From left, team captains Midn. 1⁄C Amanda Towey, Kyleigh Millhouse, Kari Weniger, Lauren Burmeister, Jacquelyn Charnigo and Aimee Burns are majoring in technical disciplines. USNA photo by MC3 Matthew A. Ebarb.

Of the ten women’s and co-ed sports, six team captains are majoring in science, technology, engineering or mathematics (STEM) disciplines. This is the first time in history that a majority of female team captains have majored in STEM.

Midn. 1⁄C Kyleigh Millhouse is an ocean engineering major. As the women’s cross country team captain, the Boiling Springs, Pa., native is in a unique position to mentor and guide junior Midshipmen when it comes to choosing a major.

‘‘I always tell them to look where their interests lie,” said Millhouse. ‘‘For anyone who is considering a technical major but thinks that it may be too difficult, I assure them that with a little bit of effort anyone can survive as a technical major. Some of the courses may be slightly more challenging, but it is just one more hurdle to clear and there is always assistance available in courses that they may be struggling with.”

Millhouse, of 7th Company, said she has always been a ‘‘math- and science-oriented person,” and she appreciated the ocean engineering department’s smaller size and ‘‘very involved staff.”

Midn. 1⁄C Kari Weniger, women’s soccer team captain, is also majoring in ocean engineering. Her father encouraged her to take advantage of the Academy’s strong engineering program. Weniger, of St. Petersburg, Fla., said she attended the ocean engineering open house ‘‘just so I could tell him I did.”

It ended up being a life-changing decision.

‘‘The ocean has always intrigued me,” said Weniger, of 19th Company, who will report to USS The Sullivans (DDG 68) upon commissioning as a Surface Warfare Officer. ‘‘Just a few weeks earlier, as I was crossing a major bridge in Tampa Bay, I wondered how they were able to build such large bridges and have them stay in place. Walking into that open house, I knew I would like ocean engineering.”

Like Weniger’s father, women’s lacrosse team captain Midn. 1⁄C Amanda Towey also saw the strength of the Academy’s engineering program.

‘‘I like to explain to [junior Midshipmen] that the opportunity afforded to us to learn from some great professors and to use the equipment and labs that the Academy offers is too good to pass up,” said Towey, a Smithtown, N.Y., native from 2nd Company who is majoring in systems engineering. ‘‘I definitely preach my enthusiasm about engineering majors.”

Oceanography major Midn. 1⁄C Jacquelyn Charnigo of Medina, Ohio, originally started as a mathematics major. As team captain for women’s track and field, her experience in both math and oceanography allows her to answer questions for junior Midshipmen about selecting a major. Like Millhouse and Weniger, Charnigo strongly recommends letting personal interests guide the decision.

‘‘No matter how hard or easy it is, if you enjoy what you are studying then it is never too difficult to succeed,” said Charnigo, of 12th Company, who will report to USS Whidbey Island (LSD-41) upon commissioning as a Surface Warfare Officer.

Team captains are selected by their peers. At the end of the season, the athletes who have lettered in their particular sport vote for the next season’s team captain. The team’s selection is approved by the Director of Athletics, and then forwarded up the chain of command for approval.