Two Houston Boys Make Deep Run At Scripps National Spelling Bee

NATIONAL HARBOR, MD — Two Houston area middle school students made a deep run into the final rounds of the 90th Scripps National Spelling Bee Thursday evening.

Shourav Dasari of The Woodlands came in fourth place, and Raksheet Kota of Katy tied for fifth, with both out-spelling more than 250 word-masters in their quest to be the best. (Want to get daily updates about traffic news and other events going on in your area? Sign up for the free Houston Patch morning newsletter.)

Kota, 14, was unable to spell "oedemerid,” knocking him out of the contest, the Houston Chronicle reported.

Desari, 14, who was following in his big sister’s footsteps, made it to the final four, before falling out of the running.

Regardless, it wasn’t a bad night for the boys who competed in their final spelling bee event.

Since 1925 Texas has had more winners of the contest than any other state in the U.S, according to KPRC.

In fact, 11 Texans have won the contest, with two of those coming from Houston.

In 1966, Houstonian Robert Wake was the first fro the Bayou City to win the contest, but it would be 50 years before it happened again, with Nihar Janga taking the spelling bee crown in 2016.

Image: Scripps National Spelling Bee via Flickr

Follow Us On Facebook: Engage with your neighbors in the Metro Houston area and keep up with the talk of the day by liking one of our Facebook pages. Houston / Midtown Houston / Houston Heights / Galleria - River Oaks / Bellaire / Meyerland / Humble-Kingwood / Conroe-Montgomery County / Sugar Land / Pasadena / The Woodlands / Clear Lake