The pieces of the puzzle are coming together, as first-year head coach Alen Marcina and the Menace prepare for the 2018 Premier Development League season.
In the run-up to the May 24 season opener, we've been making daily player announcements on our @MenaceSoccer Twitter feed. We've also been updating the #Menace2018Roster below and here: MenaceSoccer.com/men/roster/.
WILFRED WILLIAMS Midfielder Hometown: Monrovia, Liberia College: Oakland (Mich.)
A fourth-round selection in the 2018 MLS SuperDraft (Sporting KC), Williams recently helped Detroit City FC get by the Michigan Bucks in an Open Cup shootout (May 9). Announced May 23
LOVEL PALMER Defender Hometown: Mandeville, Jamaica
Palmer's earned 30 caps with the Jamaican national team. His pro career included nearly 150 Major League Soccer appearances, with Houston (2010-11), Portland (2011-12), Real Salt Lake (2013) and Chicago (2014-15). Announced May 23
DEVALA GORRICK Goalkeeper Hometown: Moundsville, W.V. College: Barry (Fla.)
Serving primarily as the Menace's goalkeeping coach, Gorrick has seen action between the pipes in more than 200 pro games, most recently with Saint Louis FC. Announced May 23
OMAR MOHAMED Midfielder Hometown: Mogadishu, Somalia College: Jackson (Mich.)
Joining the Menace after spending the last two seasons in the United Soccer League is Moahamed -- formerly a fixture for FC Cincinnati (2016) and Portland Timbers 2 (2017). Announced May 23
BIKO BRENNAN Defender Hometown: Cork, Ireland College: UNC-Charlotte
Brennan comes to the Menace from the English football club Whitehawk. In 2016, he played against the Menace in San Antonio FC's 2-1 win in the third round of the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup. Announced May 23
ANTHONY MANNING Defender Hometown: Plano, Texas College: Saint Louis
A 2015 Major League Soccer SuperDraft pick (Portland), Manning has appeared in the pros with Portland Timbers 2 (2015-16) and the Indy Eleven (2017). Announced May 22
ALEJANDORO COVARRUBIAS Midfielder Hometown: Cudahy, Calif. College: Cal-Dominguez Hills
Covarrubias has played more than 100 professional matches, spending time with LA Galaxy II (2014-17), the Oklahoma City Energy (2017) and Fresno FC (2018). Announced May 22
SEBASTIAN MENTEL Forward Hometown: Bakersfield, Calif. College: Cal State Bakersfield
In 2017, Mentel led the Roadrunners with 14 points (six goals, two assists). Announced May 22
ANDY RIOS Defender Hometown: Chowchilla, Calif. College: San Jose State
Rios was named to the 2017 All-Far West Region third team. Announced May 22
JEREMY ROMERO Midfielder Hometown: San Jose College: San Jose State
As a senior in 2017, Romero led the Trojans with 10 goals. Announced May 22
BRANDON FRICKE Defender Hometown: Grimes College: Butler
A Menace mainstay, Fricke enters his seventh season with his hometown team (2010-14 and 2017-18). The former pro earned all-PDL status in 2013 and all-conference honors last summer. Announced May 21
FRED FRIMPONG Defender Hometown: Ankeny College: Omaha
Last fall, Frimpong scored a couple goals in the Mavs' Summit League semifinal win over Western Illinois. He was named to the league's all-tournament team after helping Omaha secure the Summit title. Announced May 21
TYLER LIMMER Forward Hometown: Brandon, S.D. College: Northwestern (Iowa)
Limmer tallied 15 goals for the Red Raiders in the 2017 college season. Announced May 21
CONOR CESAR Midfielder Hometown: Birmingham, England College: High Point
One of four High Point teammates on the Menace's 2018 roster, Cesar scored a couple goals in a 3-1 win over Liberty to advance the Panthers to the Big South championship match last November. Announced May 21
JONATHAN BOLANOS Midfielder Hometown: Miramar, Fla. College: High Point
A member of the Big South Conference's first team and all-tournament team in 2017, Bolanos last fall led the Panthers in goals -- seven, including a conference-record four in one game. Announced May 21
JAMES ALEWINE Defender Hometown: Monrovia, Calif. College: California-Riverside
