Commerce City, Colo. – After closing out the first leg of the season with a win, Denver Summit FC hosts 2025 Shield Winners the Kansas City Current. Kansas City currently sits 6th in the standings while Denver sits at 9th. Here’s four things to look for when Denver takes on the Current and 2025 league MVP and Golden Boot Winner Temwa Chawinga.
The Match: Kansas City Current at Denver Summit
Summit’s Previous Result: 1-0 Win against Racing Louisville
Current’s Previous (Regular Season) Result: 1-0 Win against Boston Legacy
When: Friday, July 3rd at 7:30 PM
Where: DICKS Sporting Goods Park, Commerce City, Colorado
TV/Streaming: NWSL+, Local Denver 3
Returning from Break
As Denver Summit returns from the summer break, Coach Nick Cushing will need to prepare the team to leap right into the fire. Typically, some NWSL teams show a dip in performance in their return from break, but with Denver’s current standings, they cannot afford to do this. The team’s 9th place spot in the standings currently leaves them in a tenuous playoff position. If the team can collect some wins to start off the second leg of the season, they can build momentum before other returning teams have the chance to catch up.
Prior to the break, the team made simple mistakes that led to easy concessions. A foul in the box by Ayo Oke, a turnover by Eva Gaetino, and easy dispossessions in the midfield were all recent errors the team needs to clean up in the training leading up to their return.
Kansas City had a head start back from camp. Last week, the team fell to Gotham FC in the NWSL Challenge Cup (2-0). While the loss was likely demoralizing for the Current, it likely helped KC Coach Armas identify weaknesses prior to facing the Summit. However, there is also a possibility that coaching staff will not have the ability to correct the fatal errors in the quick turnaround.
Mid-Summer Movement
Although Denver has yet to announce any significant changes to their roster (interleague transfers have started but the international transfer window officially opens on July 14th), KC Current has seen movement already. Forward and USWNT star Ally Sentnor departed KC Current in the offseason in a move to Angel City FC. Despite being a consistent call up to the USWNT, Sentnor only scored two goals for the Current while starting all 12 games. While the extent of the impact of her departure is debatable, the Current will certainly be weakened by this loss.
TEMVP & Co.
The biggest threat to the Denver Summit will be Temwa Chawinga. Chawinga is one of the best players in the world and arguably the best player in the NWSL. The star forward has brought home two Golden Boot and two MVP awards. She has snapped records left and right, including records held by star athletes such as Sam Kerr (recently signed with Gotham FC). This season, Chawinga had a slow start as she returned from injury, but she won NWSL Player of the Week in May and scored her first-ever hat trick in the league.
Center backs Kaleigh Kurtz and Eva Gaetino cannot be caught sleeping against Chawinga. The MVP is also complemented by a lethal attacker on the wing with USWNT player Michelle Cooper, so the starting fullbacks will also need to be on guard and prevent as many crosses in as possible. Finally, although goalkeeper Abby Smith has been quiet recently, she will need to be active against the onslaught of shots that will be coming her way. Smith will look to follow the performance of Gotham keeper Ann Katrin Berger who shut out the Current despite numerous dangerous shots.
Player Availability
While Lindsey Heaps is set to join the Denver Summit for the second leg of their season, she will be unavailable for the July 3rd and 12th games. The international transfer window opens July 14, so on paper, she’s not a Summit player until then.
The USWNT captain has not been practicing with the team and was reportedly taking a break following her season in France. So even if she was available for selection, her minutes would be limited.
On a separate note, fans should keep an eye out as availability reports are released to see if Tash Flint is back from her rib fracture. Flint suffered the fracture against the Utah Royals (rib fractures generally take about four to six weeks to heal from – the fracture occurred four weeks ago). Flint has made a big impact on the Summit beyond even her four goals. The Brit’s presence on the field is immeasurable in terms of defending, pressuring the opposition, and maintaining composure in the midfield.
For KC Current, some starters’ availability is questionable. For last week’s Challenge Cup, starting goalkeeper Lorena and midfielder Debinha were unavailable due to injuries. With the midfield being one of KC’s biggest weaknesses, Debinha returning could be dangerous for the Summit. Without Lorena (2025 NWSL Goalkeeper of the Year), the Summit will possibly be able to take advantage of a less experience keeper and sneak some easier goals in.
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Samuel Worsley 
Matt Pollard 