boxing. Cassandra said they ate at the Hard Rock Cafe, which is next door to the historic Ford’s Theatre where President Abraham Lincoln was shot. They didn’t get to go inside but did visit the Ford’s Theatre Center for Education & Leadership across the street and saw a 34-foot tall tower of books. The center is next to the Petersen House where Lincoln passed away after being taken there from the theatre. They also made commemorative smashed pennies there. Pennies, which feature Lincoln’s profile, are no longer being made.

Upon arrival at the bee, each speller received a swag bag full of goodies, including a free T-shirt. Caitlin also said they bought some bee plushies.

Cassandra said they have a tour pass good for 72 hours so they can catch a ride to the many historic monuments for their touring adventure. Caitlin said there are a bunch of theaters, too, to see tons of movies. She wants to see the movie “Backrooms.”

While waiting in line for the competition, she met another speller who was from Montana.

Caitlin said she’s going to attend the Bee Week Bash on Friday.

The competition is at DAR Constitution Hall, which is a national historic landmark building, with spellers staying at the JW Marriott, where there are lots of activities for them.

Her mom was excited for her and got to cheer her on from the second row, using her phone to take some great photos of her waiting in her seat on stage and then standing at the microphone. Caitlin laughed, saying she saw her mom lifting her phone.

“I couldn’t be more proud! She’s represented herself, her county and her school in honorable fashion,” Cassandra said.

The trip was sponsored by the Morning Journal, Salem News and The Review. The three Columbiana County newspapers co-sponsor the county bee with the county Educational Service Center.

All spellers receive a prize package that includes Bee souvenirs and an official certificate of participation, along with a one-year subscription to Merriam-Webster Unabridged Online, a one-year subscription to Encyclopedia Britannica Online Premium, a one-year subscription to News-O-Matic for her school and two one-day admission tickets to the Kennedy Space Center Visitors Complex.