Gorden and Hubly are Pandemic Pioneers
Ex-Blue Demons and NWSL show the world how to circumvent COVID-19
Bob Sakamoto, Athletics Communications
8/5/2020
It was so important to make this work. This was an opportunity for us to put on a show and be the prototype that this can be done.Sarah Gorden
CHICAGO – During a healthcare crisis unlike any we’ve ever seen while besieged by the gravest medical threat of our lifetime, the world of sports judiciously faded to black.
Seven months have passed since the coronavirus first began creeping into our consciousness, soon to invade our everyday thought while imposing its malicious intent upon every fiber of our society.
As we fight back with limited resources such as face masks, social distancing and curtailing the freedoms we once took for granted---we must never relinquish our sense of sanity.
Sports plays to that imperative. We need a temporary distraction like a White Sox or Cubs game now more than ever. Sports has always been our great escape, momentarily whisking you away to a place relatively free of life-and-death issues where winning is the magic elixir that chases the blues away.
Sports is also our gateway back to a more normal time, and that’s exactly what the National Women’s Soccer League provided during a month-long tournament that successfully navigated its way around COVID-19.
From that perspective, former DePaul soccer stars Sarah Gorden and Kelli Hubly can be looked upon as pandemic pioneers.
Before the NBA, MLB or anyone else made the attempt, the NWSL was the trailblazer carefully making its way in a brave new world.
A sports league that was barely a blip on the average fans’ radar suddenly drew a CBS-TV national audience averaging 653,000 viewers for its Challenge Cup title match between Gorden’s Chicago Red Stars and the Houston Dash in Sandy, Utah near Salt Lake City which the Dash won 2-0 in late July.
For comparison’s sake, those numbers practically matched the Yankees-Nationals TBS telecast featuring modern-day sultan of swat Aaron Judge and the rest of that American League wrecking crew.
How the NWSL conducted a month-long tournament without incurring even a single case of coronavirus is a blueprint for other sports leagues to follow.
More importantly, it is a hugely encouraging example for the rest of our country that equal doses of self-discipline and common sense can neutralize an opponent with no apparent weakness.
Players from eight teams were secluded in a bubble with tight restrictions confining them to their hotel. The Red Stars took matters into their own hands.
“Before we left for Utah, our team made some rules about preventing the spread of COVID-19,” said Gorden who played at Wish Field with Hubly in 2015. “We were quarantined in Chicago except for going out for groceries. We were all in this together.
“We were tested all the time in Salt Lake City. I can’t tell you how many times I had that swab stuck up my nose. At the tournament, we were all quarantined in our hotel. We could order food to be delivered or we could eat the catered food.
“In the beginning, no one could hang out with members of the other teams. That restriction was gradually loosened.”
The socially aware Gorden struggled trying to compartmentalize the issues of soccer, a pandemic and racial justice protests.
“It was difficult at the start of the tournament because my focus wasn’t there,” she said. “I was thinking so much about what’s going on in the black community amidst a global pandemic that affects black and brown communities more than others.
“I began considering other people and that the Challenge Cup was great way of allowing people to temporarily escape the world’s problems. It was also a great outlet for us to express ourselves.
“Towards the end of the tournament, it was easy to focus the entire 90 minutes.”
The Red Stars’ starting defender did have a much more pleasant distraction to keep her busy---six-year-old son Caiden.
“The league did a great job of taking care of the moms,” Gorden said. “Caiden and I had a great apartment, and that took away a lot of stress. I could not imagine leaving my son with someone else during this pandemic.
“All the moms were provided with a caretaker who would watch our kids during practices and games. I’m grateful to the NWSL for all they did and was so happy to have him with me. That made it a really great experience for me.
“Caiden came to the games with me. He loved hanging around with my teammates and other players and playing games with them. He was having such a good time that when it was over, he was the only one who didn’t want to leave.”
This was the first time anyone in sports had ever taken on such a formidable challenge.
“We were in a bubble for five weeks, and that was so different,” Gorden said. “We were forced to stay in one place, but all of us made that commitment to our teammates and the league.
“It was so important to make this work. This was an opportunity for us to put on a show and be the prototype that this can be done.
“As a mom and a resident of Chicago, I know how crucial it is to stop the spread of this virus---especially in the black and brown communities who are hit the hardest because of less resources.”
When the Red Stars faced the Portland Thorns, Gorden didn’t get a chance to match up on the pitch with her former DePaul teammate Hubly.
“That was our second game in four days so our coach rested the starters and played most of the rookies,” Gorden said. “Even though I didn’t play in that game, Kelli and I connected prior to that. It’s always great to see her, and her game is really coming together. I was so proud to see that.”
Gorden and her teammates did not get off on the right foot in their 2-0 loss June 27 to the Washington Spirit.
