PLAINFIELD – After a marathon competition that went to 43 rounds, Homer Junior High School eighth-grader Meghana Kamineni repeated as Will County Spelling Bee champion Thursday.

Kamineni won with the word “bolshevik,” after she spelled “barukhzy” in the 42nd round to set up her victory.

“I’m just really relieved I won,” said Kamineni, who qualifies for the Scripps National Spelling Bee in Washington, D.C. “I just kept imagining winning, and I got through it.”

Kamineni had to battle 14 rounds with Brooks Middle School eighth-grader Christopher Bavaro, who fell in the 42nd round on the word “dachshund” and got second place.

The spelling bee, organized by the Will County Regional Office of Education and sponsored by ComEd and Lewis University, was held at Troy Middle School and lasted nearly three and a half hours, making it the longest spelling bee Will County Regional Superintendent Shawn Walsh has ever seen.

Before the bee, several parents were nervous, but happy their kids made it to the Will County round.

Donna Cook was nervous for her son, Tom, a seventh-grader at Martino Junior High School in New Lenox. But she described him as a competitor.

“I want him to win, but I just want him to have fun and enjoy it,” Cook said. Parents of students were nervous for their contestants, but made sure

Derek Blaszkiewicz was taking video of his son, St. Dennis, seventh-grader Daniel Blaszkiewicz.

“I had an older son here last year, so I know what to expect,” Blaszkiewicz said. “You get used to it, but it’s still exciting.”

U.S. Rep. Bill Foster, D-Naperville, made an appearance after the first round, showing participants his voting card.

“Even those who don’t win, what you are doing is setting yourself up for accomplishments in the future,” Foster said.

The field of 51 spellers were cut in half after round three. Third place went to Potter’s Hand School seventh-grader Haley Polk.

All participants received $5 gift cards to Barnes & Noble, and the top three winners received a Kindle Fire and gift certificates.

Kamineni and Bavaro also received premium edition Merriam-Webster dictionaries.

Words throughout the rounds

Round 1: fiesta
Round 5: graffiti
Round 14: chassis
Round 17: commensurate
Round 21: hemerocallis
Round 29: edelweiss
Round 33: foggara
Round 38: bobbejaan
Round 41: vernacular
Round 43: bolshevik