Washington —- A young Georgia poet sounded his last stanza before judges Tuesday night.

After making it to the final dozen competitors, Elijah P. Orengo was defeated in the third annual Poetry Out Loud National Recitation Contest held on the campus of George Washington University.

The finalists each recited two poems. Orengo, a 16-year-old sophomore at Fulton County's Westlake High School, appeared first and recited "Sentimental," a free verse by Albert Goldbarth, followed by "Beauty" by Tony Hoagland.

The same poem had been recited in the first round by the eventual overall winner, Shawntay A. Henry of the Virgin Islands. But personal interpretation is the essence of a poetry contest.

When he addresses the audience, Orengo said, "I want you to feel what I felt when I first understood the poem."

"I have a passion for the arts," he said. "I want to express the idea that I am a poet, that I can recite other people's poems and make them my own."

Orengo, who also writes poetry —- composing a collection of more than 100 —- had planned to recite Sonnet 29 by Shakespeare for his third selection. But the judges eliminated him when they chose five contestants for the final round.

Still, Orengo was in select company. More than 200,000 students competed at local and state contests in all states, the District of Columbia and the U.S. Virgin Islands, and 52 winners came to Washington for the national contest.

Dana Gioia, chairman of the National Endowment of the Arts, said the contest seeks to bring poetry to life.

"Poetry was originally an oral art ... great words, powerfully spoken," Gioia said.

The program "starts with the idea that poetry is to be experienced," he said. "We want to help restore the pleasure to poetry."