The look of surprise on Catasauqua Middle School student Maddie Moussa's face Friday was one to remember for years to come.

Maddie was declared this year's CMS spelling bee champion after spelling the word "catalyst" correctly.

The approach Maddie used while spelling words is a unique one. After the announcer shared the selected word with Maddie, she held her left hand out, looked down and began to draw the letters of the word with her right fingers, as if she were holding a pen or pencil.

Immediately after finding out she had properly spelled the final word, Moussa's eye's lit up with joy, as friends and family who attended the competiton rushed her with congratulatory hugs and kisses.

"I was really happy and surprised," she told The Press after the annual spelling bee competition.

The eighth-grade student had out-spelled all of the other participating students in grades five through eight.

Maddie said she was not born with the ability to spell words accurately. Rather, she had set a goal to devote the time and energy into making the necessary improvements over the course of the last year.

"My mom studied with me as much as possible," she said. "We fit in studying and got the pronunciations for the words."

Maddie will now be gearing up and preparing for the 29th Annual Regional Scripps National Spelling Bee competition March 26 at Northampton Community College.

"I'm going to use the eighth-grade [word] list and try more complicated words," she said of her plans to prepare for the next step.

Maddie will also savor the moment with family and friends.

"I'm so excited," she said.