PLAYOFFS: COLORADO PRIDE, UNION KC

Written By: Sofia Scekic
Photography: Phenix Smith, Adyson Bray

WITH CONFERENCE TITLES SECURED, COLORADO PRIDE AND UNION KC EYE CENTRAL REGION TITLE AS THEY MEET IN SEMIFINAL ROUND

No. 4 Colorado Pride (7-0-1) and No. 15 Union KC (8-1-1) will play the Central Region’s second Regional Semifinal playoff game at 7:30 p.m. CT on Saturday, July 13 with each side aiming to advance to the Regional Finals on Sunday. 

Both teams earned a spot in the playoffs by winning their conference – the Pride dominated the Rockies Division with 21 points, five more than the second-place team, while Union KC used a strong second half of its regular season to win the Heartland Conference with 25 points, also five ahead of the second-place team. This semifinal matchup will be played at Bob Young Field in Sioux Falls, S.D.

Union KC, which rebranded from Kansas City Scott Gallagher in its second WPSL season, is coming into the playoffs on a hot streak, winning against both the conference’s second- and third-place teams (KC Courage and Oklahoma City FC, respectively) in the final week of the regular season. The team has ridden the strength of its defense this season, particularly in the final week, shutting out both those teams by a combined score of 4-0. 

Colorado Pride Head Coach Matt Saul emphasized Union KC’s hot streak as one of the main things that will make Friday’s game challenging for his team, saying “they’ll have momentum and will be equally committed and excited to play this weekend.”

While Union KC is still a relative newcomer to the WPSL, the team is no stranger to tough competition. It played the Courage and Oklahoma City twice in the regular season – both teams are well-established in the WPSL and the Courage represented the Heartland Conference in the 2023 Playoffs. 

Dan Naidu, Union KC director of coaching, said the team’s training plan hasn’t changed significantly heading into the playoffs and that they are all excited for the opportunity to represent the conference in the playoffs in just their second season in the league.

“We are focused on staying healthy, creating a fun and challenging training environment to help us prepare for the weekend,” Naidu said. “We need to control the controllables and work together as a team to have success.”

The Pride’s strength this season, on the other hand, has been its explosive offense that has scored more than 10 goals in two games this season and eight goals in another – routinely winning games by at least four goals. The Pride’s defense also deserves mention after four games ended in shutouts. 

The Pride’s ability to play complimentary soccer on offense and defense will present a significant challenge for Union KC, which did not see a team that strong on both sides of the ball during the regular season in the Heartland Conference. 

Union KC’s primary focus will likely be containing forward  Bello, who scored 15 of the team’s 38 goals this season. She was voted the Central Region Player of the Week after she scored five goals in the Pride’s week three game.

Saul said his team is not treating this game too differently from the regular season in terms of preparation, “We have maintained a consistent approach to training throughout the season, emphasizing our process, individual player actions, behaviors and choices, and team culture.”

“The team’s energy is positive,” he added, “and the players are highly committed to the culture they have established and take ownership of.”

The winner of Saturday evening’s game will face off against the winner of the Central Region’s first Regional Semifinal game between national No. 1 Sioux Falls City FC (9-0-0) and FC Pride (6-1-4). Sioux Falls City is hosting the Central Region games in South Dakota and has only allowed one goal in nine games this season. That game will take place at 4:30 PM CT on Saturday afternoon.