Denver Summit FC Open New Stadium With a Win

Kate Hanson: So on Friday, I told you that I ran the numbers twice. I had two different models. One of them said Portland and the other one said Denver Summit. And I said that on Saturday we would see which model was telling the truth. Well, the coin landed on Denver. The process-based model that I ran, which pat on the back, the one built on the underlying stats, the one that said this had a coin flip leading Denver, but that differentiator was you, dear Denver Summit fans. That is the one that came in and gave Denver Summit their first home victory at Centennial Stadium. And it came in exactly the way I hoped that it would. It was the perfect birthday present. So thanks, Denver Summit. But honestly, not the way any of us would have scripted it because the goal that decided the first match ever played at Centennial Stadium didn't come from Lindsay Heaps. And it didn't come from Janine Saunis. It came from a rookie defender named Natalie Means Who came off the bench in the 77th minute and scored Her very first professional NWSL goal to win the game. I'm still not over it. And I was there. But the game on Saturday was a game to remember. This is the 5280 pitch, women's soccer at altitude. I'm Kate Hansen. And well, welcome back. Denver Summit beat the third-ranked Portland Thorns. They ruined Sophia Wilson's homecoming. Sophia Wilson did get a goal. But we'll we'll get into that. And the summit won two to one on Saturday, and they did it in front of a sold out crowd. Over twelve thousand of us were there in a stadium that did not exist just one month ago. And I wanna walk through all of it with you today because there's things that worked both on and off the pitch. There's still a few things that worry me And of course the debut on the pitch that we've been waiting for since January, the goal, the building, which honestly deserves its whole own episode. But I'm not gonna give you a whole minute by minute replay because you either watched it on CBS or you already know the score. I've been updating the socials like crazy. And I'd rather spend our time today Breaking down what it all means. So let's start where I always start, which is with the numbers, and we'll get into the human stuff because there is a lot of human stuff this week. so remember on Friday's episode, I built that whole episode around how Portland was third in the table, Denver was 11th, we were 11 points apart, and I kept telling you that the table was lying to all of us. The underlying numbers had Denver as the better process team. Better expected goal difference, better at generating chances. The only thing holding them back was the finishing. And on Saturday, the process showed up. Denver had 58.6% of the ball. 58.6% of possession. Yes. They outshot Portland 18 to 10. And in the final third, the part of the field that actually wins you games, Denver completed a hundred and fifty six passes to Portland's seventy. I don't know about y'all, but that's not close. That is a team imposing itself on a very good opponent for the majority of 90 minutes. The the expected goals were basically even. Denver at 1.48 and Portland at 1.57. So this was not a game where Denver created a mountain of of quality and Portland created nothing. It wasn't like that World Cup game between Spain and Argentina, which we won't get into that in this episode. But it wasn't a completely one sided game. It was a game where Denver controlled the ball and the territory, and both teams had a couple of really good looks. And the difference came down to moments, which, if you listened on Friday, is exactly what I told you it would come down to. This was always going to be a game of moments. And Denver won the moments. so let me start with what mattered most to me. And it's not either goal that went in the back of the net. It was the one that stayed out because it happened right in front of me. So in the 43rd minute, Lindsay Heaps gets a beautiful look off of a corner kick. And it gets cleared literally right off the goal line. Off the line. And for those of you watching on YouTube, I'm going to upload a picture of how it looked to me from my seeds. So this is how close it was going into halftime with Denver having the lead. Instead of grinding it out and needing a rookie to save the day in the 86th minute. it was such a good look. And it was a couple of looks. And if for those of you that have not seen it, go check it out. What go to my YouTube. You can watch it there. But if you haven't seen how close this ball was to crossing the line, I thought for sure it needed it that it was a goal. That we were gonna go to VAR. We didn't though. And one of the reasons why is because we we don't have that that goal line technology to see if it crossed all the way over in