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Get to know Carlos Mercado & Keegan Meyer

By Des Moines Menace, 07/03/18, 4:45PM CDT

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The Menace's M&M goalkeeping duo has allowed just four goals in helping the Menace start the PDL season 10-0-1.

Carlos Mercado and Keegan Meyer are like the Holiday Inn at check-in time.
 
The Menace's goalkeepers have lots of “clean sheets.”
 
Mercado and Meyer have combined for seven shutouts for the 10-0-1 Menace. Des Moines’ tenacious D has
allowed just four goals – tied with Reading United AC for the fewest in the 72-team Premier Development League.
 
Both goalies stand 6-foot-3, and they both have bright futures.
 
Mercado (left in the photo) has seen action with the 18U national teams for Mexico and the United States.
The incoming college freshman is on the PDL’s list of top five goalkeeper prospects.
 
 
Last week, Meyer (and Menace teammate Marcel Berry) trained with Minnesota United FC – a second-year Major
League Soccer team whose goalkeeping coach, John Pascarella, was the Menace’s head coach in 2017.
 
 
 
 
 
UNIFORM NUMBERS
Keegan: 1
Carlos: 27
 
NICKNAMES
Carlos: ”Carlitos” – My mom would always call me that because I’m the youngest (of six kids).
Keegan: Just “Keegs”
 
BORN
Keegan: March 10, 1997
Carlos: September 27, 1999
 
HOMETOWNS
Carlos: Nuevo Laredo, Tamaulipas (in Mexico, just across the border from Texas)
 
Keegan: Silver Spring, Maryland (about 30 minutes from Washington, D.C. and Baltimore)
 
 
COLLEGES
Carlos: Entering my freshman year at University of the Incarnate Word
 
Keegan: Entering my redshirt-junior year at High Point University in North Carolina
 
 
WHAT’S IT LIKE SHARING TIME BETWEEN THE PIPES?
Keegan: Great so far. We get along well, we push each other. We learn from each other and make each other better.
 
Carlos: I think it’s great to practice with great competition, because it makes you better. We share different
techniques that we can learn and add to our game.
 
 
THOUGHTS ON THE 2018 WORLD CUP SO FAR?
Carlos: I thought Mexico did pretty good. I think they did the best against Germany. Unfortunately, they
couldn’t finish against Brazil.Now that Mexico’s out, I’m going for Uruguay. I like their goalkeeper, Muslera,
and their team stays compact, always.
 
Keegan: This is definitely the most entertaining World Cup I’ve seen so far. It’s been fun seeing some of the
small countries like Tunisia and Iran hanging with the big countries. I’m probably pulling for Colombia,
because my roommate’s English, and I don’t want to see their team win.
 
 
ON THE MENACE’S DIVISION TITLE
Keegan: It feels great. It’s something we talked about in our first time together.
This shows how much we’ve bought in this season for one common goal, and how special we can be in
pursuing the other goals we’ve set out to accomplish.
 
Carlos: I think it was everyone’s first goal. This shows how bad we want it. It’s great to win it
with three games left. We want more; we want the national championship.
 
 
…AND ON THE TEAM’S DEFENSIVE SUCCESS
Keegan: It says we’re doing our job right. We’re lucky to have such great teammates in front
of us doing their job to make our jobs easier. The numbers speak for themselves.
 
Carlos: Devala (Gorrick, the Menace’s goalkeeping coach) tells us what we need to work on,
and I’ve learned a lot from him because he has so much experience in the pros.
 
 
 
WHY THE MENACE?
Carlos: I saw how many players have gone to the pros. It’s a great opportunity to get exposed to the pro level.
Alen (Marcina, the Menace’s head coach) is good friends with the goalkeeping coach of San Antonio FC
(Juan Lamadrid), and this helps me feel at home.
 
Keegan: It was a great opportunity for me to showcase my talents with an organization that has a rich history
of sending players to the pros. That’s the goal for me, and I see this as the best opportunity for me to pursue my dream.
 
 
Thank you, Carlos and Keegan!