Damien Clipp's "cachet" on Saturday was leaving Western Heights Middle School as Washington County's top eighth-grade speller.
Damien, an E. Russell Hicks Middle School student, correctly spelled cachet in the eighth-grade competition of the 28th annual Washington County Spelling Bee on Saturday after going 10 rounds.
By winning, he earned a trip to the 2007 Scripps National Spelling Bee in Washington, D.C., on May 30 and 31.
The Herald-Mail Co. sponsored the county spelling bee and is sending Damien and a parent to the national competition.
Cachet is a noun with several meanings, including distinction or prestige, according to Webster's New World College Dictionary.
Damien said he studied words every day to prepare, but he was uncertain of how well he would do.
"It seemed like the other kids were good at it, too, so I wasn't sure," he said.
Damien's parents, Staci and Richard, said they were proud of their son, and that they planned to continue helping him study.