Teen a w-i-n-n-e-r in local spelling bee

COSTA MESA — According to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary, the word “metathesis” means a transposition of two sounds in speech or a chemical reaction in which different kinds of molecules trade parts.

To Elizabeth Lagatta, it means a trip to Washington, D.C.

The 13-year-old Coto de Caza resident won the 45th annual Orange County Scripps National Spelling Bee Saturday morning for spelling “metathesis” correctly in the final round. Elizabeth, who attends the eighth grade at Las Flores Middle School in Rancho Santa Margarita, hadn’t quite heard of the word before, but she used her instincts to figure out the spelling.

“I usually try to think of the definition and see if there’s any roots I know,” she said in the board room of the Orange County Department of Education, where the contest was held. “If I can’t, I just spell it the way it sounds. In this case, I just spelled it the way it sounded.”

Elizabeth beat out 33 challengers and is scheduled to fly to Washington in May to compete in the 81st annual Scripps National Spelling Bee.

Her father, Tom Lagatta, said she hadn’t excelled in her first two competitions, but she got in a solid amount of practice this time.

“My wife, me, her sister, any time we were in the car or at a restaurant, we went through words,” he said. “But she reads a lot, too.”

The Orange County Register sponsored the contest, in which officials from the Department of Education served as judges.

Kara Myers, the Register’s education coordinator, said she was amazed by the sharpness of some of the contestants — particularly when they nailed the spelling of obscure or foreign words.

“Of course, I had a list in front of me, so I could spell them from that,” she said. “But I was very impressed with the students.”