and in NWSL right now. The ball has to completely cross the line. And there was no way that they could have reviewed it to see if it completely crossed the line. the thing that the box score will never tell you, because a box score doesn't know how close that ball came to crossing, and it doesn't know that Denver spent a good chunk of that first half Just a hair's worth of paint away from having two goals. The bigger thing that worked, and the thing that I want you to remember from this game is the midfield. Because the midfield has it's been a problem all season, if right, I'm being honest with you. It it's been a problem. If you've been with me on this show, you've heard me say it over and over the spacing, the build-up, turning possession into actual chances. That has been the whole. And Lindsay Heaps walked in. And started patching that hole in her very first game. She completed 40 of her 57 passes and 23 of those were in the final third. And she created two chances and she assisted on the game winner. That is a player who came in and immediately started running the exact part of the field that this team has struggled with all year. In 90 minutes, in 90 plus degree heat. against her old club. So when I tell you that the process won, I don't just mean the possession number. I mean the specific thing that has been broken all season immediately was fixed on Saturday. Abby Smith made two saves on the day and led every single player on that field, both teams, with fifteen recoveries, which if you remember from Friday is exactly the kind of night I told you that she is capable of. She is second in the league in recoveries per 90. And Kaylee Kurtz, Ava Gaetino each completed 60 passes over 90% on the day. fifty-eight percent possession. I will say there was a couple moments where we got to see Sophia Wilson's speed. she missed last year because she was pregnant. She's back with her beautiful baby Gigi. But we got to see that dangerous speed. And there was a couple times where Kaylee Kurtz was full blown sprint back. There was times the team was sprinting to recover. That's going to happen in games. I feel that it happens with the way that Denver plays a little bit too often for my comfort level. But here's the part that gave me the chills and it's not the stat. I want you to look at who had an impact on this game. Janine Saunis from Highland Ranch. She scored in the first half. Lindsay Heaps from Golden. She assisted on the winner. Sophia Wilson, the one who scored on us off the penalty, she's from Windsor. This club built a roster around Colorado kids on purpose. And those are just three of the players that were on the pitch. We've we have Meg Bodie that's from Colorado on the team, Allie Brazier that's on from Colorado on the team. Kurt Johnson literally said they look for players with Colorado DNA. And on the day that they opened that building, it was Colorado kids who decided the game itself. On both sides of the ball. You could not write it better than that. And I think that it's incredible to say what we have building here as a club system throughout the state of Colorado. Alright, now the part where I love this team enough to be honest with you about it, because two one over a good side can still show you real problems. And if I skip past all of them, then I'm not doing my job. So the first one is the finishing. We had 18 shots, seven on target, and it still took until the 86th minute to get the second goal. That 1.48 expected goals says Denver created enough to win this game more comfortably than it did. And this is the exact issue that I flagged in going into it on Friday. Denver is fifth in the league and goals left on the table. Controlling a game and closing a game are two very different skills. And for long stretches on Saturday, Denver had the first one and was still hunting for that second. Now the one I wanna I really wanna sit with because I'd be doing you at all a disservice if I just glossed over that. And it's Janine Saunas defensively. I wanna be careful here because I adore Janine Saunes. I love watching her play. She scored the goal that, you know, equalized the game. But you have to be able to hold two things at once. In the 16th minute, she nearly wins Denver a penalty. And the VAR waved it off. There was lots of unhappy Denver Summit fans. Now, the VAR waved it off. And after looking at it, when I was there live, I was also unhappy with the call. But after looking at it on the review, I w rewatched the game, I re we record it, and I go home and I rewatch it. When I watched the game, I could see why it was waved off. However, just seven minutes later. She is the one who gives the penalty away. She catches up to Sophia Wilson in the box, and she got whistled on the foul. And Wilson buried it. That is the only goal