Winthrop freshman wins $25,000 on ‘Ellen’ TV show

Morgan Lowers dropped in on national TV and her college bills at Winthrop University just dropped, too – by a whopping $25,000.

The freshman softball player was awarded the $25,000 from Shutterfly by “The Ellen DeGeneres Show” after she was one of the show’s top fans to appear. Lowers, 18, a mass communications and broadcasting major from Suffolk, Va., was selected for the contest and then won the show’s “Know or Go” game.

Lowers made it onto the Ellen show after filling out a student questionnaire before the school year in which she said she wanted to be a TV host one day, and that she admired both DeGeneres’ style and her giving nature.

DeGeneres and her show have been something of an obsession for Lowers since she was 11, when she started writing to the TV host. The letters and emails have continued for seven years.

“One year, I wrote in 365 days in a row,” Lowers said. “I just think she is the greatest. I just love her so much – I am a huge fan.”

Lowers won the “Know or Go” game, in which she competed against two other college students who also are Ellen fans. As a nice surprise, DeGeneres awarded $25,000 checks to all three of the students – not just to the winner.

It is that generosity that DeGeneres is known for that has turned Lowers into an even bigger fan, especially since she’s been on the show.

“The experience was just awesome!” she said.

The show taped Monday in California, but Lowers had to keep the secret until after the show was aired on Tuesday.

“No social media – nothing – until today,” she said.

The money is a huge bonus for the family. Lowers has an older sister in college as well.

This story was originally published November 3, 2015 at 1:56 PM with the headline "Winthrop freshman wins $25,000 on ‘Ellen’ TV show."