The winner and the runner-up of the Badger State Spelling Bee know how they’re spending the next month: reading the dictionary.
2025 Badger State Spelling Bee champion Jacob Martonito, of Classical Charter School in Appleton, right, and runner-up Ethan Robert, of Eisenhower Middle School in New Berlin, left, react after realizing they will represent Wisconsin at the upcoming Scripps National Spelling Bee in National Harbor, Maryland, next month. The two tied for third with one another in last year's bee.
People are also reading…
It took ten rounds of spelling and vocabulary tests, but 53 spellers were eventually whittled down to two over the span of three hours on Saturday.
Family members of 2025 Badger State Spelling Bee contestants capture photos of the event from the audience.
Contestants in the 2025 Badger State Spelling Bee gather on the stage of the Mitby Theater. The students' anxiety on the stage was palpable before the bee started, as legs bounced and hands lay clenched in laps.
From left, contestants Agasthya Bollam, Sandie Go and eventual Badger State Spelling Bee runner-up Ethan Robert line up to be told their words. Bollam was eliminated in the fourth round, which featured correctly picking word definitions, and Go was eliminated in round six over the word "pekoe," which is a type of tea.
Badger State Spelling Bee contestant Naomi Tost, of Lake Geneva Middle School, writes out a word on her arm as she spells aloud to the judges. Tost was eliminated in the second round on the word "cynicism."
Contestants in the 2025 Badger State Spelling Bee gather on the stage of the Mitby Theater at Madison College. After about an hour and 45 minutes of spelling, about half of the spellers were still standing in the competition.
Late-round contestants in the 2025 Badger State Spelling Bee deposit their number cards after not advancing to the final competition during the event at Madison College. After misspelling words, they all stayed on the stage, hoping that their peers would also misspell words, allowing them to come back for another shot at the title.
2025 Badger State Spelling Bee contestant Raima Kalluvila of Richfield Middle School in Richfield, Wis. waits for her word. Kalluvila was eliminated in the third round.
2025 Badger State Spelling Bee champion Jacob Martonito of Classical Charter School in Appleton visualizes the spelling of a word during the competition at Madison College. One word he found particularly challenging was "brool," as it wasn't on the traditional spelling list.
2025 Badger State Spelling Bee champion Jacob Martonito of Classical Charter School in Appleton, center, and runner-up Ethan Robert of Eisenhower Middle School in New Berlin, right, are awarded trophies by spelling bee coordinator Jane McMahon following the event at Madison College. The two tied last year for third place and were hoping to take away a win at this year's bee.
Photos: 2025 Badger State Spelling Bee
Contestants in the 2025 Badger State Spelling Bee gather on the stage of the Mitby Theater. The students' anxiety on the stage was palpable before the bee started, as legs bounced and hands lay clenched in laps.
2025 Badger State Spelling Bee champion Jacob Martonito, of Classical Charter School in Appleton, right, and runner-up Ethan Robert, of Eisenhower Middle School in New Berlin, left, react after realizing they will represent Wisconsin at the upcoming Scripps National Spelling Bee in National Harbor, Maryland, next month. The two tied for third with one another in last year's bee.
It took ten rounds of spelling and vocabulary tests, but 53 spellers were eventually whittled down to two over the span of three hours on Saturday.
Family members of 2025 Badger State Spelling Bee contestants capture photos of the event from the audience.
From left, contestants Agasthya Bollam, Sandie Go and eventual Badger State Spelling Bee runner-up Ethan Robert line up to be told their words. Bollam was eliminated in the fourth round, which featured correctly picking word definitions, and Go was eliminated in round six over the word "pekoe," which is a type of tea.
Badger State Spelling Bee contestant Naomi Tost, of Lake Geneva Middle School, writes out a word on her arm as she spells aloud to the judges. Tost was eliminated in the second round on the word "cynicism."
Contestants in the 2025 Badger State Spelling Bee gather on the stage of the Mitby Theater at Madison College. After about an hour and 45 minutes of spelling, about half of the spellers were still standing in the competition.
Trophies await the winners of the 2025 Badger State Spelling Bee at Madison College. The trophies went to two spellers, Jacob Martonito and Ethan Robert, who narrowly missed getting the trophies the year before as they tied for third, and were back this year hoping to take them home.
Late-round contestants in the 2025 Badger State Spelling Bee deposit their number cards after not advancing to the final competition during the event at Madison College. After misspelling words, they all stayed on the stage, hoping that their peers would also misspell words, allowing them to come back for another shot at the title.
2025 Badger State Spelling Bee contestant Raima Kalluvila of Richfield Middle School in Richfield, Wis. waits for her word. Kalluvila was eliminated in the third round.
2025 Badger State Spelling Bee contestant Ashan Kallem of North Middle School in Menomonee Falls, Wis. visualizes the spelling of a word on his number card. Many contestants opted to use the back of their number cards, their palms or their arms to visually spell out the words as they orated them aloud.
2025 Badger State Spelling Bee pronouncer Brad Williams delivers a word to a contestant during the event at Madison College. Williams has been the announcer for the bee for 40 years.
2025 Badger State Spelling Bee champion Jacob Martonito of Classical Charter School in Appleton visualizes the spelling of a word during the competition at Madison College. One word he found particularly challenging was "brool," as it wasn't on the traditional spelling list.
Family members of 2025 Badger State Spelling Bee champion Jacob Martonito of Classical Charter School in Appleton, Wis. celebrate his win during the competition at Madison College. From left are his grandmother, Liwayway Martonito, his parents, Jayzon and Vera, and his sisters, Emily and Lillian. The family was hoping Jacob would improve on his top-five finish from the year prior.
2025 Badger State Spelling Bee champion Jacob Martonito of Classical Charter School in Appleton, center, and runner-up Ethan Robert of Eisenhower Middle School in New Berlin, right, are awarded trophies by spelling bee coordinator Jane McMahon following the event at Madison College. The two tied last year for third place and were hoping to take away a win at this year's bee.
