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ABA's Maryland Nighthawks Name February Fan of the Month

March 1, 2007 - American Basketball Association (ABA)
Maryland NightHawks News Release


Rockville, MD - The Maryland Nighthawks announced today that Melissa Conley from Potomac, Maryland has been named the Maryland Nighthawks February Fan of the month.

Melissa attended the two Nighthawks games for the month of February and was ecstatic when she found out that she was named for this honor.

"I like the Nighthawks a lot there one of my favorite basketball teams," said Melissa. "I love how they incorporate the fans during the breaks, especially the young children who adore the hawk mascot. It's very family oriented, there is always a lot of positive energy."

Marketing Director Adam Dantus stated, "Melissa exemplifies what it truly means to be a Nighthawks fan. Not only has Melissa shown tremendous support for the Nighthawks on the court, but also has proven to be a model citizen and role model in the community."

Conley, whose favorite Nighthawks player is Randy "White Chocolate" Gill, attended Montgomery College last year, the same court where the Nighthawks play their home games, before transferring to Salisbury University at the beginning of this year. While attending Montgomery College, Conley joined the student senate where she worked on the student affairs committee. She received great opportunities where she attended a conference with former county executive Doug Duncan, worked closely with the VP provost to create a bazaar where faculty members donated items to students and even made the dean's list.

Now a sophomore at Salisbury University studying Business Marketing, Conley has taken on an even bigger task.

"What I'm trying to do is implement a new school library," says Conley. "Right now the Blackwell Library lacks modernization and resources, which prevents students from achieving academic success." She hopes to change this.

Conley has already submitted a business proposal to school officials, which includes the Vice President of Student Affairs. She hopes with the help of public and private funding, a state-of-the art library (worth approximately $50 million) will be built.

Conley's business proposal mentions that she'd like to construct two more floors, add more books that apply to student majors, include compact shelving and add more security. She is also planning on implementing an office consoling area with a special mentoring program that would cater to freshman students who are making the transition from high school to college.

And while most students are focusing on benefiting themselves, Conley is not afraid to make it clear that she is doing this for one reason only....to better the lives of other students.

"No one is telling me to do this. "As long as I make a thousand people happy or a couple of hundred people happy, that's all I really want", says Conley. "Even though the library probably is not going to be constructed during the time that I'm here, I just want to help out the students of the future. In time I hope that the library will become a reality where students can succeed in an ideal environment."

If trying to accomplish a long term goal for a new library isn't enough hard work, Conley also balances five college courses, the student government association and also has two other long term goals, which involves teenage depression as well as opening her own company that is already a work in progress.

Yet, at the end of the day Conley still has the time to come home on the weekends and attend her favorite basketball teams' games.

"These are the people that work really hard to get to the next level," Conley explains. "The Maryland Nighthawks games are really intense; I'm always at the edge of my seat. It's fun to watch players that are very passionate about their job."

For more information on Melissa's business ventures, check out www.abettersu.org.

Be sure to come out and support the Maryland Nighthawks during their playoff push, and you too can be named Nighthawks Fan of the Month!

Note: OurSports Central no longer actively covers the American Basketball Association (ABA) as a professional league due in part to its inability to publish and play a schedule and the transitory nature of many of its teams. For information on professional minor leagues, please see OSC's basketball section.

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