Students sat alone studying word lists or in groups quizzing each other and preparing themselves for the competition to come.
They slowly gathered into the L.A. Pittenger Student Center Forum Room on Monday night as they readied themselves to face one another in the Golden Key Spelling Bee.
Sixteen students participated in the bee, held by the Golden Key International Honour Society.
Senior Guy Crowder said he decided to create the spelling bee in order to get the organization's name out to the Ball State University campus.
"I thought that this would be a good idea because we are so pro-literacy [and] we do a lot of things with literacy," he said. "So I thought that this really was a good way to intertwine all of those different ideas."
Words like morale, gorgeous and nectar began the first round of easy words, while words like appliqué, psychology and encumbrance kicked off the intermediate round.
Senior nursing major Julia Buben participated in the bee last semester and was eliminated in the second round. She said events like the spelling bee help her get away from the everyday scene.
"I wanted to come out because I really like to participate in events on campus that are just fun and kind of abnormal," she said.
By the time they reached the hard round, only two students remained. Words like bivouac, memento and desiccate eliminated some of the others.
Senior English major Katherine Kovac was the champion of the night. Her winning word: intermezzo.
It was her first time participating in the event, and Kovac said prior to the contest, she studied for a few hours with co-workers.
When it came down to the final two, Kovac said she was really nervous because she knew her opponent was really smart. She said a lot of the competition can be attributed to luck.
Kovac won $100 for coming in first place. She said she plans to save the money.
"I'm going to Germany next year for a Fulbright scholarship, so I'm probably going to put this away [and] save it for next year, hopefully," she said.
Kovac said she advises other students to participate in the spelling bee because of the prizes and because it's fun.
"It's kind of a nice experience because no one gets angry, " Kovac said. "It's a lot of fun and it's kind of a rush when you're spelling that word."
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