Two nights. Two shots. Two hits. $10,000.

The crowd leapt to its feet as the ball completed a 50-foot arc from mid-court to the basket with a thud and a swish. Twice. Friday night, Wharton junior Omar Gonzalez successfully landed a shot from halfcourt of the Palestra during halftime of the Penn-Harvard basketball game, winning $5,000. And defying all laws of probability, Engineering sophomore Jarid Lukin repeated the feat Saturday during halftime of the Penn-Dartmouth game. "It's safe to say that Friday night was the first time ever," said Fran Connors, Athletic Department assistant director of public relations and marketing. "Certainly, it being hit on consecutive nights has to be a record." The shots were part of a contest sponsored by PNC Bank that challenges fans from the stands to hit four different shots in 35 seconds -- a layup, a free throw, a three-pointer and a half-court shot. If the participant makes the lay-up, he wins a Penn Quakers pin. If they hit the free throw, they get a Penn basketball media guide signed by Coach Fran Dunphy, Connors said. "The PNC representatives were ecstatic," Connors said. "The whole point of the contest is that they'll hit it." In fact, Gonzalez had already won a $100 gift certificate to The Book Store for making the three-pointer when he attempted his half-court shot. "To me, it happened so quickly," he explained. "I saw the ball hit the backboard and go in and I fell to the floor. I had a smile from ear to ear." Gonzalez added that he plays basketball "all the time" at Gimbel Gymnasium -- but he had not been specifically practicing the half-court shot. College sophomore David Glick, a friend of Gonzalez's, said the crowd's reaction to the shot was "crazy." "The place went nuts," he said. "When he hit it I just ran out into the court." For Lukin, the experience was slightly different. He said last night that he had not played basketball for more than a year. Not only was he out of practice -- but he even missed the layup. And the free throw. And then Lukin missed the three pointer. "I was really nervous," he explained. "My adrenaline was pumping, and just shot way too hard." When he made it to the halfcourt line, Lukin said he didn't think what he did mattered anymore. "I had already made a fool out of myself," he said sheepishly. Indeed, the crowd was hardly paying attention when the unimaginable happened. "As soon as it was off my hands, I knew it was in," he said. Lukin competed in the halftime contest because he was chosen in a lottery sponsored by the Residential Advisory Board. He said he noticed a newsgroup posting with the subject, "Want to win $5,000?" After he e-mailed the board to enter the lottery, Lukin received notice that he was going to participate. The two winners will each receive checks for $5,000, which they said are in the mail. "My mom's just freaking out," Gonzalez said. "I guess I'll be a legend for a week." Lukin said that while he has no plans for the money yet, he is considering using it for a spring break vacation. "But right now I'm getting phone calls from random people congratulating me," he said. Lukin said his parents did not believe him about his success. He called them Friday night to tell them he was shooting, he explained, and when he called them Saturday after the game, they thought he was lying about his achievement.

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