LOMBARD – Sacred Heart Elementary School hosted its sixth annual schoolwide spelling bee Jan. 19 in Lombard.

First place went to fifth-grader Aarthi Mallavarpu, who was excited to advance to the DuPage County Private School Spelling Bee in mid-February, the news release stated.

The elementary level participants included Audrey Beals (third grade), Elijah Pina (third), Katelyn Carnowski (fourth), Ella Herrmann (fourth), Aarthi Mallavarpu (fifth) and Josua Pina (fifth).

Middle school-level participants included sixth-graders Gwen Jones and Sophia Sullivan, who was out sick for the competition and replaced by runner-up Elise Heneghan (sixth). The other competitors were Cynthia Bruntz (seventh), Zachary Luckowych (seventh), Emmanuel Corpuz (eighth) and Fiona Slagter (eighth).

Each student successfully advanced through their classroom spelling bees to participate in the schoolwide event, working hard to study hundreds of words in preparation for the contest, according to the release. Family and friends joined the entire school to show their support for the enrichment program at Sacred Heart School.