The season didn’t end quite how Colorado Pride hoped. After a 1-0 win over the number two team in the division to stay in the title hunt, Pride suffered a heartbreaking 1-0 loss to the top team in the division dashing hopes of repeating as Rockies Division champions. It was not the win or the loss that earned Colorado Pride the Global Scarves Matchweek Eight Team of the Week honors, it was how the club went about it, and the class with which they competed that earned them this week’s honor.  

 

“As a team, we had a clear plan for both games and trusted that staying true to our process and identity—while respecting the oppositions’ threats—would lead to success,” Matt Saul, Colorado Pride head coach, said. “What stood out most was the players’ commitment to connecting with their purpose, their why, and using that to elevate both individual and collective performances.”

 

Pride entered Matchweek Eight still very much in the hunt for its second Rockies Division title in a row. Tied on points with PDS Academy, it was do-or-die as the two clubs faced off for the second time this season in a midweek clash. Seventeen days earlier PSD handed Pride its second home loss of the season, a 3-0 humbling to close out Matchweek Five. 

 

Photo courtesy of Colorado Pride

 

“Facing teams a second time allowed us to prepare more effectively,” Saul said. “Against PSD, we had a strong sense of their key players and how they’d try to challenge us, as well as how we could exploit their weaknesses.”

 

Pride played an almost perfect game. Chanisse Hendrix scored her first and only goal of the season in the 40th minute and the back line of Sadie Jones (Briar Cliff University 2023- ), Sarah Dunn (Colorado Mesa University 2023- ), Sophia DeJoia (Marist University 2024- ), along with goalkeeper Kira Ybarra stymied the potent PSD attack time and again to steal three crucial road points when they needed them most. 

 

Three days later Pride traveled north up I-25 to close out the regular season against league debutants Northern Colorado Rain FC. It was the Rain that stunned Pride in its home opener, scoring three quick goals before Pride fans were even in their seats, then running away with a 6-1 win. Northern Colorado had not stopped scoring since. 

 

“NOCO [Rain] was a slightly different challenge—another talented group with a distinct style of play,” Saul said. “We didn’t make major adjustments to our identity, but we refined our approach for each game.”

 

The first 20 minutes was a chess match, with neither team giving any ground. Then a missed tackle in the penalty area led to a Northern Colorado penalty kick placed just beyond Ybarra’s reach. Now having to chase a goal, Saul and his coaching staff found the right combination to break down Rain’s league-leading defense. 

 

But the goal did not come. There was always that glance off a defender’s shin or cleared cross by the Rain defense. Pride gave everything it had in one of the most entertaining WPSL games of the season. 

 

Photo courtesy of Colorado Pride

 

“While it’s hard to single out just a few players—because the entire team performed at a fantastic level—Ava Amsden (Louisiana State University 2024- ), Sarah Dunn, and Isa Murdock (Elon University 2022- )were particularly impactful in their roles,” Saul said. “Kira Ybarra was also a standout, making several crucial saves in both games and providing the team with a sense of stability.”

 

Colorado Pride may not be advancing on to the postseason. But everyone involved knows it was not for a lack of effort or preparation or skill. 

 

“We improved with every match,” Saul said.

 

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