MF Lindsey Heaps decided the Denver Summit were the “right fit” after seeing the “commitment and investment by the ownership group, including the performance center,” according to Marissa Kraus of the Colorado Springs GAZETTE. The USWNT captain officially joined the Summit this week after signing in January, but acquiring Heaps for her hometown team “was a yearlong process.” Summit GM Curt Johnson “didn’t know if it would work out.” But he said that Heap’s “excitement about the ‘project’ and being a leader for the expansion team were what drove it forward.” Kraus noted for Heaps, it was a “dream to play in her home state.” Heaps said, “Seeing and hearing everything they’ve done, this is the place I want to be.” She added, “I’m older but can still grow as a player and leader. Bringing in a coach like Nick (Cushing), who can help me grow, is where I want to be. It wasn’t a question when I saw everything they were doing” (Colorado Springs GAZETTE, 7/8).
GAME CHANGER: In Denver, Luca Evans wrote Cushing and company are “expecting life to change immediately” in the still-developing acres around Centennial Stadium with Heaps’ arrival. The “future is now, and Heaps’ arrival will only stoke more fervor for women’s soccer in Denver,” after the Summit drew over 63,000 fans to Empower Field in March, setting the national attendance record for a women’s pro sporting event. Heaps “put in her two cents for Denver to be named a site” for the FIFA Women’s World Cup in 2031. Heaps: “I’ve seen the sellout crowds and the support that we get, the noise. And even going to the game last weekend, I was like, ‘This is amazing.’ So why would you not have Denver be a host city? I would hope for that” (DENVER POST, 7/8).
