Classroom:An exceptional student, Kari Weniger owns a 3.97 cumulative GPA as an Ocean Engineering major at the U.S. Naval Acadamy. She was named a Second-Team Academic All-American during the fall of 2006, and ranked 18th in academic order of merit among 1,073 students. Her name has graced the Superintendent’s and Commandant’s Lists five times. She has achieved a 4.00 GPA in six of her seven semesters of classes at the Academy. She was also named to the Patriot League Academic Honor Roll three times.
Character:Weniger has the experience of serving in several leadership roles. She was a Plebe Summer Company Commander, one of the most important roles at the Academy. That position helps mold incoming freshman during one of the most important times of their stay at the Academy. This semester, she will serve as her company's honor representative. This person sits in on hearings for Midshipmen who have broken the honor code at the Academy and helps determine punishment. In addition to the roles mentioned, she was voted by her teammates to serve as the team captain. At the Academy, the team captain bears the responsibility of not only leading on the soccer field, but also within Bancroft Hall, where all 4,200 Midshipmen are housed. She holds the responsibility of making sure her teammates are meeting all the necessary requirements on an academic and military level.
Head coach Carin Gabarra, a former Olympic Gold Medal winner, listed some of the characteristics that best describe Weniger —"she’s compassionate, she’s diligent, she’s approachable, she’s fair and she’s honest. Kari exhibits the highest levels of effort and sportsmanship and is a great role model as a teammate and for the young soccer players who come out on game day to support our team."
Competition:Weniger played a major role in Navy's success over the last four years. As a freshman, she produced 10 points on three goals and four assists in the 20 games in which she played. During her sophomore year, she tore her ACL, 12 games into the year. By this time, she had seven points on two goals and three assists. As a junior last season, she was Navy's third-leading scorer with a personal-best 20 points on seven goals and six assists. She was tied for eighth in the Patriot League in points per game and seventh in assists per game. She is one of Navy's two starting forwards in her senior season.