Below is the recap from the 2018 Winner, Colin Laughlin, on his weekend at the first round site in Pittsburgh, PA.
2018 VU Student Challenge Weekend Report
Hi, my name is Colin McLaughlin and I was lucky enough to be this year’s VUSports Student Essay Challenge winner. I am a senior, finance major set to graduate in May and will be moving to New York City. I grew up in Quakertown, PA and have been a Villanova basketball fan since elementary school. My favorite player to this day is still Scottie Reynolds. During the 2016 championship run I had a unique experience studying abroad in a small, Italian village watching the first four games huddled around a laptop illegally streaming the games using a VPN. Then, convincing a café owner to stay open all night so we could watch the Final Four and the National Championship. I’m very excited and relieved about our dominating performances this weekend and am looking forward to Boston. Hopefully I can snag student tickets (fingers crossed). I want to thank Jerry Quinn and everyone at VUSports for sending me and my friends to Pittsburgh. It was our first experience going to a tournament game and we had an awesome weekend.
Thursday:
We hit the road Thursday morning at 8AM hoping to arrive early and scalp tickets for the first session. That did not end up happening, but we reached Pittsburgh around 1 and were able to catch the early slate of games in our hotel room. VUSports put us up at the Wyndham Grand Downtown, which was the official fan hotel and also the Alabama team hotel. We arrived at the same time the Alabama players were exiting the team bus. After checking in, we headed over to the William Penn Hotel for the VUAA pregame event and the team send off. We were able to get a picture with the dance team and meet up with a friend on the cheerleading team.
After the event, we walked to the arena early and found our seats. Our seats were transferred to us through the student ticket lottery and turned out to be in the second level, section 234. We were a little disappointed in Villanova for the seats considering there were four empty rows floor level behind the Nova band. In our section, there were only three other Villanova students who made the trip. Hopefully, more student tickets are released for Boston. The game was great, everyone seems to be locked in and the offense is really clicking right now. We stayed for the Alabama/Virginia Tech game. The first half was fun to watch, but the second half turned into a foul fest.
Friday:
Friday morning we drove to Mt. Washington to take in the views of the city. We were told Mt. Washington provides the best views of the city and it did not disappoint. Pittsburgh really does have a ton of bridges.
For breakfast, we ate at the Micro Diner in Mt. Washington. This turned out to be a great choice, would definitely recommend. After this, we checked out PNC Park and the surrounding area and then went to the Hofbrauhaus for the VUAA event. The Hofbrauhaus is an awesome place and the beer was great. We were introduced to some alumni/Nova superfans including Patty Esposito and Terry Delaney. I also met Alex Delpizzo at the Thursday event. It was great meeting so many people with such passion for Villanova and I want to thank everyone for supporting the contest. Following the event, we went to a bar in Market Square to watch the late games. The UMBC upset was incredible.
Also, shout out to friend Tom who stayed with us Thursday. He was in Pittsburgh for the game Thursday, drove to Notre Dame for the Women’s game Friday, back to Pittsburgh Saturday, and then back to Notre Dame for the Sunday night game. True dedication!
Saturday:
Saturday we woke up early and walked over to the William Penn Hotel by 10AM for the team send off. Market Square was already packed with St. Patrick’s Day activity. There was a much larger crowd this time at the hotel and the excitement was palpable. We then weaved our way across the St. Patrick’s Day parade over to the arena. This time around there were slightly more Nova students, but I would say max 30 students in the student section. I was disappointed with the student turnout and I think Villanova should do more to get students to tournament games. The first half of the game was a little nerve-wracking, but fortunately Donte was feeling it. Second half was awesome! We came out hot and could not miss. When the offense is clicking like that we are unbeatable. After the game we immediately began checking ticket prices and Airbnb’s for Boston. That night we enjoyed some St. Patrick’s Day festivities on Carson Street down on the South Side. Carson Street has a ton of fun bars.
The entire trip was an awesome experience and thank you again to Jerry and everyone at VUSports. I really don’t understand how there were only 12 entries. It is something I will definitely support in the future and will spread the word on campus. Hopefully I will be in Boston this weekend. GO CATS!
