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Paula Dotson of Mocksville made a pact years ago with two co-workers that they would share any big Powerball wins and, after winning a $100,000 prize in Wednesday’s Powerball drawing, she will honor their agreement.

“We decided 15 years ago that if we won a big prize we would all split it,” Dotson said. “We each buy two tickets in every drawing.”

Dotson bought her lucky $3 Quick Pick ticket using Online Play. She matched the numbers on four white balls and the red Powerball to win $50,000. Her prize doubled to $100,000 when the 2X multiplier hit.

“When I saw it, I thought I was dreaming,” she recalled. “But I wasn’t.”

She called her co-workers right away to share the good news.

“They thought I was joking,” Dotson laughed.

Dotson claimed her prize Monday at lottery headquarters and, after required federal and state tax withholdings, took home $71,251.

She plans to use her share of the winnings to pay bills and do some home repairs.

The jackpot in Monday’s Powerball drawing climbed to $675 million, or $340.9 million in cash and now ranks as the ninth largest in game history. The odds of winning a Powerball jackpot are 1 in 292 million.

Powerball is one of six lottery games in North Carolina where players have the option of buying tickets at a retail location or with Online Play through the lottery’s website or the NC Lottery Official Mobile App.

Ticket sales from draw games like Powerball make it possible for the lottery to raise $2.5 million a day on average for education. For details on how $2.9 million raised by the lottery made a difference in Davie County last year, visit www.nclottery.com and click on the “Impact” section.