“It was a different atmosphere being quarantined for almost three months with no soccer heading into the tournament,” Gorden said. “To be honest, our first Challenge Cup game was kind of a disaster. We weren’t ready and the focus wasn’t there.
“But we came together as a team as fast as possible, always finding a way to win. We’re the kind of team that rolls up our sleeves with a Chicago blue-collar mentality, and even though it isn’t always pretty, we find a way to win.
“This season saw the most changes we’ve ever had including a whole new attacking line. It was great advancing to the title game, but in the end we didn’t win. Still, you can see this team has a great future.”
During the tournament, Gorden found a way to address the more pressing issues in her life. She came up with the “Pass It On Challenge” pledging $5 for every one of her completed passes in one match to the Get Yo Mind Right free mental health initiative. It is part of the Healthy Hood organization seeking to rectify a 20-year life expectancy gap in Chicago between the underserved and the more affluent communities.
A wave of support caught Gorden off-guard as teammates, fans and the Red Stars organization jumped aboard to the tune of $15,707.
Among the many contributors, goalkeeper Alyssa Naeher pledged $50 per save during a designated game while Julie Ertz made a contribution for her every tackle. Kealia Watt kicked in $100 for every time coach Rory Dames yelled in a match. Friend CJ Sapong of the Chicago Fire pledged $50 per touch during one of his matches.
“The needs of the black community are on my mind a lot,” Gorden said. “I’ve engaged in conversations with my teammates and others about the issues Black Americans face.
“One day it just popped in my mind to get all of us involved in helping out. Before long, there were also fans and the Red Stars organization jumping in. My friend CJ made a really nice contribution. We had talked before about the importance of addressing mental health in the black community.
“What the Black Lives Matter movement is teaching us is that we all can make a difference.”
Just as DePaul made a life-changing difference for Gorden.
“I went through a lot of adversity at DePaul,” Gorden said. “A lot of my maturing and being able to overcome challenges in life is because of the way I developed as a person at DePaul. I couldn’t have done it without all the great support I received while I was there.”
DePaul soccer and my teammates and coaches will always hold a special place in my heart for making my experience there so amazing and for really pushing me to be where I am today.Kelli Hubly
Hubly is a starting defender on a Portland team that advanced to the tournament semifinals only to have its title hopes dashed by Houston 1-0.
“The semifinal match is definitely one that still really stings,” Hubly said. “I would do anything to be able to play that game over again. I don't think my team played to our potential which stings the most. I think if we were playing the way we had been all tournament, it would have been a completely different outcome.”
Nonetheless, the Utah experience is something Hubly will never forget.
“I actually really enjoyed competing in the Challenge Cup,” she said. “It was great to be able to play again and feel safe while playing. The league was so good about keeping everything really organized and safe. We stayed in a hotel with just us and three other teams, including Sarah's team.
“They also did a great job of keeping us all in our own spaces so that there wasn't a lot of overlap with other teams. Life in the bubble was interesting and different, but at the end of the day it worked out really well. We basically played soccer, ate and hung out with teammates. A lot of Netflix was watched and lots of card games were played. We also did a tie-dye night with my team which ended up being really fun.
“We were usually pretty tired so there wasn't much more we wanted to do, especially when there were three games in one week. It was very hot in Utah, which at times drained energy.”
Hubly recognizes the significance of all the sacrifices the women’s pro soccer players made in training and enduring life in a bubble.
“It was super cool to be the first pro sports league back playing and even better that we had no positive cases of COVID,” she said. “I think it was great to show everyone that the bubble could be done safely, especially after a lot of people were very negative about us doing this tournament.
“It was amazing to see so many people watching. It really proved that we do belong on TV, and if you put women's soccer on TV, people will watch. I think our league is just going to grow more and more and it's exciting.”
While she never got a chance to play against Gorden, the two ex-Blue Demons saw each other after the game to get caught up and reminisced in the hotel a couple times here and there.
Like Gorden, Hubly acknowledged the lasting impact from her time in Lincoln Park.
“Playing soccer at DePaul is really the reason why I am playing professional soccer,” said Hubly who played three years at Kentucky. “After transferring to DePaul, I really thought I was just going to play one more year of soccer and play for fun. I sort of lost my love for soccer before transferring and I even thought about transferring to DePaul just for academics.
“But Erin (coach Erin Chastain) ended up having a spot on the team for me, and I ended up falling back in love with soccer. I had so much fun that I didn't want to be done after my senior season.
“DePaul soccer and my teammates and coaches will always hold a special place in my heart for making my experience there so amazing and for really pushing me to be where I am today. Living in Lincoln Park and being in the city made me more independent while making me grow up a lot faster.”