Denver conceded all day. And it came from our own captain getting caught. And this isn't w a one-off, friends. There are real fair questions about Saunus and the whole full back group defensively. And that's a trade-off. Baked into the way that Nick Cushing sets this team up. I talked about how there's times where we're we've been getting beat off of the long balls and our defensive line is having to sprint to catch up. Cushing sets this team up with the fullbacks high and involved in the tack. And the cost of that is exactly what we saw happen on Saturday. We were beat, our fullbacks had to sprint to get back. And unfortunately, Janine got a foul Trying to play catch up. That high back approach, it worked out on Saturday, but barely because the attack cleaned up the mess at the end. but against the Barbabandas and some of the the top talent in the sleek now, Sophia Wilson absolutely is top talent in this league, but that is something to be aware of going forward. We it it makes it makes me nervous watching us play so high because with some of these fast strikers, we're panicking to get back. And the third thing, quickly here, is managing the match in the heat. Portland found more of the second half than the shot chart shows. They stayed compact, they cleared their lines, they trusted their keeper, and then they hit us on the break, which again is the exact fingerprint I want you to watch out for. going forward for the second half of the season. Olivia Moultrie and Pietra Tordan both got looks in transition that a fresher back line probably snuffs out. So it wasn't perfect. It was a win with again, we're an expansion team. There's a lot of teaching tape attached to it. But here's my favorite thing about this 2 1 victory. And it comes straight from the number I put on the locker room wall last episode. Remember it? Well, neither of these teams had won a single match all season after conceding the first goal. Neither one. So Denver had trailed in five matches and lost all five. And on Saturday, Portland scored first in the in the twenty fifth minute off of that penalty. Denver went down, won nothing. And then Denver went and won it anyway. Again, I was sitting in the seats and I said, uh-oh, Portland scored first. Typically, if they score first, they win the game. Well, that streak is dead. The thing that had to find this team's ceiling all season that if they fell behind, the game was basically over. They just broke it. On the biggest day in club history. Well Maybe second biggest day. There's been a lot of big days for this club already this year. They broke it in the final fifteen minutes of the game. Well, I guess technically final four, but with extra time. But if if you remember, the final fifteen minutes of the game was supposed to be their worst window. The stretch where they conceded the most goals all year. Well, they flipped their own weakness into the moment that won it. And I don't know how else to say it, but that is growth. For an expansion team that you can see in year one. Which brings me to Natalie Means. Because on Friday I told you that the twelfth player in this roster was you, the crowd, and that the margins in my model were small enough That the fans were sitting inside of the math and I stand by that. That building was loud and it mattered. I loved all of us pounding our feet on that metal flooring. We were behind our team a hundred and ten percent. But on Saturday, as much of a twelfth man that we were, that twelfth man ended up being a literal player. It was one of our players off the bench, none other than rookie Natalie Means. And let me tell you about her, because rookie scores winner doesn't come close to covering it. she's played that defensive role a lot this season, but i in past episodes I've talked about Natalie. She's a bit of a Swiss army knife. Nick Cushing knows he can put her just about anywhere And when she came into the game. and the goal itself was chaos in the best possible way. Heaps had a shot blocked, the ball gets recycled, it works its way out wide, it works its way back to heaps, she works it out wide, and Denver puts another ball into the box towards the back post, and what Means did with it was so close to the line between a shot and a cross that people watching it live could not agree which one it was. If it was A cross that just happened to go in or if it was an incredibly well shot ball. it was a beautiful ball that was impossible to defend and impossible to keep out of the back of the net, obviously. But you know what? I don't think Natalie cares whether it was a shot or it was a cross. I don't care either because it went in and it won the game. So here's Nick Cushing and I want you to listen to this because it's really about how he builds a roster. And not just about one goal.

