The 5280 Pitch

The 5280 Pitch is Denver's home for Summit FC and NWSL coverage—hosted by Colorado native and veteran sports broadcaster Kate Hanson.
Real insight into Denver's inaugural season. Player profiles, tactical breakdowns, match analysis, and the stories that make women's soccer at altitude compelling.
New episodes every Tuesday.

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Oct. 6, 2026

Denver Summit Beat Chicago 3-0. Now They Need 9 Points and Some Help.

Denver Summit FC beat Chicago 3-0, and the two biggest names on the roster played exactly like it. Janine Sonis has 12 goals and six assists from left back, Lindsey Heaps just scored twice, and the NWSL playoff line is still four points away. That's the push this episode is built to make sense of. Kate Hanson breaks down the most controlled win of the Summit's season, from Janine's 8th-minute strike from distance to Lindsey's brace and Abby Smith's 20th career shutout on her birthday, with post

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Sept. 29, 2026

"We Probably Have to Win Out" Denver Summit Playoff Hopes After a 4-1 Loss in KC

Denver Summit FC led 1-0 in Kansas City and Abby Smith had just saved a penalty shot. Then the NWSL's only unbeaten home team scored three goals in 22 minutes. That's the collapse this episode is trying to make sense of. Kate Hanson breaks down how a 4-1 loss at CPKC Stadium got away. We talk about the penalty save that flipped the momentum, Haley Hopkins' 18-minute hat trick, and why the high press that makes this team so fun to watch is also what got it beaten, with postgame audio from Nick C

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Sept. 22, 2026

Denver Summit Can Jump Into a Playoff Spot Saturday. KC Stands in the Way.

Denver Summit FC can move into an NWSL playoff spot this weekend. It takes two results, and one of them is winning in a building where nobody has won all year. But first, Saturday night. An hour of monsoon rain, a Seattle team sitting right above us in the table, and a 2-0 lead that started to slip just three days after we let one get away against Bay. This time we held on. Seattle had one shot in the first half, and their own coach admitted we wanted it more. That's the team we are. I also ge

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Sept. 18, 2026

Six Games to Save the Season: Bay FC 2-2 and Seattle Next

Eighteen points left. Five to make up. That's where we are after drawing 2-2 with Bay FC at Centennial, and it's why Wednesday night hurt the way it did. We led that game 2-0. Eighteen shots, ten on target, three and a half expected goals through the first hour. Lindsey Heaps opened it off Natalie Means' first career assist, Janine got her eleventh of the season from a Yaz Ryan ball, and then we stopped playing. Three shots after the 61st minute. Bay scored in the 73rd and again in the fifth mi

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Sept. 15, 2026

Denver Summit Gave Away Two Points They Couldn't Afford. Bay FC Is Next

Denver Summit FC went up 3-1 in Los Angeles with half an hour to play. Thirteen minutes later it was 3-3. Two points gone, and an NWSL playoff race that just got a whole lot steeper. But the scoreline is doing a lot of lying. Kate breaks down how Denver had more of the ball than Angel City and generated less than half the danger — 1.28 expected goals to 3.37, the second-worst defensive night of the season — and why a high boot inside your own box with a two-goal lead is a game management proble

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Sept. 11, 2026

Tash Flint Interview: Denver Summit FC, Nick Cushing and That Shot (BONUS)

Denver Summit FC forward Tash Flint joins me this week, and folks, I've wanted this NWSL interview for a long time. You chant her name at the stadium. Now you get to hear her story. Tash grew up in Salford chasing her brothers to training and playing with the lads. She was in Manchester United's academy at five, then moved to City when United didn't have a women's team for her to step into. At City she won the 2014 League Cup under a coach you might know. Nick Cushing. She tells me what Nick s

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Recent Blog Posts

Oct. 6, 2026

Captains take over: Sonis, Heaps keep Summit’s playoff hopes alive in 3-0 win over Chicago

Photo Courtesy of: fiddel.fotos
Emma Regan had a straightforward answer when she was asked about Sunday's opening goal.
"Big thanks to Janine," she said. "She kind of made that goal out of nothing. But I'll take the assist for sure."
In a must-wi…

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Oct. 1, 2026

Denver Summit FC Stadium Breaks Ground as NWSL Playoff Hopes Narrow

Photo courtesy of Victorgraphy_20
Denver Summit FC broke ground Thursday on its permanent stadium at Santa Fe Yards, with completion targeted for the end of 2028. Lindsey Heaps, club president Jen Millet and the project's construction lead talked a…

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About the Host

Kate Hanson

Host of The 5280 Pitch | Former 850 KOA Broadcaster | Colorado Native

Kate Hanson is a veteran sports broadcaster and the voice behind The 5280 Pitch, Denver's home for Summit FC and NWSL coverage. With years of experience at 850 KOA—Denver's premier sports radio station—Kate brings professional broadcasting chops and deep Colorado sports knowledge to women's soccer coverage.

As a Colorado native and lifelong soccer fan, Kate covers Denver Summit FC's inaugural season with the same depth and analysis she brought to Denver's other professional teams. Her style is direct, energetic, and unapologetically passionate about treating women's soccer with the respect it deserves.

What Kate Talks About:
-Denver Summit FC's expansion season and NWSL growth
-Tactical breakdowns, player profiles, and match analysis
-The altitude advantage and what makes Centennial Stadium unique
-Building community around women's professional sports in Denver
-Colorado soccer culture and the youth development pipeline
-Women's sports media and broadcast coverage

Kate's broadcast background at 850 KOA gives her a unique perspective on how women's soccer fits into Denver's sports landscape—and why this moment matters for the city and the league.

Available for:
-Podcast guest appearances
-Panel discussions on women's sports media and broadcasting
-Denver sports commentary and NWSL analysis
-Soccer culture and community-building conversations

Contact: 5280pitch@gmail.com

When she's not behind the mic, Kate is usually at a pitch somewhere in Colorado, cheering on the next generation.