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NEWS: ROCKIES DIVISION TITLE CLINCHED

Published Jun 30, 2025

Photo by Griffin Garner

NORTHERN COLORADO RAIN FC ASCEND TO
ROCKIES DIVISION TITLE

It was clear what Northern Colorado Rain FC needed to do Saturday night. Win. A win made things simple. A win at home, in front of its appreciative fanbase, would crown the Rain as Rockies Division champions in its first WPSL season. Anything less than a win, against the reigning Rockies Division champions Colorado Pride, which was playing for its life, would make things incredibly complicated.

The Rain did just that, riding an Amy Smith (Louisiana State University 2024- ) penalty kick 20 minutes into the match to a hard-fought 1-0 win, and the Rockies Division title. Goalkeeper, Paige Fry (San Jose State University 2024- ) earned her second consecutive clean sheet in four starts for Rain.

“We came out and did everything that we worked on for the last eight weeks. The girls played incredibly hard against a very good team,” Kelly Brown, Northern Colorado Rain FC head coach, said. “I’m incredibly proud of everything we accomplished this year.”

Earlier in the season, in Colorado Springs, the Rain ran away with the match in its first encounter with Pride 6-1 in a match that was much closer than the scoreline indicated. Pride came into Saturday’s do-or-die match resolved to not make the same mistakes it had that allowed Rain to put three early goals and all but put the game out of reach in the first half hour.

Northern Colorado finished its first WPSL season 7-0-1, winning seven straight games after falling 2-0 to PSD Academy to open the season. Rain rebounded from its season-opening loss tallying a staggering 41 goals over the course of the eight-game regular season.

Smith led the club and the division with eight goals in seven appearances for Rain this season. Sisters Kiley and Abby Ballek each had six goals on the season. Kiley (University of Wyoming 2023- ) averaged a goal per game in her six appearances for her hometown side, while younger sister Abby (University of Wisconsin 2025- ), a recent U.S. Youth National Team call-up, posted identical numbers: six goals in six appearances. Skylar Haase (Texas Tech University 2023- ) and Macy Schultz each have five goals on the season: Haase in four appearances and Schultz in three.

At the other end of the field, Rain finished tied with second-place finishers, PSD Academy with five goals against on the season. Northern Colorado’s goalkeeping corps of Fry, Pakistani International Zeeyana Jivraj, and Olivia Dietrich (University of Houston 2023- ) posting collectively four clean sheets.

As Rockies Division champions, Rain will represent the Mountain Conference in the Central Region Playoffs hosted by the winner of the Midwest Conference July 12 and 13. The Central winners advance to the WPSL Championships in Stillwater, Okla. July 18 and 20.

“This title means everything to this club,” Brown said. “Now we just have to prepare and get ready for the next challenge.”