Janine Sonis' Stoppage-Time Free Kick Lifts Denver Summit Past Utah Royals After Late Milazzo Equalizer

Eight minutes of stoppage time is a long time to protect a draw. Denver Summit FC had no interest in protecting anything.

Janine Sonis bent a right-footed free kick into the bottom left corner in the fourth minute of stoppage time, and Denver beat the Utah Royals 2-1 on Saturday night at Centennial Stadium. Sonis had already set up Yazmeen Ryan's 51st-minute opener, so when Utah substitute Tatumn Milazzo equalized in the 89th minute, the Summit captain simply went and fixed it herself.

Utah Came Out Swinging

The Royals arrived with momentum to burn. Six days earlier they had hammered the Portland Thorns 5-1 at home, a result Utah's own recap called the biggest win in club history, and that swagger showed early. Cloé Lacasse got in behind on a Mina Tanaka through ball in the third minute and dragged her shot wide left. A minute later Ana Tejada sent one over from distance, and Narumi Miura missed narrowly from the center of the box.

Denver had its own looks. Mandy McGlynn saved from Natalie Means in the fifth minute, from Ally Brazier's long-range, tight-angle effort in the 23rd, and from Ryan, who was aiming for the top right corner in the 26th. At the other end, Abby Smith produced a two-for-one in the 20th minute, stopping Lacasse and then Kiana Palacios in quick succession.

Tanaka kept prodding from midfield, firing high and wide in the 37th and just past the left post in the 39th. Tejada picked up a yellow card in the 41st for a foul on Ayo Oke, and the teams went to the break level at 0-0.

Sonis to Ryan, Right on Cue

Utah opened the second half with two blocked efforts in the 49th minute from Cece Delzer and Tejada. Two minutes later, Denver landed the first real punch. Sonis lofted a cross in from the left, Ryan arrived unmarked in the middle of the box, and her right-footed finish found the bottom left corner. Denver's recap said it was her fourth goal of the season and her second against Utah, after she also scored in the Royals' 2-1 win over the Summit in May.

Utah coach Jimmy Coenraets sent on Paige Cronin for Palacios in the 52nd, then made a double change in the 68th: Brecken Mozingo for Delzer and Milazzo, a defender, for Kaleigh Riehl. Utah noted it was Mozingo's 50th NWSL appearance, all for the Royals.

Denver had chances to make it comfortable. McGlynn denied Brazier again in the 81st, and two minutes later Natasha Flint, on for Yuna McCormack in the 66th, missed from the left side of the six-yard box after a Ryan corner.

Late Chaos at Centennial

Milazzo fired a warning shot first, heading a Lacasse corner wide in the 87th minute. Denver did not heed it. Two minutes later she struck from the right side of the six-yard box into the top right corner, and suddenly it was 1-1. The Royals said it was her fourth goal of the season, a serious haul for a defender who started this one on the bench.

The fourth official signaled eight minutes of added time, and the momentum belonged to Utah. Denver coach Nick Cushing responded with a triple change in the 92nd minute, sending on Yuzuki Yamamoto, Olivia Thomas and Emma Regan. A minute later Ryan drew a foul from Nuria Rábano in the attacking half, and Sonis stepped up and buried it. Ballgame.

Sonis Ran the Whole Show

Denver named Sonis its Player of the Match, which might be the easiest call any club made all weekend. A goal and an assist from left back, on one shot. The club added that she has scored in four of Denver's last five home matches and that her 11 goal contributions this season are a career best. The stoppage-time winner was her eighth goal of the year, per Denver, and she had also converted a penalty in the 1-1 draw with Boston Legacy earlier in the week.

Ryan was nearly as important. She put both of her shots on target, scored once, won the free kick that decided it, and the play-by-play credits her with setting up six other Denver attempts.

Brazier was busy too, with two shots, both on target, though she was also whistled for four fouls. And the home stand carried a landmark for Kaleigh Kurtz, whose 150th appearance came during the week. Denver says she is the first field player in league history to start every one of her first 150 appearances.

For Utah, McGlynn made four saves and kept the Royals alive. Tanaka, Lacasse, Tejada and Delzer each took three shots, plenty of trying and not much finding the frame, until Milazzo finally broke through off the bench.

The Turning Point

Milazzo's equalizer should have been the story, a visiting team chasing for nearly 40 minutes and finally getting its reward. Instead, the decisive moment came in the 93rd, when Rábano's foul on Ryan handed Denver a dead ball and gave Sonis, the one Summit player who had already decided this game once, a chance to decide it again. Utah never got another look.

Stats That Matter

• Shots: Utah 18, Denver 12, but Denver put six on target to Utah's three.
• Saves: McGlynn 4, Smith 2.
• Possession: Utah 52.7 percent, Denver 47.3.
• Tackles: Utah won 15 of its 24, Denver 6 of 14.
• Corners: Denver 8, Utah 6.

What It Means

Denver moves to 6-5-7 with 23 points, and this was the first Summit win since a 2-1 victory over Portland on July 18. In between came a 1-0 loss at Washington, the 1-1 draw with Boston and a 2-0 home loss to North Carolina, so the three points were overdue. Denver's recap pointed out the club took four points from its three-match home stretch, and the season series with Utah is now level at one win apiece. The Summit head to San Diego next on Friday, Aug. 14.

Utah falls to 10-3-6 with 33 points. The Royals' own recap listed them third in the league after the result, with Denver ninth. Utah returns home to host Bay FC at America First Field on Friday, Aug. 14.

Closing Take

Milazzo wrote what looked like the final scene, the gutsy defender stealing a point at the death. Sonis had a post-credits sequence ready. On a night when the Summit badly needed three points, their captain made winning look as simple as a dead ball and a right foot.

Stats from ESPN's match data. Additional match details from DenverSummitFC.com and the Utah Royals' official recap on RSL.com.