Friday's Sports In Brief

COMMERCE CITY – Still looking for a reason to give Denver a women’s pro soccer team? Ben Hubbard can give you 19,000. And change. “We have hundreds of ambassadors now, around the state, who (were) organizing watch parties, tailgate parties (Saturday),” said Hubbard, co-founder of For Denver FC, nodding at the shoulder-to-shoulder jam on the concourse at Dick’s Sporting Goods Park for the USWNT’s 4-0 thrashing of South Korea. “(We’re) really active on social media, but they’re self-organizing now.

There were just too many family members and friends for Highlands Ranch native Mallory Swanson to provide with tickets for her first match back in Colorado since tearing her patellar tendon a little more than a year ago. Knowing her teammates from Colorado, Lindsey Horan and Sophia Smith may do the same, she rushed to purchase a suite at Dick’s Sporting Goods Park, so all her closest people could witness a healthy, full-strength forward do her thing. And that’s exactly what she did. In the 34th minute of the U.

LAKEWOOD – With tears and a trophy. That is how Marc Johnson ended his coaching career after 52 years at Cherry Creek High School. On a postcard-perfect Saturday at All-Star Park, the Bruins swept a doubleheader from Regis Jesuit, claiming Johnson’s ninth state championship. As right-hander Ryan Falke delivered the final strike on a high fastball, delirium ensued.

Justin Simmons the football player remains in a state of limbo. Simmons the person looked right at home Saturday morning in Montbello. The 31-year-old, released by the Broncos after eight seasons back in March, has seen his free agency now inch toward the three-month mark. You wouldn’t have known it at the Denver Broncos Boys & Girls Club for the annual March for Peace on this sun-splashed morning. “God is so good.

This could be a very uncertain summer for the Colorado Avalanche, but securing a little long-term certainty might be the best move the club can make. Mikko Rantanen is not one of Colorado’s nine free agents, but he’s eligible for a new contract starting July 1. Signing him to another long-term deal in July would help the Avs ensure their window as a Stanley Cup contender goes beyond 2024-25 and provide general manager Chris MacFarland with a clearer picture of what can be done this offseason and beyond to supplement a championship-level core. Rantanen, who will turn 28 in late October, is entering the final season of a six-year contract that he signed in late September 2019.

The Broncos’ 2024 draft class is all signed and ready to roll. Denver agreed to terms with fourth-round wide receiver Troy Franklin on his four-year rookie contract and Franklin signed it Saturday, the team announced. Franklin, drafted No. 102 overall with the second pick of the fourth round, is the last of Denver’s seven draft picks to sign his rookie contract. The slot value according to OvertheCap data: Four years and $4.875 million with a signing bonus of $854,836. Franklin will count $1.009 million against Denver’s 2024 salary cap. Related Articles Denver Broncos | Former Broncos safety Justin Simmons might be in football limbo, but he was right at home Saturday and enjoying his offseason Denver Broncos | Renck & File: Broncos running back Javonte Williams looks ready to run with angry intentions Denver Broncos | Broncos OTA observations: WR Marvin Mims Jr.