WEST DES MOINES, Iowa – May 2, 2009 – The Des Moines Menace turned it on in the second half of its only preseason match, defeating Des Moines Latinos United, 7-1, tonight at Valley Stadium.

The Menace led 2-0 at the half before pouring on five goals in the final 30 minutes of this season-opening exhibition in front of 3,231 fans.

“We got better as the game went on,” said head coach Casey Mann, whose team outshot its opponent 35-9. “I thought we played with more urgency in the second half, started putting on more pressure at the attacking half of the field.”

After United got on the board in the 54th minute, Scott Harrison scored in the 60th and 71st minutes, assisted by Mike Luecke and Chase Wileman. Nik Chamberlain made it a 5-1 match in the 77th minute when he put in a rebound.

Simpson’s Corey Miller made the most of his 10 minutes of action, tallying the final two goals (assisted by Jeff Stalen and Harvey Martinez) in the closing minutes.

The match was a chance for Miller and two other former Menace Academy players – Ben Poppen and Sam Weeks – to see action for the Premier Development League team. Just a week from the Menace’s PDL opener, Mann used this game as a spotlight for local talent and a training session for several of the players who will be with the team this summer. A dozen new players will be joining the team this week as it gets ready to open the regular season.

“It hard to say what we’ll see in the coming week,” Mann said. “We want the guys to have a good week of training as we get things started.”

It took less than a minute for the Menace to get on the board – an own goal about 40 seconds into the match. Christian Raudales – a Florida Gulf Coast teammate of Harrison – scored the only other goal of the first half. Wileman, who last season played Major League Soccer for FC Dallas, set up Raudales in the 33rd minute.

Mario Gomez scored the only goal for Des Moines Latinos United.

UP NEXT: The Menace opens the regular season next Saturday (May 9), hosting the expansion Rochester (Minn.) Thunder at 7:30 p.m. It is the first of the Menace’s four U.S. Open Cup qualifying matches against Heartland Division foes

The May 9 Mother’s Day celebration is presented by Airheads candy. Moms get in free with the purchase of a child’s ticket, and they receive carnations from Classic Floral Design. All women are invited to participate in the Diamond Dig, presented by Charles Ganske and InFocus Partners. The first 500 fans receive Menace cowbells.

ABOUT THE MENACE: In its 16th season as Iowa’s Premier Soccer Team, the Menace competes in the 68-team Premier Development League (PDL), the highest amateur level of the United Soccer Leagues (USL). The Menace plays its home matches in a fun, family-friendly environment at Valley Stadium in West Des Moines.