Denver Summit FC Match Notes at Utah
NWSL Denver Summit FC

Denver Summit FC Match Notes at Utah

Published on May 23, 2026 under National Women's Soccer League (NWSL)
Denver Summit FC News Release


TODAY'S MATCH

Denver Summit FC (3-3-3, 9 pts) travels to Utah to face the Royals (6-2-2, 20 pts) for the first time.

Denver is coming off back-to-back wins, including its first home win in franchise history last Saturday against Orlando.

Utah sits tied for second in the table with Portland, the pair trailing San Diego with 21 points ... the Royals have not lost a match since March 22, a 2-1 loss to San Diego.

Abby Smith faces her former team, making 17 starts for the club in 2018 and logging 1,512 minutes.

LAST TIME OUT

Denver Summit FC earned their second consecutive victory with a decisive 3-1 win over Orlando.

Denver's 11 shots in the first half tied for their most in a half, also recording 11 shots in the first half at Houston ... Denver's 23 total shots in the match also marked its most in a game.

Eva Gaetino scored her first career goal in the 10th minute, Denver's earliest goal of the season.

A penalty kick resulted in a goal for Janine Sonis in the 54th minute, Denver's first PK taken this season and Sonis' first of her NWSL career ... Sonis scored for the second time in the 77th minute, earning a brace in her second consecutive match

Sonis became the third NWSL player this season with multiple braces, joining Barbra Banda and Kiki Van Zanten ... also joined Temwa Chawinga (3 goals 5/10, 2 goals 5/15) as the only two players to score multiple goals in back-to-back games this season.

THE LYNCH PIN

Entering the weekend, midfielder Devin Lynch is one of three rookies to have started each match for their respective clubs alongside Mimi Van Zanten (San Diego) and Linda Ullmark (Houston).

Among rookies, Lynch's 739 minutes played are the fifth-most through Wednesday's games, while her 19 tackles won are the second-most.

LOOK TO THE PEAK

The Summit lead the league in goals per game ... through nine games played, Denver is averaging 1.67 goals per game (15 total) ... the next highest club is Washington's 1.6 per game.

Entering the weekend, Abby Smith ranks second in the NWSL in recoveries per 90 (10.9) and goals prevented (4.4).

Defender Kaleigh Kurtz leads the league with 1.6 blocks per 90.

Melissa Kössler, Tash Flint and Janine Sonis are all tied for fourth in the league in goals with four each.

WHEREAS DENVER SUMMIT FC...

On April 27, Colorado Governor Jared Polis declared the date "Denver Summit FC Day" in the state of Colorado.

The event at the capitol was celebrated by Controlling Owner Rob Cohen, President Jen Millet, General Manager Curt Johnson, Colorado native players Janine Sonis, Ally Brazier, Jordan Nytes and Meg Boade and many Summit staff members.

"Colorado is the best place to train and compete, and we're inspired by Summit FC," Polis said. "It's especially meaningful to see Colorado's youngest soccer players look up to and cheer on some of the best athletes in the world, right here at home, for Colorado's newest professional sports team."

IRON WOMEN

Defender Kaleigh Kurtz extended her consecutive start streak to 123 games and has also played 11,032 consecutive regular season minutes, every possible regular-season minute since June 26, 2021 ... both marks are the longest active streaks in the league.

Goalkeeper Abby Smith has also played every minute for Summit FC this season, joining Kurtz as two of 27 players to do so for their respective teams through Wednesday of week nine.

PICK ME

At the 23rd minute against Boston on May 3, Carson Pickett reached 15,000 NWSL minutes, becoming the 19th player in NWSL history to reach that milestone.

She is also on track to reach 200 regular-season appearances this season, entering the weekend with 192 matches played.

GIVE BACK

On April 28, Carson Pickett was announced as Denver's Lauren Holiday Impact Award Nominee.

This season, Pickett will partner with Hand Camp Colorado, an organization dedicated to empowering children born with upper limb differences.

ON MOUNTAIN TIME

Summit FC's inaugural roster included four Colorado natives in forward Ally Brazier (Colorado Springs), defender Janine Sonis (Highlands Ranch), goalkeeper Jordan Nytes (Aurora) and midfielder Meg Boade (Lone Tree).

Midfielder Jordan Baggett (Highlands Ranch) is also a part of Denver Summit FC's roster, but is out on maternity leave, while midfielder Lindsey Heaps (Golden) will join the team this summer.

A total of 21 players in NWSL (including Heaps) are from Colorado, third-most behind California (72) and Texas (23) ... six of those 21 are rostered with the Summit.

Check out the Denver Summit FC Statistics

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