CRANBERRY TWP — Alex Karika entered a different world when she decided to go to the United States Naval Academy.

She wanted a top college education and the Academy had one of the best engineering programs in the country. She also wanted to play volleyball, a sport in which she excelled as a four-year starter at Seneca Valley High School.

“And I wanted the chance to serve my country,” she said.

Everything about Navy was foreign to her, even the terminology.

Her first exposure to military life was “plebe” summer, the Navy’s version of boot camp, and Karika quickly found out what the word “plebe” meant.

“I think it means the lowest form of a human being,” she said, laughing.

Karika, though, stuck it out and was a star on the Navy volleyball team in the fall, winning the Patriot League Rookie of the Year award.

Karika also became the first player at Navy since 1998 to lead the league in assist average.

She’s no longer a plebe — she has moved on to become a “second-class,” the term for sophomore at Navy — and is looking forward to topping her debut season.

“I was happy with what I did (as a freshman), but there is room for improvement,” she said.

The volleyball court was a refuge for Karika. It was the only familiar place during her first year at the Academy.

“I didn’t come from a military family, so it was all new to me,” Karika said. “Volleyball was nice because there I wasn’t getting yelled at all the time.”

The 5-foot-10 Karika, who was also a standout basketball player at Seneca Valley, made an immediate impact on the Navy volleyball program, which had struggled to a 21-69 record in the three years before she arrived.

Last year, Navy made huge strides, going 11-15.

“We sat down at the beginning of the year and said this was the year it would change,” Karika said. “It was exciting to see the team change from one that lost a lot to a team that was one win shy of the playoffs. I was more excited for the upperclassmen who had worked so hard but had lost so much.”

Karika started all 26 matches for the Mids and wracked up 896 assists. She also had 188 digs.

“Alex is the real deal,” said Navy volleyball coach Larry Bock, who is heading into his third season with the Mids and knows a thing or two about volleyball with a 1,358-306-4 record in 41 years as a coach. “(She) continues to improve upon an impressive fall season with location, defense and blocking. It is such a big positive that she is pushed by her teammates in each and every practice.”

Navy will have most of its team back this fall.

Karika is expected to be one of the best players in the Patriot League.

“I’m definitely excited for this year because we did so well last year,” Karika said. “Having the team back together and with the new players we gained, we definitely have room to improve.”

Karika spent most of her summer on a Navy destroyer in Norfolk, Va. She is home now until the beginning of August when she returns to Annapolis, Md., to prepare for the volleyball season.

With a year in the military behind her, Karika is more than happy with her decision.

“I think for everyone who comes here there is a time when you think, ‘Oh, did I make the right choice,’ Karika said. “There was never a time when I thought, ‘I need to leave.’ It’s not for everyone, but it was the right choice for me, and I couldn’t imagine being anywhere else.”