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Loyola's Sister Jean Presented With Final Four Ring After March Madness Run

MARY LOUISE KELLY, HOST:

And we have an update now on an unlikely celebrity who emerged during last season's Final Four.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

UNIDENTIFIED SPORTSCASTER #1: And the Wranglers are moving on.

AILSA CHANG, HOST:

A couple years shy of a hundred years old, Sister Jean Dolores Schmidt gained international fame as the team chaplain for Chicago's Loyola University basketball team.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

UNIDENTIFIED SPORTSCASTER #2: Ladies and gentlemen, Layola athletics Hall of Famer Sister Jean Dolores Schmidt.

(CHEERING)

KELLY: Eight months later, the school and the team are saying thank you. Sister Jean has been given a Final Four appearance ring.

CHANG: Sitting courtside, wearing a maroon Loyola University jacket, the team chaplain was presented with the blinged-out ring by a member of the 1963 tournament-winning team. She joked that she's got something new to show off now.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

JEAN DOLORES SCHMIDT: I've probably gained five pounds by having this on my finger now.

KELLY: Sister Jean is known for, well, praying for Loyola victories - not only that but also praying for the opposing team and referees. Last March, with a standing-room-only crowd, Sister Jean held her own news conference.

(SOUNDBITE OF PRESS CONFERENCE)

SCHMIDT: Well, this is the most fun I've had in my life. It is. It's just so much fun for me to be here. And I almost didn't get here. But I fought hard enough to do that.

CHANG: Next March, Loyola fans and Sister Jean will be hoping for another miracle tournament run.

KELLY: In the meantime, she's got that bling ring to remind her of last year's incredible season. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.

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