If "three-peat" were an actual spelling bee competition word, you can bet Erin Howard could define it, give you its origin, use it in a sentence and correctly spell it.

For the third year in a row, Erin, a 13-year-old seventh grader at Mountain Gap P-8 school in Huntsville, will represent Alabama in the Scripps National Spelling Bee.

Last weekend, she out-spelled 49 competitors in 14 rounds at the 91st Alabama Spelling Bee. She's an old pro by now, having made her first of four appearances at the state spelling bee in third grade.

She correctly spelled "calvarium," (the portion of a skull including the braincase and excluding the lower jaw, according to Merriam-Webster), to take the win. Last year, in her second consecutive state bee win, it took five tension-filled hours and 20 rounds.

"It wasn't as tense as last year or as long as last year, but it still had its moments. All three of us misspelled our words in round 12. In round 13, the other two missed their words and I correctly spelled biennium, which led to the championship word in round 14," Erin said.

Last year, her wit and nonchalance made her one of the favorites in the national bee, and her spelling prowess got her into the national top 10.

Before being eliminated by misspelling Klydonograph (an instrument that makes a photographic record of electric surges in power lines. Not obscure at all, right?), she charmed the audience and the presenter with her easygoing (and respectfully snarky) personality.

As she approached the microphone to attempt to spell the word that led to her elimination, Dr. Jacques Bailly -- the longtime pronouncer of the spelling bee -- asked Erin, "How's it going?"

Erin waved her arms and said, "I don't even know anymore."

By that time, Bailly and the ESPN audience already knew Erin was a pistol.

"OK, you really have to give me a word I know right now," Erin said during the morning rounds. After a slight dramatic pause, she added, "Really."

An amused Bailly responded, "I'm trying," then gave Erin "apparentement," a French word meaning "a coalition formed between political parties during an election.

Erin pursed her lips and said, "I'm sorry, did you misunderstand my request?"

Then she "air-typed" the words with her fingers, and spelled it correctly, letting out a brief "whoop" before racing back to her seat in jubilation.

Her experience as a three-time participant in the national bee, which is on May 31 this year, after a written test on May 29, "will definitely help me deal with the nerves.

"It was easier last year to block out the lights, the cameras, and the crowd than it was the year before, and I hope the trend continues," she said.

She plans to study "pretty much the same way I always do.

"My parents create random word lists for me from the online dictionary, and after I've looked at them, they quiz me on those words," she said. "I'm going to make sure to learn the definitions of words to help with vocabulary. I'm also going to try to learn more about spelling patterns in words with specific origins and roots. My goal this year is to see as many of the words as possible, which is difficult, but I think it will help me if I have looked at every word at least once or twice."

Because of her top 10 finish last year (and her hilarious quips) Erin's pretty sure that Bailly, and the ESPN audience, will remember her.

"So the pressure may be increased, but I'll do my best to relax and have the most fun I can," she said.

And all of us in Alabama will be pulling for her.

"We're just so excited," said Mountain Gap Principal Heather Bardwell. "Third time in a row she's the state spelling bee winner and I'm hoping that the third time is the charm and this is the time that Erin gets to win it all."

Haskins writes about points of pride statewide. Email your suggestions to shaskins@al.com, or tweet them to @Shelly_Haskins using #AlabamaProud