Krishna Lee Named Atlantic Conference Player of the Week (Presented by Commons)

By Derek Fleming, staff writer, WNFC

With the WNFC Playoffs looming on the horizon, every team knows that the opportunities to seize a spot are dwindling. Facing the same team two weeks in a row, Kansas City Glory linebacker and tight end Krishna Lee knew that her team would need to show a dominating performance over the Houston Heat. The game was all the more special as it was the final home game of the season and the last chance to put on a show for the hometown fans.

“We have a number of players retiring at the end of the season, and we did a little ceremony before the game. I think we wanted to come out and set the tone, start the game on a high note, and we did just that,” Lee said.

On the first possession of the game, Kansas City backed the Houston offense up deep into their own territory. Lee tore through the offensive line, busting up a hand-off and forcing a fumble in the endzone she recovered to put the first points on the board.

“Getting it kick-started like that really gave the team a lot of energy,” Lee said. “We were able to take the adjustments we made over the course of the week and really apply them in this game. I remember looking over at the sideline before the play and saying ``You're going to let me go, right? And I got the go-ahead.”

Over the course of the game, Lee totaled 10 tackles, four that went for a loss. She also forced two fumbles including the game-opening score and caught two passes, one for a touchdown on the way to a blow-out victory.

“It felt great to be able to do that in front of a home crowd,” Lee said. “You know, Houston's a tough team and they have a lot of fight in them. And so, being able to keep the pedal to the floor throughout the whole game can be a challenge sometimes. Knowing that we were able to do that felt really good.”

Kansas City head coach Keke Blackmon said that the work Lee puts in before games has led to her success on the field.

“Lee stays ready so she doesn't have to get ready,” Blackmon said. “She is the most dynamic player in the game at her position. We are very proud of her and how she dominates on every unit. Offense, defense, and special teams. She stays humble and hungry. It’s in her DNA!”

Lee gave lots of credit to the offense and defense, both of which she said have really come together as the season has progressed.

“We've really been building game after game after game,” Lee said. “Lauren [Crouch] has gotten a lot more comfortable in the pocket, our line has really started to hold up well and give us some really good looks for her to sit back and make some passes and give our running backs some good running lanes.”

“We want to be at the very top of our game coming into the last weeks of the season and the playoffs,” Lee added. “We always want to be growing and that's what I feel like we've done. It feels really good to look back on that game and know we are continuing to move in the right direction game after game.”