In what captain Paige Monaghan described as a “bittersweet” night, Utah Royals FC beat the Washington Spirit 1-0 and said goodbye to three players in the final game of the season Sunday.
Monaghan scored the lone goal in the victory and the Royals’ sixth win of the 2025 season. Following the win, Claudia Zornoza, Imani Dorsey and Olivia Griffitts were recognized on the pitch with their families.
All three players were surprised with messages from former teammates on the video board before they each took the microphone to say a final message.
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Monaghan said postgame that “it was hard to not cry” listening to her teammates’ speeches.
“Our group just really stuck together. Before the game, we were singing “The Climb” (by Miley Cyrus) — that was our pregame speech,“ Monaghan said postgame.
”It’s like, so silly, but it’s such a core memory for me and the girls, and I’m just so grateful to be their teammate and it’s just such an honor. It’s bittersweet, for sure, but it’s a good way to end the year.”
Imani Dorsey’s retirement
On Sunday, Dorsey subbed into the game in the 72nd minute for the final minutes of her career.
Dorsey signed with the Royals ahead of the 2024 season as the team’s second free agent signing. She first thanked the Royals for bringing her to Utah.
“I think when I came last year, I was in a place where soccer was not my joy and it was really hard to play, and coming here with (my fiancé) Alec and this new family that I found has just been the light within me and you guys have been the light within me and the fans, the community, it’s literally been everything,” Dorsey said.
“This is what we play for. Little Imani can’t even imagine that this is where I am.”
Prior to joining the Royals before last year’s inaugural season, Dorsey was one of the first NWSL players to use the league’s then-new mental health leave of absence.
Ahead of the 2024 season opener, Dorsey told the Deseret News that that experience helped her rediscover her love of soccer and learn that she’s “not just a soccer player.”
“Before, I was putting too much of my worth — self worth — in everything that was going on on the field, and there’s only so much I can control,” she said at the time.
“Once I realized that I have a lot more to explore and hobbies and things about myself that I wasn’t giving myself enough mental capacity to look after, I was able to feel like a more well-rounded person, and I think that makes me a better soccer player.”
Dorsey, a board member of the Black Women’s Player Collective, played seven seasons in the NWSL after playing collegiately at Duke. She also was a member of the NWSLPA’s Bargaining Committee that negotiated the landmark 2024 collective bargaining agreement.
Monaghan, who had the opportunity to play with Dorsey while both at Sky Blue FC and when the club became Gotham FC, had high praise for Dorsey and her legacy.
“She has done so much for the sport, on and off the field,” Monaghan said. “She has been a trailblazer, and to have her and be a role model for me has been everything, so she’s left her mark for sure, and she’s creating waves for us that allows us to continue in the way we are.”
In the second game of the 2024 season, Dorsey tore her Achilles. She was able to return from the injury this season.
“I think Imani is — keep on saying the same — is probably one of the most intelligent players I’ve ever worked with, down to earth, intelligent, very hard working, a lot of good conversations and sometimes hard conversations,“ Utah coach Jimmy Coenraets said.
“But she understood that hard conversation are actually conversations about performance and making players better, not necessarily hard conversations.”
Claudia Zornoza’s retirement
Claudia Zornoza started Sunday’s match and was subbed off in the 79th minute and walked off the pitch for the last time.
Coenraets said he offered the captain’s armband to Zornoza today with Monaghan’s support, but Zornoza declined, not wanting the special treatment or attention.
“That’s kind of how she is. If you look back at her career and all of players in this league that can present what she presents as a CB, and I think she just shows greatness in everything she does,” Coenraets said.
Zornoza, who hails from Spain, gave her farewell message in English and thanked both the fans and the club. Coenraets described her speech in her non-native tongue as “amazing” and an “excellent speech.”
Monaghan said Zornoza “brought such a flare” to the Royals.
“And that’s just been incredible, and she taught me so much leadership wise, and just experience,” Monaghan said. “We needed that, you know? We needed her last year, and she stepped in and did everything for us, and we’ll really miss her.”
The midfielder, who logged 1,916 minutes this season, spoke with reporters through an interpreter following the game and discussed her career and time with the Royals.
Zornoza gave a surprising answer when asked by the Deseret News what she considered the highlight of her 17-year career.
“I had lots of success in my career, but I would choose my two ACL injuries,” she said. “Lots of people see that as a negative, but I think it’s great. I learned soccer in a different perspective.
“I know Real Madrid took me to the Championships League and I went to the World Cup, but I see that injury as something good and it just changed my perspective.”
Zornoza joined the Royals in July 2024 and signed a deal through the 2025 season with an option for 2026, but she decided to call it a career because, she said, “back home, my family needs me.”
The 2023 FIFA World Cup champion scored three goals and recorded five assists as a Royal.
“I going to remember my teammates. I’ll remember how this league was competitive,” Zornoza said. “I’m glad to have been a part of this league. I learned a lot from that.”
Olivia Griffitts’ retirement
The Royals drafted Griffitts 20th overall out of BYU in the 2024 NWSL Draft. She appeared in and played in 13 games as a rookie and scored her first and only NWSL goal in her third-ever game on April 20, 2024.
“I just wanted to thank all of you from Utah for providing me the opportunity to play professional soccer. I’m so grateful for all of the memories, for the friendships that I’ve made while here,” she said.
Coenraets described Griffitts as the type of player “whom you could say, like, ‘Look, there’s a wall. Just run through it.’ She’ll do it, and I think that’s just the type of players, type of personalities that you want this area, this team, to have, because I do feel like that’s what Utah is, this adventurous, fearless kind of players.”
Griffitts began the season on maternity leave, and after giving birth, announced she’d be stepping away from soccer. Her last match was Sept. 28, 2024.
She gave birth to her daughter, Navy Olivia, in August.
“While it was super hard to step away from the game, I’m really excited for this new chapter in my life to be a mom, and I’ve already loved it so much and I just can’t wait for more,” Griffitts said.
Monaghan expressed her excitement for Griffitts as she embarks on her new chapter of motherhood.
“For Liv to be the first mom of the Utah Royals, like for this generation, is huge, and again, another example,” she said. “She’s just a sweetie, so we’re happy for her. But of course, we’ll miss her, but excited for her next chapter,” she said.
Utah Royals FC finished its second season back in the NWSL with a 6-13-7 record and in 12th place in the 14-team league.
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‘ Some details of this article were extracted from the following source www.deseret.com ’