Katie: Natalie Means is working hard. think the hardest part of my job is picking, is picking the team at the moment because the likes of Emma Reagan and Natalie Means and Carson Pickett and you know, the subs are working. was part of my team talk today was the attitude and application this week and yesterday in particular of our bench and sort of non-star players. I'm telling you, it's the best in the league. If there, if there is a better attitude and a better application and work ethic in, non- playing players, it only matches what we've got. So it's the power of team. And I think you get, say all the time, if you invest in the team, it pays back. And did Twyla Brazier at Louisville and it's an actually means today is a good marker of just work hard, play your part for the team and be ready. And maybe one day you'll get that special moment for Natalie. She should enjoy it. It's amazing.

Kate Hanson: That's the whole philosophy right there. Invest in the group, not just the eleven who start, and it pays you back when you least expect it. Allie Brazier got her moment earlier this year against Louisville, and Saturday it was Natalie Means off the bench. And Janine Saunas, who has watched Natalie in training all year, had the best line of the entire weekend about her goal.

Katie: She just like the nicest human being you will ever meet in your life. And I think you could see by the reaction of the team just how happy everyone is for her. And she just brings such good energy. And I know seeing her train every day and seeing her come into games, it was kind of just a matter of time until she was gonna have that moment. And you know, that's that's this league, that's this team. We aren't just eleven players, we are a deep team, and that's what you need to to win championships. So we've had players come off the bench and be the difference for us many times this season, and I couldn't be happier that it was Natalie. And she meant it by the way. She said, I saw the goalkeeper was not in the right position. So I put it in the board. She did. She said that I was like you you own it, own it. I meant it too. So no, it's I'm just so happy for her and hopefully this just continues to help her really take off.

Kate Hanson: Means told her teammates that she saw the goalkeeper off her line before she hit it, so that it wasn't luck, that it was a player who was ready for the moment when it finally came, and the whole bench just mobbed her at the final whistle. And I got I got a little emotional watching it too, I'm not gonna lie to you. I got the opportunity to ask Natalie exclusively what she thought about that very first goal as an NWSL player.

Katie: So regarding whether my goal was a shot or a cross, I would say it was probably a little bit of a combination of both, but I do remember aiming more towards the goal, seeing that the goalie was outside and knowingly that if I could chip it over her, it would have a decent chance of being on frame. And I do know that the the play before or two plays before, I had had a shot and goal that got blocked. And so I was sort of in kind of a Take your shot, go to goal mindset. When the ball got to me wide and there was space for me to dribble, I took it. And since the goalie was cheating near post, I remember thinking to try and just chip it over her, knowingly that if it didn't go on frame, Allie Brazier was at the back post. And if it did go on frame, maybe something dangerous would happen. And it obviously worked out for the best. And I will say, my the way that my feet, watching the the video back, the way that my feet were planted, they were definitely aiming more towards The goal, so if it was a cross, it was like the worst hit cross ever. because it did not have the bend that I probably would have intended it to. long story short, I saw the keeper was out and I knew I just wanted to chip it over her for either someone running onto it or if it fell into the goal. Like it did, that was what I was hoping for. And I just took the space that I had to create a dangerous opportunity. But seeing the ball go in the back of the net was a dream come true and a feeling that I've been trying to reach for a while now and I feel like I've come close in other games where I've had some decent opportunities. But for it to happen in a game like that where we needed a goal and we deserved a goal. The team played so well against a top team in the league. The entire game we dominated, we had great chances. So just to help the team get over that hump and get three points in front of our amazing fans felt I mean indescribable and I just jumped straight into Ava's arms 'cause she was right there. And everyone just being so excited, the team my teammates, my coaches, the whole staff and all of our fans, I'm just so grateful to be surrounded by such amazing people every day, and it really makes moments like those and every day that we're at practice and working feel like fun rather than a job. so I'm so grateful for that experience and It's definitely a goal I will always remember. And I just hope that we can continue this momentum to go play a really good Washington team next weekend.

Kate Hanson: Okay, let's give Lindsay Heaps her proper moments here because this is one that we've been waiting Saturday, she walked out against her former team in Denver Green in her home state and captain her hometown club in the first match ever played in their new building. And again, like we said before, you you really could not script a better homecoming, a better game, a better opponent than this. Lindsay was worth the wait. She went full 90 with the armband on and she took six shots, tied for the most on the team. Her expected goals number 0.60 was the best on the roster. Two chances created, that near miss right at the goal line, and then the assist on the game winner. here is Nick Cushing on what Lindsay brought to the table.

Katie: So we asked Lindsay Thursday what she was capable of, what she felt she was capable of. didn't even answer the question. She just turned around and walked off. So I took that as the whole game and more. But she's a winner, right? So I think the most pleasing part or the most inspirational part, think, for ourselves as Denver fans and me included is she came here with real purpose to them. And this was a real big occasion for her and it meant a lot to her. So I could tell the moment when it cut back and she missed the chance in the first half, I could tell that it was like she'd seen that one coming. So game plan was just be ourselves. I think when we reflected and reviewed the Houston game, the idea of who we want to be, you could see evidently, of course we can defend better and of course we can be more clinical, but to be on the front foot and to be an attacking team and to be carrying the game and to have intensity that puts the opposition on the back foot. We could see that in the Houston game. the message today was go be ourselves and make this game really difficult for Portland by being on the front foot. And I thought we were for the whole game, maybe the last seven minutes, which is natural in the game, but for the whole game, we had intent.

