A FENCING fan plans to ‘lunge’ into post graduate university studies after scooping £70,000 on a National Lottery scratch card.

Fine art student Kat Mountain, from Widnes, celebrated the windfall after picking up the scratch card alongside a food shop.

The 21-year-old has said as well as paying for her masters degree in fine arts she also wants to use some of the win to buy starter kits for the fencing club at Leicester’s De Montfort University where she is in her final year.

The Demon Fencing Society armourer and competition secretary added: “I had just finished a day shift waitressing at a bar over the road from Tesco in Leicester and I popped in to get a few bits and pieces to make dinner for me and my boyfriend.

“On my way out I had some change and thought I’d get a scratch card. I liked the bright green colour of the 7x Lucky one so I thought I’d go for that.

“I got into my car and started scratching the card and couldn’t believe what I saw.

"I had to go back into Tesco to ask the woman if I was right and she got me to sign the back of the scratch card there and then.

"I couldn’t take it in and it still doesn’t feel real. Even the shop assistant was completely gobsmacked.”

Kat said she feels incredibly lucky to be able to leave university debt-free and said she would not have been able to fund postgraduate studies without working for a couple of years and applying for bursaries.

“It’s so unusual to be able to leave university without debt and I’m over the moon. I can now clear my overdraft, do my masters degree, help the fencing club and have enough for a deposit on a house,” she said.

Kat is considering going abroad, possibly to Germany, to study for her masters and hopes to go into teaching using art techniques to help youngsters with special needs.