The Southgate Gators were tenacious spellers, but in the end only one student could win Southgate Elementary School’s annual Spelling Bee.

Fifth-grader Hannah Ryks may not have been sure how to spell “telepathic” but she could have fooled the crowd as she emerged from a pool of 38 contestants to win with that word.

“I was really excited,” she said. “I wasn’t sure I got it right.”

She had tough competition, as the spelling bee lasted almost two hours. More than 25 out of the 38 spellers were still in the competition after an hour had passed.

“I thought they did a phenomenal job,” said Jer Osgood, Southgate teacher.

Ryks said she enjoys reading and spelling the most at school.

“They’re just fun and I’m good at them,” she said.

Ryks will go on to the district spelling bee later this year.