This week’s Athlete of the Week goes to Sophomore Emily Key. This is Key’s second year playing soccer at Park University.

Key plays center and midfield and hails from Wolverhampton, England. She is majoring in fitness and wellness.

The transformation for Key moving from one country to the next wasn’t as hard as she thought.

“I moved over here to the states last August but the transformation was easy,” she said. “(It was) easy because my family traveled out here with me the first time. I was ready to experience a new scenery for the next four years.”

Key was recruited to Park because of her soccer skills as well as her academic achievements.

“I was recruited by Coach Hefner,” Key said. “Coach saw my highlights online, gave me a call and from that moment I knew I wanted to be a part of his team.”

Don’t get caught in the stereotype that everyone who plays sports at a higher level was born talented. In Key’s case, it took years of hard work and practice.

“I’ve been playing soccer for about 12 years and I wasn’t really good when I started,” she said. “I wasn’t naturally gifted playing this sport but I wanted to be really good so I worked hard every day.”

Key said she has high expectations for this season and her career at Park.

“Winning nationals is my only expectation for this year,” she said. “This year is going to be a little tougher for me because now my opponents know what to expect from and in how well I play so I must step it up more. We were 10-8 and I know we can improve greatly from that. I feel it.”