WEST DES MOINES, Iowa – Thursday, May 24, 2018 – A dominant display delivered a 3-0 season-opening win for the Des Moines Menace tonight at Valley Stadium.

Kino Ryosuke and Wilfred Williams led the way for the attack-minded Menace, which outshot WSA Winnipeg 27-2. However, it wasn’t until the 51st minute that tonight’s high-energy crowd celebrated the first goal of the Menace’s 25th season.

Ryosuke broke the ice with a side-volley score, and Williams doubled the lead 12 minutes later with a spectacular half-volley rocket that splashed the Upper 90 of the side-netting. Williams assisted Ryosuke’s second goal in the 77th minute to seal a victory to start the Premier Development League season.

“A good team win,” said Williams. “I was really excited to score my first Menace goal, and I was fortunate to be on the back post and finish. We’re just going to look to build from here on out.”

WSA Winnipeg – a team coming off a 2-11-1, last-place finish in the 2017 Heartland Division standings – held its own. Goalkeeper Evan Barker and the Winnipeg defense did their part to keep the Menace offense at bay.

Once the Menace broke through, though, Des Moines (7-5-2, second place in 2017) finished strong.

“Lots of opportunities, and I thought we controlled the game,” said head coach Alen Marcina after his Menace debut. “We would’ve liked to score more than three goals – We’ll work on being more ruthless in the box.

“It’s important to start on the right foot. We want to show our fans our commitment to providing some exciting soccer, and I think we did that tonight from start to finish.”

This was the Menace’s only home match before June 15. Des Moines plays the next five on the road, starting Saturday at St. Louis.  

FOOTNOTES

• The Menace is 20-0-1 all-time against WSA Winnipeg, with a 74-9 scoring differential (37-1 at home).
• These teams meet just once more this season – June 10 in Canada.
• This was the first PDL match for Menace head coach Alen Marcina.
• Since a 2-1 loss to St. Louis in the team’s Valley Stadium debut (May 10, 2008), the Menace is undefeated in 10 straight PDL home openers.
• Keegan Meyer earned the shutout in his Menace debut.

MAN of the MATCH: Kino Ryosuke, for the two-goal performance in his first Menace appearance. Ryosuke, featured this week on MenaceSoccer.com, is from Hyogo, Japan. The flashy forward is transferring to Louisville after breaking Marshalltown Community College’s career and single-season scoring records.

UP NEXT: Des Moines hits the road tomorrow for a Saturday matchup against the St. Louis Lions. It’s the first of five straight Menace matches away from Valley Stadium.

The Menace’s next home action comes June 15-16. Nebraska Bugeaters FC visits for a Fireworks Friday friendly; Northern nemesis Thunder Bay invades for a Saturday showdown.

 
Match: WSA Winnipeg at Des Moines Menace

Date: Thursday, May 24, 2018
Competition: Premier Development League regular season
Venue: Valley Stadium in West Des Moines, Iowa (artificial-turf field)
Kickoff: 7:30 p.m CDT
Weather: 80s and sunny

Scoreline                    1    2     F
MENACE                      0   3   3
WSA                            0   0    0