COEUR d’ALENE — Nearly four hours into the competition, the field of about 160 spelling bee contestants from across the Inland Northwest had been whittled down until just two middle schoolers remained.

As fate would have it, the final few knew each other: the last several rounds of this year’s Inland Northwest Spelling Bee played out between Kootenai Classical Academy students Chase Miller, a sixth grader, and seventh grader Harper Adams.

“It was just amazing to watch the back and forth between the two,” said Chase’s mom, Alexandra Miller.

Though Chase was ultimately crowned Champion — a title worthy of confetti cannons and a $1,000 cash prize from the Idaho Character Foundation — both students have plenty to celebrate.

Chase and Harper will both be heading to Washington, D.C., to compete in the National Spelling Bee, where a $50,000 cash prize is up for grabs. In the meantime, they took home gold and silver trophies to back up their bragging rights.

With all this in mind, Harper was more than happy with her second-place victory.

“I’m really excited for the opportunity to go to D.C.,” she said. “It’s such an iconic place; I’ll get to see all the monuments and things we always hear and read about.”

The Kootenai Classical Academy students faced stiff competition from fourth through eighth graders representing all five North Idaho counties and six counties in Eastern Washington.

As his competitors were taken down by words like “bittern” and “capstan,” Chase certainly had his share of nerves — but victory had a way of making those feelings forgettable.

“I’m feeling really good now,” he said.