Kate Hanson: And here's Lindsay herself right after the whistle. And listen to how wiped out she is because this is a person who just played her first full ninety minutes at altitude in a very, very hot July day in her home state.

Katie: Then after my first nine day from for a long time. I think we said it before the game, like what an opportunity to play in front of our fans in our own stadium. and especially after these last two weeks, just a a lot of stuff the team went through. and I think we both were very proud of how we came out today, even taking a a goal early on, whether it was a pedal there or not, I'm not sure. I don't didn't see it back. But I I don't feel like there was ever a moment that we felt like Like we weren't gonna come back. and even through the second half, I think I personally felt like the goal was coming. so what an exciting way to to end that game and have all our fans behind us.

Kate Hanson: Now the part that doesn't fit in one of my handy dandy spreadsheets. Sorry, again, Josh, because you know how much he loves his spreadsheets, but Centennial Stadium itself. Because this was as much of a story on Saturday as anything that happened on the grass, and I want to do it fairly. The good and the not so good, and what's coming, because there's a lot to talk about there. The good first, and it genuinely is good. This is the first stadium in Colorado ever built specifically for a professional women's team. And the club put it up, plus the Common Spirit Performance Center, plus community fields on the same campus, in just over 12 months. Twelve months, from a dirt field to what 12,000 of us were just sitting in on Saturday. Here's Nick Cushing on walking into it for the first time.

Katie: Incredible. I think when I walked in to see the stadium that is adorned in our colour before the crowd came in is special. The way the stadium is structured is going to really make it difficult for teams. You can feel the noise and you can hear... It's got that feel that when they bang on the material that it's made of, it's like rocks and you can feel it coming. And the crowd are as incredible as ever. And I said to our team, win, lose or draw, what you've got to realise is this is a very, very, very special football club. Because they have so many fans. I've seen this week, I said something in the press. And I don't know if this person's going to see this. I don't know who this person is. And on their social media, somebody put underneath, well, we're going to be there every week and we're going to be behind you every week. It's very, very special.

Kate Hanson: And that does not happen without partners. now the not so good. It was really hot. I told you Friday it'd be 90 plus degrees at noon at the kickoff with no shade in the stands and I was out there baking right alongside you. Press box, sweets. I mean there's there's no shade out there. And I can confirm it was brutal. And it wasn't only the heat. Parking around the new site. is a little crazy. If you're going to any Denver Summit games For the rest of the year, head to the Denver Summit website and buy your parking passes now. I cannot stress that enough. Find someone to carpool with. It it go early. All the things that you typically say like for a Broncos playoff game. You gotta act early. So get your parking pass in advance. Don't be surprised if things sell out. Bring a water bottle. The water bottle lines were long. Get up right before the hydration breaks or get up at the 10-minute mark and go fill the water bottles. There if you want to miss a lot of the lines. The concourse, it is narrow. So just go into it knowing that. Keep in mind, this is not forever. This is just for a little bit longer until we get that Santa Fe Yards Stadium built. It was hot, but it's not gonna be like that every week. Here's Cushing in the postgame press conference on the conditions.

Katie: Hydrated. I think sun cream and water was an essential sort of accessory today. Our op team did an incredible job of like pinning fans and putting towels and it is what it is, right? I mean, noon kickoff is gonna be difficult in this heat, but I thought the players were excellent in just driving intensity and just going, just grinding it out. It's tough, it's hot. I did say in the dressing room that I said. You know, well done 'cause it was really hot on the bench. I don't think the team received it that well when we said that we were hot and tired on the bench after they play. So I'll play it any time in any weather as long as we get the fans in.

