Karina Goicochea of Willow Spring got a big surprise when she arrived at lottery headquarters Thursday and found out she won a $1 million top prize.

“Reality still hasn’t hit me yet,” she said. “I won the big one.”

Goicochea said she knew her $1,000,000 Cashword ticket carried a big prize, but she did not realize just how big.

“We thought it was $10,000 to begin with,” she laughed.

Goicochea bought her lucky $10 ticket from the Zebulon BP on West Gannon Avenue in Zebulon.

“I just kept looking at it,” she recalled.

After Goicochea found out how much she won, she had a decision to make. She could choose to receive the prize as an annuity of $50,000 over 20 years or a lump sum of $600,000. She chose the lump sum of $600,000 and, after required state and federal tax withholdings, took home $430,503.

Goicochea plans to invest her winnings.

The $1,000,000 Cashword game debuted in August with four top prizes of $1 million. One $1 million prize remains to be claimed.

For details on how $14.5 million raised by the lottery made a difference for education programs in Johnston County last year, visit www.nclottery.com and click on the “Impact” section.