The Final Four weekend kicks off as 825 Virginia Commonwealth University students set out today to cheer on their men's basketball team in Houston.
The lucky 825 make up the second round of southbound students that VCU has sent to support the team during this weekend's tournament games — providing 200 with charter bus transportation and all 825 with a hotel stay for $25. The first lottery sent 100 students to San Antonio for the Sweet 16 and Elite Eight games and also provided transportation, game tickets and hotel accommodations.
As the VCU team continues to make history for the school, advancing to tournament levels never before reached, this is also the first time that the Monroe Park campus Student Government Association has hosted a lottery for travel expenses and tickets to tournament games.
"There were a lot of first steps we had to take and we weren't sure how sending students to the tournament for the first time was going to go," said senior Monroe Park SGA President Adele McClure.
The organization partnered with other university departments to send students to the Sweet 16 and Elite Eight games in San Antonio and the Final Four games in Houston. McClure said planning the trips began after VCU beat Purdue in the third round.
To pay for the student trips, money was taken from rollover funds, which are gathered from student organizations that do not spend all of their appropriated budgets.
VCU senior Marsha Tiaranai said when she entered her name in the lottery, she didn't expect to be chosen.
"I'm a big basketball fan and am excited to go. Seeing VCU make it to the Final Four was so exciting," Tiaranai said.
VCU junior Christina Edwards said she traveled to San Antonio through the lottery last week. While she was not able to compete in the first raffle, which includes free transportation to the Final Four game, she was chosen to be included in the second raffle, which still includes hotel expenses and bargain ticket prices.
"Since I won the second raffle, all I have to do is find a way down there, so I'm renting a car with friends," Edwards said. "The first trip was really fun. It actually took 30-plus hours because the bus I was on broke down, so we were stuck in Tennessee, waiting at a gas station for another bus to take us the rest of the way."
Despite the setback, Edwards said the traveling students arrived in Texas with their school pride and enthusiasm intact.
"During the last 7 seconds in overtime before we won, it was ridiculous. We were scared we were going to lose and a lot of us turned away because we couldn't watch," Edwards said. "After we won, we were hugging each other — hugging anyone with a yellow shirt on really — and after the game we went back to the hotel to cheer the team on as they came off the bus."
Edwards said she has high hopes for the Final Four game.
"It's different seeing it live than on TV, you feel like you're a part of it," she said. "Sometimes VCU seems like they don't have money but when stuff like this comes up, they provide opportunities for everyone to show their support. It's cool to see how basketball and this tournament brings everyone together."
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