Villanova fans gear up for Final Four showdown
VILLANOVA, Pa. (WPVI) -- Villanova is getting in gear for its Final Four showdown against Oklahoma on Saturday night. And so are supporters of the Wildcats.
There was no shortage of students and fans picking up basketball merchandise at the Villanova bookstore Tuesday.
"It's been nonstop since this morning. I'm ready for a break," store manager Ryan Snyder said with a laugh.
The only glitch is that the Final Four apparel didn't arrive until Tuesday afternoon.
The problem was that the store placed the orders Saturday night after Villanova beat Kansas. But the apparel manufacturers were all closed on Sunday because it was Easter.
So they didn't even begin filling the orders until Monday.
"It's a little disappointing but we saw a lot of jerseys so we might get one of those and come back and we'll definitely be back as soon as they get it in," Villanova freshman, Caroline Rajtic, said Tuesday morning.
"We were looking for the 'Party like it's 1985' shirts because my dad actually went to the 1985 game. He was a senior when they won the championship," said fan, Claire Hageney.
WATCH: 1985 Villanova Wildcats National Championship parade in Philadelphia
When the Final Four items finally arrived, it turned out one of the vendors shipped the wrong amount of merchandise.
"Currently, one of our vendors with our Final Four t-shirt shipped us for four out of five cartons. So we're hoping the fifth carton appears tomorrow," Snyder said.
Still, whatever the store received was put on display and quickly sold.
Villanova sophomore Kyle Sandvik was one of the lucky ones.
"I talked to some people in the bookstore yesterday and they said it wouldn't be in until this afternoon so I kind of ran over here from my dorm," Sandvik said.
But whether buying official Final Four apparel or your garden-variety Villanova gear, these fans simply can't wait to take on Oklahoma.
"It's very hard to concentrate. I feel like the game is tomorrow, but it's not. It's kind of problematic that I'm in that mindset," junior Maddy Baisdell said.
"We're rooting for them and we're hoping that they'll win. I don't want to say hope, I really think they're going to rock it," fan Joyce Harden said.
To get some of this year's gear, the best bet is to order online through the store's website.
And if you order your Final Four merchandise on the bookstore's website, your items will be held aside before the rest of the products make it to the floor.
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This will be the team's fifth trip to the Final Four.
The Wildcats won the National Championship back in 1985 where they beat Georgetown 66 to 64 and celebrated with a victory parade through Philadelphia.
Coach Jay Wright's team is hoping for another title and perhaps a parade too - but they've got to beat Oklahoma first.
The Villanova Wildcats fly to Houston Wednesday to prepare for this weekend's big game.
On campus, students have returned from Easter break and are buzzing with excitement and say they can't wait to cheer on the Wildcats Saturday night.
"They play with passion. Everything comes natural," said junior, Teresa Pagan.
"We go to a lot of the games and it's just so much fun," said Eileen Hageney from Berwyn.
To order your Villanova Wildcats merchandise online, CLICK HERE.
