COVID-related shutdowns in late March and early April did not prevent the Virginia Lottery from recording the third-best year in its 32-year history. The lottery generated about $595 million in profits for the 12-month period that ended June 30th. By law, lottery profits go to K-12 education in Virginia. Overall sales for the fiscal year topped $2 billion, and the lottery paid out more than $1.3 billion in prizes. More from WFIR’s Evan Jones: