It took a visit to the campus of Howard University in Washington, D.C., for Courtney Dalton from Piscataway, N.J., to decide if it was where she wanted to play college volleyball. She wasn’t sure if an HBCU school was right for her, but she realized it was absolutely a good fit.

Now in her freshman year at Howard, the outside hitter is enjoying a solid season, as the Bison have dominated Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference play, with a record of 10-1. Dalton credited her teammates with helping her make the transition to college volleyball, which definitely moves at a quicker pace than she was accustomed to playing.

“I started volleyball pretty late,” said Dalton, who began playing club volleyball in ninth grade and high school the following year. “Volleyball in the tristate area isn’t as big as in Texas or California. My volleyball IQ wasn’t as high as other girls on the team. They were pretty patient with me. They did have to teach me a lot, but I’m a fast learner.”

Dalton appreciates Shaun Kupferberg’s blunt coaching. Nothing is sugarcoated and excellence is expected. As an outside hitter, her job is to block the other team’s outside hitter, who is often the biggest hitter on the opposing team.

She is well aware how pivotal good coaching is. After beginning her playing days at a small club near home, Dalton’s game reached the level where she began attracting attention from Division I programs after she joined Allegro Volleyball Club in Denville, New Jersey. She was on the Allegro 17 and Allegro 18 national teams, both coached by Jamie Hor.

“He helped me develop as a volleyball player in a very short amount of time,” Dalton said. “Without him, I wouldn’t be playing volleyball at the Division I level.”

Dalton is enjoying the immersion in African-American history and culture she is receiving at Howard. She intends to major in biology and will likely apply to medical school. For now, she grateful to be representing her school in the college game.

“It’s late in the season and people are getting tired,” she said. “But we have to keep it together as a team and find it in each other as teammates to push through the rest of the season.”