From opening day to the D3 Pro League Championship, the season seemed to revolve around the second-year Utah Blitzz, who surprised many in Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup qualifying and claimed the league title despite the presence of some serious challengers.

Utah, led by 2000 D3 Pro League Rookie of the Year Fadi Afash, controlled the Western Conference from the opening whistle, starting 11-0-1 before finishing the season on a 3-3-0 run. During the early-season run, the Blitzz stunned a few A-League clubs in the U.S. Open Cup qualifying stage, defeating the Portland Timbers 2-1 and 3-1 and earning a 0-0 draw against the Seattle Sounders.

With the Blitzz advancing to the semi-finals as regular season champions, all eyes turned to the rest of the playoff field for the first two weeks of postseason action. The fourth-seeded Boston Bulldogs plowed through the Northern Conference playoffs as expecting, handing Reading and New Jersey 6-0 and 2-0 losses. In the Western Conference, the fifth-seeded Stanislaus United Cruisers (now California Gold) upset second-seeded Chico in the conference final 2-1 to advance to the semi-finals.

The shocker of the year came in the Southern Conference when the 5-10-3 Greenville Lions, seeded 10th, knocked off Carolina and Wilmington to reach the semi-finals. The Lions stunned the sixth-seeded Dynamo 2-1 and nipped the Hammerheads, seeded third, in penalty kicks after a 3-3 tie.

Greenville then went on to eliminate the Bulldogs 2-1 in overtime of their semi-final match, earning a trip to the D3 Pro League Championship in Salt Lake City, home of the Blitzz, who defeated Stanislaus 3-0 in the semi-finals.

The surprising first-year Lions gave a gritty performance in the championship, keeping the home side scoreless until Jorge Estrada secured the title in the waning moments for Utah with a 90th-minute strike on an assist from Sterling Wescott.