JACKSON TWP — Ghost stories are in high demand this time of year, and Seneca Valley 10th grade student Bailey Walton eagerly rose to the occasion.

The annual Ghosts of The Strand competition handed out prizes for first through third place winners and an honorable mention.

Bailey, 15, is the daughter of Dawn and Richard Walton of Cranberry Township. She won the contest’s top spot for her ghost story. Bailey said she received the writing prompt for the competition in her English class taught by Amanda Shaheen, and the students had about a week to complete the assignment.

Shaheen said the students weren’t required to enter the competition as part of the assignment, but she offered it as an extra credit opportunity to write creatively.

“(I) helped students develop the stories and focus on sensory details,” she said of her role.

Shaheen said students worked on developing their use of adjectives and adverbs to create a “spooky or ominous mood.”

About 15 of Shaheen’s students took the opportunity the contest offered, and three of them were chosen as winners with Bailey in first, Breanna Vaughan in third and Sydney McMurray as an honorable mention.

Shaheen said the winning students in her class were thrilled when they found out about how they did in the competition.

“They were so excited,” Shaheen said. “I think, more than anything, it’s a confident boost for them to know that they went up against students from other schools, and their writing excelled not only from those in their own class but from other areas as well.”

Bailey said she drew from scary stories and movies she knew to spark her idea.

“I was really happy about (winning),” she said. “I really wanted to win the contest. I didn’t really know how many people entered, so I didn’t really know what was going to happen.”