DEC 5, 2024 | SPORTS | By Obie King-Bagley
The Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC, the Springs’ professional United States League (USL) soccer team, won their first program USL Championship trophy on Nov. 23 with a 3-0 win over Rhode Island FC. The Switchbacks dominated the championship game before a sold-out crowd of 8,023 attendees, repeatedly capitalizing on a poorly organized Rhode Island defense to notch three unanswered goals.
The Switchbacks hit the ground running. Twenty-two minutes in, Switchbacks’ winger Yosuke Hanya, on loan from Colorado Rapids for the 2024 season, sent a pinpoint cross into Rhode Island’s box. Midfielder Juan Tejada finished to give the Switchbacks an early lead. Visiting Rhode Island applied pressure in the following minutes. Still, the Switchbacks doubled their lead 20 minutes later when Jairo Henríquez broke away on a counter-attack and fired a brilliant shot from the top of the box past the Rhode Island goalkeeper.
After the half, Rhode Island continued to press for a goal to get back into the match. With Rhode Island piling on the pressure, the Switchbacks broke on a counter-attack in the 53rd minute, with striker Ronaldo Damus scoring, bringing the Switchbacks three goals ahead.
The easy finish made it 3-0, killing Rhode Island’s momentum, and the rest of the match was fairly cagey, with the Switchbacks defending well and Rhode Island failing to consistently threaten.
Both sides’ road to the championship finale was far from routine. In their first season as a USL team, Rhode Island FC finished fifth in the Eastern Conference. They played every playoff game on the road, toppling Indy Eleven 3-2, Louisville City 3-0 and Charleston Battery 2-1. They entered the final as the slight underdogs, playing a fourth consecutive game on the road. Despite the loss in the final, it was a wildly successful first year.
The Switchbacks, meanwhile, had a rollercoaster of a year. Under new head coach James Chambers, they started the season 0-5-0, only scoring once. The start was their worst franchise start since their establishment in 2014, according to The Gazette, but the team was set on a championship title.
They ended their losing streak by going undefeated for nine games as their form corrected, and they began to rise in the Western Conference standings. Their good form and discipline continued through the season, in a road win against Sacramento Republic FC in the final game of the regular season. This win placed the Switchbacks at second in the conference and gave them a home advantage entering the playoffs.
Following a comfortable 2-0 win over Oakland Roots FC on Nov. 2, the Switchbacks went into overtime to fend off Orange County SC 2-1 two weeks later. In the Western Conference final, the Switchbacks managed a nervy 1-0 win over the Las Vegas Lights.
With the season behind them, the Switchbacks will focus on building up the roster to a competitive level for 2025 after losing a few key players. While most of the team’s core remains intact, including Tejada, Zach Zandi, goalkeeper Christian Herrera and defender Duke Lacroix, at least five starters from the final will likely not be with the Switchbacks next year.
Henríquez had his contract option declined and will not return, while Damus and Hanya are returning to GIF Sundsvall and Colorado Rapids once their loan moves end. Two more loanees, defenders Delentz Pierre and Matt Real, are also returning to their parent clubs, though both are out of contract this winter, so could return if the Switchbacks want to bring them back.
Despite losing a few key players, the future is bright for the Switchbacks. In a league as volatile as the USL Championship, which has lost 19 teams since 2020, the Switchbacks have stabilized their program. While another trophy next year might be unlikely, as only one team, Louisville City in 2017 and 2018, has ever repeated as champions in the league’s history, the Switchbacks don’t appear to be going anywhere. They will likely be back towards the top of the table once again.