Athlete Highlight: Charles Morrison
What was your favorite memory from the 2024 season?
Traveling with the team and playing with the team.
What is your favorite part about being on the Switchbacks Unified Team?
Since I play with the team, they are always giving support and being on the team really means a lot to me. They are always supportive and always help my teammates out.
How would you define success in athletics?
Success is to not give up spirit, try to help your teammates and always be there on the field and with the peer partners, always say that we have a light of a field and giving us advice.
What are some goals you would like to achieve in future soccer seasons?
- Score more goals
- Do a better job of running faster and more efficiently to stop the ball with my first touch
What are you looking forward to about the 2025 season?
Being a part of a team, helping the team and supporting my teammates and to keep winning
Peer Partner Highlight: Makya Geist-Delgado:
Going and Traveling with the team and being able to play in different cities
What is your favorite part about being on the Switchbacks Unified Team?
Helping athletes see what they are capable of, whether that’s on or off the soccer field.
What got you interested in joining the Switchbacks Unified Team?
I got interested in playing for the Switchbacks Unified Team because another partner that introduced me to the team.
What are three goals that you would like to achieve in future soccer seasons?
- Be able to travel and play against more USL Unified Teams
- Have a large tournament between USL Unified Teams
- Help athletes get better every day
What are your favorite hobbies outside of soccer?
Watching/playing hockey and working on cars
How would you define success in athletics?
Success in athletics to me isn’t about winning, it’s about improving your skills every day, as well as facing the challenges that are in front of you and not giving up.
What are three things you are looking forward to about the 2025 season?
- Seeing how the team has and will improve from game to game
- Traveling with the team to new places
- Having fun
Coach Highlight: Ilanit Ben-Naim
When did your interests in soccer start?
My interest began in the late 1970s and early 80s when I played in the Maccabi youth soccer program in Los Angeles. My coach, family friend Eli Marmur, had played professionally in the NASL and with Maccabi USA. While I wasn’t the most skilled player, I loved the friendships, teamwork, and sense of belonging. I learned early that being part of a team is about more than scoring goals—it’s about contributing in your own way.
How would you define being a champion in Unified athletics?
Unified sports bring together athletes with and without disabilities to compete as one team. To me, being a champion isn’t about stats—it’s about what happens off the field. A true Unified champion builds friendships, promotes inclusion, and helps others succeed not just in sport, but in school, work, and the community.
What is your favorite sports memory?
My favorite memory came on August 10, 2024, during a clinic and scrimmage with the Monument Warriors and Lewis Palmer High School Unified athletes. One of our players had the chance to steal the ball and score but instead passed it back to an opposing athlete who was struggling, encouraging them to keep going. The team joined in to support that player’s success. It was a beautiful example of what Unified sports is all about.
What got you interested in joining the Switchbacks Unified Team?
In 2020, my son Yariv, now the Unified Team Manager, was asked to help launch the first Special Olympics Unified Team in the USL Championship League. With my 15 years of Special Olympics experience, I joined him and a dedicated group of coaches to build the team. Two of us from that original coaching staff are still involved today, and each year the program grows stronger, giving athletes the chance to be part of a professional club.
What are your favorite sports teams?
My family are big fans of the Denver Nuggets, the Broncos, the Avalanche, and of course, the Switchbacks FC.
What goals would you like to see the Switchbacks Unified Team achieve in future soccer seasons?
Our goal is to expand opportunities for athletes with disabilities to play soccer on a professional stage. We are already achieving this as a founding member of the Project Inspire Soccer League, and we proudly hosted the inaugural tournament at Weidner Stadium on August 23–24.
Meet Our Partners:
Sponsor Highlight: C&B Lighting
Founded by childhood friends Clay and Brandon, C&B Lighting started as a dorm-room idea at UCCS and has grown into a thriving business with more than 540 custom holiday displays and permanent lighting solutions across Colorado. Supporting the Switchbacks Unified Team was an easy choice—they believe in the power of teamwork, inclusion, and community. Just as every home they light has its own story, every athlete brings their own light and spirit to the game.
Sponsor Highlight: T. Rowe Price
T. Rowe Price, a global investment management firm with 25 years in Colorado Springs, is committed to inclusion through its THRIVE program, which fosters awareness, acceptance, and belonging. The company sees a strong alignment between THRIVE’s mission and the values of the Switchbacks Unified Team and is proud to support the program.
Sponsor Highlight: Weidner Apartment Homes
As owners of the 2024 USL Championship-winning Switchbacks and developers of new housing in downtown Colorado Springs, Weidner is dedicated to community growth. Supporting the Switchbacks Unified Team reflects their belief in the power of sports to unite people, and they are proud to be part of the team’s journey on and off the field.
