'Nova wins and classes are canceled, celebrations planned

The party rolls on.

Classes were canceled. Fans lined up at the bookstore for national championship apparel. And, after just a few hours of sleep, Villanova University students packed the school's football stadium Tuesday afternoon to welcome home their NCAA basketball champions.

"It's unreal," said Villanova junior Erin McKevitt, one of 3,000 fans who flocked to the stadium for Tuesday's rally. "And I think it's going to stay this way for a couple of days, if not a couple of weeks."

Classes were set to resume Wednesday. But to keep the celebration going, the team will get a parade Friday on Market Street in Philadelphia.

On Tuesday, Villanova's players - just off a plane from Houston and a police-escorted bus ride up the Blue Route - took the stage to cheers from hoarse but jubilant fans.

Before they greeted the crowd in the sunny stadium, the players paused to savor the moment. Holding their trophy and sporting championship gear with pieces of the game net tied to their hats, they pulled out their phones to record their adoring fans.

"This is the best place in the world to play college basketball," coach Jay Wright told the crowd. "No one deserves a national championship more than our students and our fans."

Many students described the victory as "once in a lifetime."

But Nick Onorato of Warminster, a 1971 Villanova graduate, said his son reminded him of something he'd said after Villanova's 1985 national championship.

"He said, 'Dad, you lied to me. You said this would never happen again,' " Onorato said, happy to be proven wrong.

Leslie Flynn of Ardmore, a 1998 Villanova graduate, brought her four young children to greet the team. She stood near the front row with a bag full of blankets and warm clothing as her children played on the football field.

"I kept telling the kids, 'We'll always look back on this night,' " she said. "It was fabulous. It's been a long time coming."

The team's rally was brief. Players left the stadium for a news conference as fans lingered, dancing on the football field and lining up outside a back door to the Pavilion for another glimpse of the champions.

"Last night was obviously really fun," said Villanova junior Rachel Albanese, wearing painted whiskers to show her Wildcat pride. "But it's nice to have them back on campus."

The victory not only boosted Rachel Martin's spirits, it rescued her.

Monday night, the sophomore was among the hundreds at the Pavilion, gasping and cheering throughout the championship game and going crazy with the final shot.

She also had an anatomy lab exam scheduled for 8:30 a.m. Tuesday - until classes were canceled.

"I was betting on them winning. Otherwise, I wasn't going to do well on my exam," she said.

The day started on a slightly different note, as many students found themselves still recovering from the party that erupted Monday night after the last-second 77-74 win over North Carolina. One busy spot was the university bookstore, which received a shipment of championship shirts.

One of the campus store's early customers was Ron DiPietro, a 1972 graduate who showed up with his championship shirt from the university's 1985 NCAA title. He walked out with $500 worth of new gear for himself and friends.

More than $1.6 million in championship gear is coming to the Villanova bookstore, the store manager said. The company that operates the store was sending reinforcements from North Jersey and the Washington area to staff the store. Workers expected to be busy all week.

Experts reported a surge in sales of Villanova championship gear. And an iconic photo of Kris Jenkins' buzzer-beater - "the shot heard 'round the world," Wright called it at Tuesday's rally - was headed for the cover of Sports Illustrated.

Senior Massimo Romanzo was glad he'd stayed on campus instead of traveling to Houston. The celebrations and atmosphere were "just surreal," he said. "I think it's starting to sink in a little bit today."

Romanzo was one of some 4,200 students who stormed out of the Pavilion late Monday night after the Wildcats dispatched the Tar Heels.

As the students filled Lancaster Avenue, some tossed beer bottles and lit fires, climbed trees and pulled out street signs.

Radnor Police Lt. Chris Flanagan said there were at least six arrests and 25 minor injuries. Five people were hospitalized and one person was given a citation.

By Tuesday morning, the campus was cleaned up and roads reopened. And few students were yawning, despite the lack of sleep.

"It's worth it," said freshman Mary Helen Baudinet, who had stayed up until 5 a.m. but was in the stadium by 3 p.m. to greet the players. "Everyone's on an adrenaline rush."

lmccrystal@phillynews.com

610-313-8116@Lmccrystal

Staff writers Susan Snyder and Jonathan Tannenwald contributed to this article.