Raleigh woman spent extra $1 playing Powerball. Big prize made her say ‘Holy cow’
A Raleigh woman narrowly missed the $1.2 billion Powerball jackpot, but still netted a big prize.
“You never think the pie-in-the-sky dreams will actually come true,” Ann Gasperini told the North Carolina Education Lottery.
Gasperini turned her $3 ticket into a $200,000 prize in the Dec. 17 Powerball drawing, the lottery said in a news release. She matched four numbers and the red Powerball to win the six-figure payout.
Gasperini bought the lucky ticket online and spent an extra $1 on the Power Play option, quadrupling her original $50,000 prize.
“I was like, ‘Holy cow,’” she told the NC Education Lottery. “It was so out of the blue.”
The winning Powerball numbers in the Dec. 17 drawing were 25-33-53-62-66 and red Powerball 17, results show. The Power Play multiplier was 4x.
Gasperini claimed her winnings Friday, Dec. 19, and took home $143,501 after taxes, officials said. She already has plans for her money, including helping her daughter.
“She is a teacher and she is finishing her master’s and now she doesn’t have to worry about student loans,” Gasperini told lottery officials.
The next Powerball drawing is Monday, Dec. 22.
How much is the Powerball jackpot?
The Powerball jackpot soared to a whopping $1.6 billion on Monday after no ticket matched all six numbers. The prize has an estimated cash value of $735.3 million.
“Monday’s jackpot ranks as the fourth largest in Powerball history and the fifth largest among U.S. lottery jackpots,” the lottery game’s website says.
The Powerball jackpot was last won Sept. 6 when two players in Texas and Missouri matched all six numbers and split a record-breaking $1.787 billion prize.
Winners in North Carolina have 180 days from the draw date to claim prizes and are encouraged to check and sign the back of their ticket, lottery officials said.
What to know about Powerball
To score the jackpot in the Powerball, a player must match all five white balls and the red Powerball.
The odds of scoring the jackpot prize are 1 in 292,201,338.
Tickets can be bought on the day of the drawing, but sales times and price vary by state.
Drawings are broadcast Saturdays, Mondays and Wednesdays at 10:59 p.m. ET and can be streamed online.
Powerball is played in 45 states, Washington, D.C., Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
This story was originally published December 22, 2025 at 5:08 PM.