Back on February 8, the Howard University softball team opened its season against Southern University at the Southern Softball Challenge in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. "I was super nervous. As a freshman, I just wanted to impress my coaches and my teammates," said Howard infielder, Kalita Dennis, who was making her college softball debut.

In her first season as a Bison, Dennis has done more than enough to impress her coaches and teammates. Over each of the last two weeks, she has been awarded the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) Rookie of the Week, batting .484 during that 10-game span.

Dennis, a criminology major from Elk Grove, California, began playing softball at 7 years old, following the footsteps of her grandmother. She immediately fell in love with the sport and has not looked back.

Coming from the West Coast, Dennis chose Howard because of its location and atmosphere. She said, "I love the East Coast and I wanted a different experience from California. I love the culture and the opportunities to excel as a black person."

While her adjustment to Howard is a vast cultural difference to her hometown, Dennis has adapted well in her freshman year.

On the field, Dennis leads the Bison with four doubles, five runs scored, 19 hits and 25 total bases. She also ranks atop the team's qualified batters in batting average (.442), on-base percentage (.489) and slugging percentage (.581).

Through her first 14 collegiate games, her most memorable match came in Howard's victory against the University of North Carolina Wilmington (UNCW). The Bison won that game 12-11 in extra innings, earning their second win of the season. Dennis contributed to the victory with three hits and two RBIs. "It was great seeing my teammates fighting strong through 10 innings. We had not been playing as well in prior games and we were actually working as a team," said Dennis.

For Dennis, playing as a cohesive team and trusting the process remain the points of emphasis with this Bison team. The Howard softball team is a rebuilding program, featuring 11 freshman players and first-year head coach, Tori Tyson. Dennis notes the positive aspects of playing with several freshmen, saying, "It is nerve-wracking but it is good for us. We are pushing the older players and we are learning to adjust quickly, which is making us stronger."

Despite the team's 3-11 record, the Bison have improved in recent weeks. They won their last game against the University of Missouri-Kansas City (UMKC) 4-3, at the ASU Black & Gold Tournament in Montgomery, Alabama. Dennis, who also had a three-hit performance in that game, said, "After the UMKC win, it was a little glance of what we can do when we play as a team and play our game. We realized the power of communicating, executing and trusting the process."

For the first time in her college career, Dennis will play her matches in Washington, D.C. as the Bison participate in the Georgetown Tournament from March 2-3. She said, "We want to be more consistent with how we play this weekend. Every game, pitch and play, we want to talk and hustle. If there is failure this weekend, we want to fail the right way and make sure no loss was because we beat ourselves. Ultimately we want to leave being a closer and stronger team."