The 13-year-old from Albuquerque, N.M., one of the favorites to win the bee in his fifth and final appearance, then walked to his mother and gave her a long hug.
Just a few yards away, inside the ballroom of a downtown Washington hotel, 12 boys and girls were celebrating. They had survived Friday's tense midday semifinal rounds and would compete in the Friday night finals live on 6ABC - although stunningly without the familiar, polite boy who wants to be a pastor when he grows up.
Tia Thomas, Matthew's longtime friendly rival, advanced to the finals, having accomplished her goal of finishing ahead of her Internet study pal. She just never thought it would be like this.
"I just thought that it would be between us," Tia said. "I didn't expect him to go out in Round 6."
Nobody did. That's why, when Matthew walked offstage, he received a rare tribute: a standing ovation from the audience - as well as from every speller on stage. He had been stumped by "secernent," a word dealing with secretion and one that somehow eluded him as he studied his personal 30,000-word list. He guessed at the spelling, ending it with "-ant."
"I know a lot of people were rooting for me," Matthew said.
A glance at the list of finalists at the 81st annual bee revealed another surprise: No Canadians.
All seven representatives from north of the border were vanquished in a span of about 20-minutes in the first semifinal round. No Canadian has ever won the bee, but the country always fields a strong contingent. Nate Gartke of Alberta was last year's runner-up.
"Seven up, seven down," said Pam Penny of Ancaster, Ontario.
"Very disappointing. Especially for Canadians to go down on French words."
Penny's daughter, 10-year-old Veronica, was eliminated on the French-rooted word "DetagGere." Veronica's unusual mannerism of burying her head in hands while concentrating made her a fan favorite during Thursday's rounds, but this time the look of despair was for real as she failed to add the extra "e" on the word that describes a cabinet with open shelves.
Matthew and Tia were the only five-time repeaters at this year's bee. Tia, 13, from Coarsegold, Calif., had her own tentative moment when presented with "canicular," a word relating to the dog days of July and August. After several queries still left her uncertain, she asked: "May I have the California pronunciation?"
Tia said she guessed at the spelling, but the guess was good.
She shot both arms into the air and threw back her head in surprise and relief when she returned to her chair.
In contrast to Tia, the other speller to return to the finals for the second consecutive year appeared unflappable. Kavya Shivashankar, 12, of Olathe, Kansas, dispatched "Krummholz," "pholidosis" and "allotriophagy" in the semifinals.
"She knows what she's doing," said her father, Mirle Shivashankar, whose daughter also enjoys playing violin and Indian dancing.
One of the moments of comic relief was provided early in the day by finalist Jahnavi Iyer, who pondered the medical term "solidungulate" until she finally asked, "Could I have an easier word, please?"
Pronouncer Jacques Bailly laughed and said: "That's too good."
The 14-year-old from Enola, Pa., took a guess, nailed every letter and trotted back to her seat with arms raised in celebration.
Asked if she knew the words she spelled, Jahnavi said: "After I spelled the words, I thought I was familiar with them."
A record 288 spellers were entered in this year's bee; the 45 semifinalists were the survivors from Thursday's preliminary and quarterfinal rounds. The increasing difficulty of the words was apparent immediately: During one stretch Friday morning, 12 of 13 spellers heard the telltale bell that signals elimination.
The winner was to receive $35,000 in cash plus more than $5,000 in other prizes.
