Bruhat Soma spelled 29 out of 30 words correctly in Scripps’ second-ever spell-off, in which competitors have 90 seconds to spell as many words given to them as possible.

Dev Shah won by correctly spelling "psammophile," a noun that is used to describe animals and plants that prefer to live in sandy soil environments

Surya Kapu, 13, misspelled "leucovorin" — a medicine used to counteract the side effects of a cancer drug. His family said that Scripps omitted details when he asked a question about the word's roots.

Surya Kapu, 13, misspelled "leucovorin" — a medicine used to counteract the side effects of a cancer drug. His family said that Scripps omitted details when he asked a question about the word's roots.

Spellers were greeted with a new preliminary-round format that gave them no time to get comfortable. They had to get through three words in one turn at the microphone to continue in the bee.

Zaila Avant-garde, 14, from Harvey, La., breezed to the championship on Thursday night. The only previous Black winner was Jody-Anne Maxwell of Jamaica, the only champ from outside the United States.