{
  "id": 288242,
  "title": "NWSL Availability Report (Matchweek 16 – Saturday): Denver Summit vs Utah Royals, Washington Spirit vs North Carolina Courage and Houston Dash vs KC Current",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/08/nwsl-availability-report-matchweek-16-saturday-denver-summit-vs-utah",
  "topic": "tech",
  "section": "Tech",
  "published": "2026-08-08T01:33:01.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Yahoo Sports",
    "slug": "yahoo-sports",
    "url": "https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/nwsl-availability-report-matchweek-16-013301017.html"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "The NWSL has three engaging matchups scheduled for Saturday, August 7. However, the most significant injury concerns Denver Summit FC's captain, Lindsey Heaps, who is sidelined with a knee injury for the team's match against Boston Legacy FC.\n\nFor Denver Summit FC, Jasmine Aikey is out due to a knee injury, Jordan Baggett will be on maternity leave, Nahikari Garcia is also sidelined with a knee injury, and Lindsey Heaps, their captain, is also out due to a knee issue.\n\nUtah Royals FC will also be without Alex Loera and KK Ream, both sidelined with knee injuries. No players from Utah will be questioning international duty.\n\nWashington Spirit will be without Lucia Di Guglielmo due to a lower leg injury, Aubrey Kingsbury due to maternity leave, and Casey Krueger also on maternity leave. No players from Washington Spirit are questioning international duty. The team will have Deborah Abiodun, Mélissa Bethi, Rosemonde Kouassi, Gift Monday, and Monique Ngock available.\n\nNorth Carolina Courage will have Payton Crawford and Sydney Schmidt out due to knee injuries. No North Carolina players are questioning international duty.\n\nFinally, Houston Dash will be without Evelina Duljan, Emina Ekić, Cate Hardin, and Makenzy Robbe, all sidelined due to various reasons including an excused absence and a knee injury. No Houston players are questioning international duty. Kansas City Current will also be without Ellie Bravo-Young, Alana Cook, Michelle Cooper, Clare Gagne, Mary Long, Laney Rouse, and Kolo Suliafu, all out due to various injuries including thigh and SEI injuries. No Kansas City players are questioning international duty. Temwa Chawinga from the MWI will be the only international duty player available.",
  "summary": "Denver Summit captain Lindsey Heaps will miss Saturday’s match against the Utah Royals",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": "Multiple teams in Saturday's NWSL matches face significant absences due to injuries and maternity leave, potentially impacting their performance against already depleted or relatively unaffected opponents.",
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}