Alewine is a UC-Riverside grad who made 56 appearances for the Highlanders the last three seasons. Announced May 21
MARCEL BERRY Defender Hometown: Charlottesville, Va. College: William & Mary
Berry, a center-back, has been named to the Colonial Athletic Association's second team after each of his first three seasons at W&M. Announced May 18
PAUL AFFUL Midfielder Hometown: Takoradi, Ghana College: Saint Bonaventure
Afful helped the Charlotte Eagles claim the 2017 PDL title with a 2-1 championship win over Menace nemesis Thunder Bay. Announced May 17
MICHAEL PEPRAH Defender Hometown: Tarkwa, Ghana College: Coastal Carolina
Peprah is a Coastal Carolina grad who played his first two college seasons at West Virginia. Announced May 16
KEEGAN MEYER Goalkeeper Hometown: Silver Spring, Md. College: High Point
Meyer earned a spot on the Big South Conference's first team in 2017. Announced May 15
JORDAN KLEYN Forward Hometown: Plainfield, Ind. College: Indiana
Kleyn was a two-time Indiana Gatorade Player of the Year (2014-15). Last fall, his Hoosiers made it all the way to the College Cup's championship match, coming up just short in a double-OT loss to Stanford. Announced May 14
RASHID ALARAPE Forward Hometown: Stone Mountain, Ga. College: Georgia State
As a senior in 2017, Alarape led the Panthers with nine goals. He scored the game-winner in an upset of No. 2 Wake Forest. Announced May 13
PETER PEARSON Midfielder Hometown: Virginia Beach College: VCU
Virginia's Gatorade Player of the Year his last two high school seasons (2013-14), Pearson played three seasons at the Universiry of Virginia before transfering to Virginia Commonwealth. Announced May 12
NICO CLASEN Midfielder Hometown: Monchengladbach, Germany College: UNLV
Clasen played for Germany's 15U-18U national teams. Announced May 11
FRANKY MARTINEZ Defender Hometown: Englewood, N.J. College: UMass-Lowell
Martinez transferred to his current school after playing more than 1,500 minutes as a freshman at Iona. Announced May 10
CARLOS MERCADO Goalkeeper Hometown: Laredo, Texas College: Incarnate Word
Mercado was a member of the Mexican and U.S. youth national teams; The freshman-to-be was also a three-time national champion -- 2014 with Liga Mexico U14 and 2015-16 with FC Dallas. Announced May 9
KINO RYOSUKE Forward Hometown: Hyogo, Japan College: Louisville
One of the PDL's Top 20 Players to Watch, Ryosuke set a Marshalltown Community College record by racking up 41 goals (including 15 game-winners) the last two seasons. Announced May 8
AUDI JEPSON Forward Hometown: Green Bay College: Wisconsin-Green Bay
The Horizon League's 2017 Offensive Player of the Year, Jepson scored 11 goals and assisted five more as a senior. Announced May 7
JOHNNY FENWICK Defender Hometown: Newcastle, England College: High Point
A left-footed center-back, Fenwick serves as captain for his North Carolina school. Announced May 6
HEATH HONOLD Defender Hometown: Coon Rapids College: West Virginia
Updated May 21: Honold is no longer with the Menace. Honold was one of six Iowa natives who saw action in the Menace's 2017 postseason. Announced May 5
BRYCE GIBSON Defender Hometown: Lee's Summit, Mo. College: Creighton
A Sporting KC homegrown, Gibson is back for his second year with the Menace. Announced May 4
MUENG SUNDAY Midfielder Hometown: Coralville College: Drake
Returning for his fifth straight season with the Menace is Sunday, the 2013 Iowa High School Player fo the Year. Announced May 3
JOE KAY Defender Hometown: Brighton, England College: San Jose State
Kay, a captain at San Jose State, is back for his second season with the Menace. Announced May 2
ELVIR IBISEVIC Forward Hometown: Johnston College: Omaha
After making a splash on the international stage this winter, Ibisevic returns for his third summer with the Menace. On Jan. 28 in California, he earned his first cap in Bosnia and Herzegovina's scoreless draw with the United States Men's National Team. Announced May 1