Alyssa Thomas, a sophomore at the Univ. of Maryland and a hometown girl, was named to the NCAA All-American basketball team. While they made the Elite Eight in the women's tournament before being eliminated last night, she'll be at the Finals in Denver to receive recognition.

My daughter is a basketball player in eighth grade and got to know Alyssa from a few camps. Her eighth grade team took a bus trip to a Maryland game this year and saw their favorite player score 20 points. What's more memorable to the girls is that immediately after the game, Alyssa ran to the girls with a hug for each one, thanking them for coming to see her game. She took a picture with each one and had made small bags of candy for the girls "for the ride home." It was that added touch after the game that impressed me. While the girls were thrilled just to watch her play, they were walking on air from the special attention they got.