| Vanessa Kara | |
| Fullname: | Vanessa Michelle Kara González |
| Birth Date: | 27 November 1996 |
| Birth Place: | Burlington, New Jersey, U.S. |
| Height: | 1.63m |
| Position: | Forward |
| Youthclubs1: | PDA Force |
| Collegeyears1: | 2015–2017 |
| College1: | Drexel Dragons |
| Collegecaps1: | 53 |
| Collegegoals1: | 22 |
| Collegeyears2: | 2019 |
| College2: | Florida Gators |
| Collegecaps2: | 20 |
| Collegegoals2: | 10 |
| Years1: | 2020 |
| Clubs1: | TiPS |
| Caps1: | 9 |
| Goals1: | 2 |
| Years2: | 2021 |
| Clubs2: | Racing Louisville |
| Caps2: | 1 |
| Goals2: | 0 |
| Nationalyears1: | 2021– |
| Nationalteam1: | Dominican Republic |
| Nationalcaps1: | 4 |
| Nationalgoals1: | 3 |
| Club-Update: | 03:50, 16 April 2021 (UTC) |
| Nationalteam-Update: | 22 October 2021. |
Vanessa Michelle Kara González (born 27 November 1996) is a professional footballer who plays as a forward. Born in the United States, she plays for the Dominican Republic women's national team.[1]
Born in Burlington, New Jersey to a Dominican mother,[2] Kara began playing soccer at the Bridle Club in her hometown, playing alongside her brothers.[3] She soon joined the PDA Fusion, part of the Players Development Academy.[3] During her club and her high school career at Moorestown Friends School, Kara suffered two ACL tears in both knees.[3] During her senior year of high school, Kara committed to playing for the Drexel Dragons of Drexel University.[3]
During her first season with Drexel Dragons, she recorded a team record 11 goals in 18 matches, and was named the 2015 CAA Rookie of the Year.[4] In her sophomore year, Kara scored 6 goals and contributed 5 assists as she earned All-CAA First Team honors.[4] During her final season with the Dragons, she scored 5 goals.[4] Prior to the 2017 playoffs, Kara tore her ACL again and had to red shirt during what would have been her senior year.[3]
In 2019, Kara left Drexel University, and joined the Florida Gators of the University of Florida.[3] One of her former coaches had recommended Kara to Gators head coach Becky Burleigh.[3] During her only season with the Florida Gators, Kara scored a team leading 10 goals, tied for 5th in the Southeastern Conference.[5]
On 16 January 2020, Kara was eligible for selection in the NWSL College Draft but was not selected.[6] The day after the draft, Kara received a call from North Carolina Courage head coach Paul Riley to join the team for preseason.[6] Later that year, Kara joined Kansallinen Liiga club TiPS.[7] She made her debut for the side on 22 August 2020 against Åland United, starting in a 3–0 defeat.[8] Kara then scored her first goal on 5 September against PK-35, scoring the only goal in a 1–0 victory.[9]
On 5 April 2021, after training with them during preseason, Kara returned to the United States and joined National Women's Soccer League club Racing Louisville.[10] She made her professional debut for the club on 15 April 2021 in the NWSL Challenge Cup against the Washington Spirit, coming on as an 89th-minute substitute in a 1–0 defeat.[11]
Kara made her senior debut for the Dominican Republic on 22 October 2021, starting in a 3–0 friendly home win over Bolivia. During the match, she scored a brace and assisted the remaining goal.[12]
| Club | Season | League | Cup | Continental | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | |||
| TiPS | 2020 | Kansallinen Liiga | 9 | 2 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 9 | 2 | |
| Racing Louisville | 2021 | National Women's Soccer League | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | — | 3 | 0 | |
| Career total | 10 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 12 | 2 | |||
Individual