Junior Kelsey Seitz is enjoying a new $14,000 Nissan Versa she won last October at a taping of “Let’s Make A Deal” — the CBS game show hosted by Wayne Brady.

Seitz finally received her car after the taping aired in January. She attended the Oct. 21, 2010 taping with a group of about 25 Biola students. Entrance to the game show required a ticket, and the producers also asked that individuals dress up. The group of Biola students sported a diverse array of costumes including senior Delia Baltierra as a dinosaur and junior Jason Leith as a witnessing Mormon. Biola alumni, Lindsey and Kevin Cram, arrived as the Youtube-famous “Double Rainbow,” and Torie Fields wore a bumblebee costume.

Dressed in their unique outfits, the group and about 250 other audience members waited in a long line against a wall before being ushered in one-by-one through a security check. They were asked to sign countless contracts, and finally sat in a little portable room and waited for the producers to arrive. They were advised to try and impress the producers.

Creative costumes and answers impress producers

Their group and creative costumes caused the Biolans to stand out among the crowd of potential game show contestants, but what charmed the “Let’s Make A Deal” producers most were the group’s pre-show interviews. The producers went down the line, asking each person a few simple, quick questions.

When they asked Seitz about her hobbies, she said, “I love to sing! In fact, it’s always been my dream to harmonize with Wayne Brady.”

They asked Jason Leith what he likes to do in his free time. “I love to play board games and actually, my favorite thing to do is compete in Twister competitions around the nation,” he said.

Reflecting back on the interview, Leith said, “I didn’t say anything true about myself.”

Every audience member passed from this portable into the actual studio which Seitz and Leith described as a whole different world.

“I remember thinking, ‘How is this all here? I feel like I’m in a dream,’” Leith said. “The set was huge and showy, with bright lights everywhere. Everyone felt like they were in a dream.”

Biolans selected to compete

Once the taping began, Brady stepped out for his opening segment. Then, he began calling the names of those who would play for their chance to win many different prizes including money, vacations, and even a new car.

“It was so crazy—the producers just kept picking Biolans,” Seitz said. “Out of the seven people who were contestants, four of them were from Biola, and all of us won really awesome prizes.”

When Brady called Leith down to play, it took Leith a while to believe what was really going on.

“While Wayne was explaining the game, I didn’t know what to do, but eventually I just kind of ramped it up and gave the people what they wanted,” Leith said.

As the show progressed, Brady called Leith “a little ball of energy.”

Biolans bag prizes

As he stood on the stage with the host, Leith had the money in his hand, but he had to choose between that or the mystery prize, hidden within a box about half the size of Common Grounds. Leith chose to go with the money and walked away with $1,000.

Other prize-winners included senior Casey Glass, who won $1,100, the Crams who won a seven-day trip to the Caribbean, which they plan on taking during the upcoming summer, and Emily Bosler, who won $100 in some “quickie deals” at the end of the show.

Seitz wins car with contingencies

The biggest prize of “Let’s Make A Deal”—a 2011 electric blue sedan—went to Seitz, however, her contract stated she would only receive the car if this particular episode aired. At the time, the producers told them that their episode would most likely air in March, and the waiting game began.

Seitz said the suspense was hard to bear, but once the episode aired on Jan. 13, she became ecstatic. The following Monday she received a phone call from an employee at the Nissan Glendale dealership.

“I picked up the phone and heard, ‘Congratulations on winning your car! When can you come and pick it out?’” Seitz said.

Claiming the prize

Immediately she asked her parents if they could all head up to the dealership, and two hours later she was given the opportunity to either take the car from the show or pick from any other car at the dealership, and then simply pay the difference.

“The electric blue sedan was definitely not my first choice,” Seitz said. “It was a stick shift and didn’t have automatic windows, so I decided to pay the difference of $5,500 and go with a 2011, gray Nissan Versa. I sold my old car right away and I’ve had the Nissan Versa for three weeks now. I absolutely love it.”