Pausing at the unstressed sound in the middle of word, she collected herself, started again, and nailed the second 'e', jumping for joy on stage when told she was correct.
Chaitra Thummala, 12, of San Francisco, came in second after mis-spelling 'neroli oil,' but still takes home $25,000.
Bhavana Madini, 13, of New York finished third with the $15,000 prize, after being eliminated on 'athanor,' a type of furnace.
In a competition that has been dominated by contestants of Indian heritage, Avant-garde is sure to be celebrated for her ground-breaking victory.
She told the Associated Press in an interview before the finals she hoped to inspire other African Americans, who she said might not have the money to pay for the tutorials needed to be competitive.
This year's competition added rules meant to avoid multiple co-winners, like the eight who shared the title in the 'octo-champs' contest in 2019.