RALEIGH – Paola Guerrero-Alonso’s dream of investing in real estate can now come true with a $200,000 lottery win.

“We’ve wanted to buy some for a long time,” said Guerrero-Alonso, a Salisbury resident. “Maybe remodel a house and rent it out.”

Guerrero-Alonso, a 28-year-old translator, bought her lucky $5 Sapphire 7s ticket from the Speedway on South Main Street in Salisbury.

“We couldn’t believe it when we saw the ticket,” Guerrero-Alonso said. “We’re still not sure it’s real.”

She arrived at lottery headquarters Thursday to collect her prize and, after required state and federal tax withholdings, took home $142,021.

Sapphire 7s debuted in December with six $200,000 prizes. Since Guerrero-Alonso won the final top prize in the game, the lottery will begin the process of ending the game.

Ticket sales from scratch-off games make it possible for the lottery to raise more than $2.5 million a day for education. For details on how $7.4 million raised by the lottery made a difference in Rowan County in 2021, go to www.nclottery.com and click on the “Impact” section.