2018 VU Student Challenge Weekend Report
Hi, my name is Colin McLaughlin and I was lucky enough to be this year’s VUSports Student Essay Challenge winner. I am a senior, finance major set to graduate in May and will be moving to New York City. I grew up in Quakertown, PA and have been a Villanova basketball fan since elementary school. My favorite player to this day is still Scottie Reynolds. During the 2016 championship run I had a unique experience studying abroad in a small, Italian village watching the first four games huddled around a laptop illegally streaming the games using a VPN. Then, convincing a café owner to stay open all night so we could watch the Final Four and the National Championship. I’m very excited and relieved about our dominating performances this weekend and am looking forward to Boston. Hopefully I can snag student tickets (fingers crossed). I want to thank Jerry Quinn and everyone at VUSports for sending me and my friends to Pittsburgh. It was our first experience going to a tournament game and we had an awesome weekend.
Thursday:
We hit the road Thursday morning at 8AM hoping to arrive early and scalp tickets for the first session. That did not end up happening, but we reached Pittsburgh around 1 and were able to catch the early slate of games in our hotel room. VUSports put us up at the Wyndham Grand Downtown, which was the official fan hotel and also the Alabama team hotel. We arrived at the same time the Alabama players were exiting the team bus. After checking in, we headed over to the William Penn Hotel for the VUAA pregame event and the team send off. We were able to get a picture with the dance team and meet up with a friend on the cheerleading team.
After the event, we walked to the arena early and found our seats. Our seats were transferred to us through the student ticket lottery and turned out to be in the second level, section 234. We were a little disappointed in Villanova for the seats considering there were four empty rows floor level behind the Nova band. In our section, there were only three other Villanova students who made the trip. Hopefully, more student tickets are released for Boston. The game was great, everyone seems to be locked in and the offense is really clicking right now. We stayed for the Alabama/Virginia Tech game. The first half was fun to watch, but the second half turned into a foul fest.
Friday:
Friday morning we drove to Mt. Washington to take in the views of the city. We were told Mt. Washington provides the best views of the city and it did not disappoint. Pittsburgh really does have a ton of bridges.
For breakfast, we ate at the Micro Diner in Mt. Washington. This turned out to be a great choice, would definitely recommend. After this, we checked out PNC Park and the surrounding area and then went to the Hofbrauhaus for the VUAA event. The Hofbrauhaus is an awesome place and the beer was great. We were introduced to some alumni/Nova superfans including Patty Esposito and Terry Delaney. I also met Alex Delpizzo at the Thursday event. It was great meeting so many people with such passion for Villanova and I want to thank everyone for supporting the contest. Following the event, we went to a bar in Market Square to watch the late games. The UMBC upset was incredible.
Also, shout out to friend Tom who stayed with us Thursday. He was in Pittsburgh for the game Thursday, drove to Notre Dame for the Women’s game Friday, back to Pittsburgh Saturday, and then back to Notre Dame for the Sunday night game. True dedication!
Saturday:
Saturday we woke up early and walked over to the William Penn Hotel by 10AM for the team send off. Market Square was already packed with St. Patrick’s Day activity. There was a much larger crowd this time at the hotel and the excitement was palpable. We then weaved our way across the St. Patrick’s Day parade over to the arena. This time around there were slightly more Nova students, but I would say max 30 students in the student section. I was disappointed with the student turnout and I think Villanova should do more to get students to tournament games. The first half of the game was a little nerve-wracking, but fortunately Donte was feeling it. Second half was awesome! We came out hot and could not miss. When the offense is clicking like that we are unbeatable. After the game we immediately began checking ticket prices and Airbnb’s for Boston. That night we enjoyed some St. Patrick’s Day festivities on Carson Street down on the South Side. Carson Street has a ton of fun bars.
The entire trip was an awesome experience and thank you again to Jerry and everyone at VUSports. I really don’t understand how there were only 12 entries. It is something I will definitely support in the future and will spread the word on campus. Hopefully I will be in Boston this weekend. GO CATS!