Kate Hanson: In the noon window, like I said, it existed for CBS because we the game was on CBS. It was a great game to be on CBS, but not for It's not a great game time for anybody else that was in that building. The players, the staff, the fans, everyone was hot. But here's another part that I think that matters, and it's the what's next. On the same day that they opened Centennial Stadium. The club released new renderings for the permanent home at Santa Fe Yards in Denver. And construction there starts this fall. the single biggest change in this new render in these new renderings is the social is the expanded social spaces. So more room for people to gather before and during and after matches. And the club said that the redesign came directly from fan feedback, which Tells you something, right? They opened one stadium and the very same day showed you the next one. And the next one is built to fix the exact thing people were grumbling about about the first one. Centennial was never meant to be the finished product, folks, okay? and even as a placeholder, it gave us a great night of soccer. Heat and parking and all. Santa Fe Yards, that is the real destination. Again, if you want to see some of the renderings, head to my socials or just wa if you're watch watch it on YouTube, because I have some pictures here as I'm talking. I will also put it on the blog. So if you want to check it out. Head on over to the fifty two eighty pitch dot com and check out the blog. Go take a look. They're beautiful designs, beautiful renderings. So here's where I land. After Saturday, Denver has five wins, five losses, and four draws. Nineteen points through fourteen matches. They came in eleventh and they went out having beaten a third place team. And I want to be clear, this was a good win. maybe the best of the season. And my read on the season has genuinely shifted. The midfield problem that has haunted this team all season got a real answer on Saturday. And that right there is the headline for me. The defensive questions at fullback, you know, that's that's the style of play that Nick Cushing is playing. We will figure it out. It's a little scary while we figure it out. They continue to get exposed and then bailed out by Abby Smith who's just playing top of top game top of her game right now. And both of those things are true at the same time. We're we're fixing things, we're figuring things out, and we have the right players in place that can help us save face. If the goal this year is a real playoff push, there is ground to make up. Eleventh place, we gotta get up we gotta get up way higher in the table. We're not gonna be there in ele we're not making playoffs i at if you're sitting at eleventh place. We've gotta be at least at eighth. right now it it we are sitting in tenth place. We have two more spots we need to move up to get that last playoff spot. But I don't want that last playoff spot. I wanna be sitting at sixth or fifth. We have a lot of ground to make up, and I I'm not gonna lie. There is a difference between a team that is still figuring out who it is and a team that's found itself and is just cleaning up the execution. And two weeks ago, I would have told you it looks like Denver's still trying to figure out who it is. After Saturday, I think they're the second one. And that more than the score is the thing that I will remember from this Portland Thorns game a month from now. So what's next? Denver goes on the road, faces Trinity Rodman and the Washington Spirit at Audi Field on Sunday. We'll have a whole episode about it. And then comes home for three straight to open August. And Washington is a real test. Trinity Rodman, again, one of the best in the league. One of the best in the world. Washington we had a draw with them at Empower Field. But I think that we've cleaned up enough now to know that of who we are and how we can finish. Washington is a good team in their own building. And if Saturday's version of Denver travels to Washington, We're going to learn a whole lot about who this team really is. And if that fullback stuff shows up again against a really good team away from home, well, that is the more honest answer about where this roster really is. I will have the full breakdown for you on Friday before kickoff, same as always. But Saturday was a good game for us. Saturday was a huge game for the Denver Summit. we saw finishes from New Faces. We saw our co-captain Janine Sonas step up and a great goal to kick things off. We saw the disruption that Lindsay Heaps is capable of and the type of game that she is going to be bringing. to the Denver Summit, and I think we have a reason to be legitimately excited about this second half of the season. We still have a long ways to go. There's still a lot of soccer left to be played. And this team is deep enough to where and every week it's going to be a different person that shows up and is the superhero. This time it was Natalie Means. Could not happen to a nicer person. Her team loves her. The fans love her. Fifty two eighty pitch, we love her. that's the show, my friends. More stats, the renderings, everything that I couldn't squeeze up into this episode, I will be putting on the blog and I will be putting in the newsletter. If you're not on the newsletter yet, be sure to sign up at fifty two eighty pitch dot com. If you are signed up and you haven't seen it for a minute, check your spam because Gmail is tricky. And if you're new here, hit that follow button, subscribe to the show. I have new episodes every Tuesday and sometimes Friday. And if you think that I was too hard on Sonus and that back line today, Or not hard enough, come tell me over on Instagram because that back and forth with you is genuinely my favorite part of doing this show. This has been the 5280 Pitch. I'm Kate Hansen. We'll see you in the next episode of Women's Soccer at Altitude.