Tag Archives: Des Moines Menace

US Open Cup Qualification Complete, First Round Begins June 15th

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CHICAGO (June 2, 2010) – U.S. Soccer has announced the groupings for the first two rounds of the 2010 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup, which kicks off with first-round matches on Tuesday, June 15, around the country.

All 32 lower division teams will enter the tournament in the first round. First-round pairings were determined by dividing the clubs geographically into eight groups of four, with match-ups within each group determined by random draw.

June 15 – Kansas City Athletics (USASA) at NSC Minnesota Stars (D2) – 7 pm at National Sports Center; Blaine, MN
June 15 – AC St. Louis (D2) at Des Moines Menace (PDL) – 7:30 pm at Valley Stadium; West Des Moines, IA

The KC Athletics, who participate in the US Adult Soccer league, advanced with their win over the AAC Eagles from Chicago on May 16th. The game was played following the Wizards match against the Chicago Fire.

The Des Moines Menace represent the PDL Heartland Conference, moving on to their 5th appearance in the national tournament after the Brass did them a favor by tying the Rochester Thunder last weekend. The Demize finished last in the group. The Menace share a record (with the Carolina Dynamo) for the furthest advancement by a PDL team, making it to the Fourth Round in 2005.

In the second round on June 22, the 16 first-round winners will face off, with eight victors moving into the third round to square off against eight Major League Soccer teams.

The third round will take place June 29, with the quarterfinals set for July 6-7, the semifinals on Aug. 31-Sept. 1 and the final slated for Oct. 5.

Of the 17 amateur division teams representing the U.S. Adult Soccer Association regional qualifiers and the Premier Development League, only the Arizona Sahuaros (USASA) are returning for their second consecutive U.S. Open Cup. The Sahuaros have qualified for four of the last five U.S. Open Cups, the best record of any amateur team during that span. This year’s participants also include the Sonoma County Sol of the National Premier Soccer League (an affiliate of the USASA), who qualified for the first round by virtue of winning a play-in match against PSA Los Gatos Storm, a club affiliated with U.S. Club Soccer (a member organization of U.S. Soccer).

Within the U.S. Open Cup framework, teams compete in one of the following four categories: professional outdoor Division I (Major League Soccer), Division II (USSF D-2 Pro League) or Division III (USL Second Division), or Amateur Division. In recent years, the Amateur Division has been comprised of the USL Premier Development League and regional qualifiers from the U.S. Adult Soccer Association.

The Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup, which is recognized as U.S. Soccer’s National Championship, is an annual competition open to all amateur and professional soccer teams affiliated with U.S. Soccer. The tournament has crowned a champion for 95 consecutive years dating back to 1914.

The U.S. Open Cup is a single-elimination tournament, with games tied after regulation being decided in two 15-minute overtime halves. If the score is still tied after overtime, the winner is decided in a penalty kick shootout. The team that advances the furthest from each level except Division I will earn a $10,000 cash prize. The runner-up will take home $50,000, while the champion will collect $100,000. In addition, the winner will have its name engraved on the historic Dewar Challenge Trophy, the oldest trophy competed for nationally in American team sports.

Des Moines Menace Claim Heartland Conference Crown

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Demize LogoWith a 3-2 win at Kansas City last night, the Des Moines Menace claimed 1st place for themselves in the Heartland Conference. The game-winner was scored by Ben Taylor (Drury) on an assist from Garrett Webb. Taylor is now the leading the scorer for the Menace with 13 points.

The win ensured that the Menace would take sole possession of first regardless of the result here in Springfield, where the Demize were hosting the Colorado Real Foxes, the other potential contender. The Demize wrapped up their season with a 0-2 loss to the visitors. Colorado travel to Kansas City in hopes of finishing third now, ahead of the St Louis Lions who travel to Des Moines for the regular season final game. If the Foxes win, they claim second and Thunder Bay finish third. A tie at KC will ensure the 3rd place spot, behind the Chill. St Louis needs to defeat Des Moines, while Colorado loses to KC, to have a chance to go through.

This is the second division crown in the Menace’s 16 seasons. Des Moines makes its ninth postseason appearance, preparing to host the division’s second- and third-place teams, who will face off at Valley Stadium on July 24. The winner of that opening-round match will play the Menace the following night. That includes the 2nd place Thunder Bay Chill and either the Foxes or Lions.

The Demize finish their season with 7 points from 16 games, a record of 2 – 13 – 1, with 10 goals scored and 43 allowed.

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Des Moines Menace Clinch Playoff Spot With Win Over Springfield Demize

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Demize LogoThe Springfield Demize finished their final road trip of the season on Saturday evening in Des Moines where they fell 4-0 to the hosts. With the win the Des Moines Menace has secured a spot in the playoffs and a share of the division championship. With two games remaining, one point is all that is necessary to ensure home-field advantage along with the Heartland Division title.

Ben Taylor and a trio of Drake Bulldogs – Garrett Webb (recently named Preseason All-American), Julien Edwards and Hunter Kennedy – led the Menace’s late-game rampage.

Taylor assisted Webb (50th minute) and Edwards (84th) before capping off the night with an unassisted goal in the final minute. With his first points in eight matches, Taylor passes Armin Mujdzic (10 points) as the team’s leading scorer (11 points)

The Demize will finish their season at home on Friday against the Colorado Real Foxes. Their opportunity to move up from the bottom of the table disappeared with their 0-1 loss to the KC Brass last week. So the final goal will be to get their 3rd win of the season at home against the visitors. Game time is 7:30 pm, come out and cheer on the home side!

2009 PDL Heartland Division
Team Pts GP W L T GF GA
MENACE 31  14 9  1  4  29 11
Thunder Bay 25  14 7  3  4  23 15
Real Colorado 24  14 7  4  3  25 17
St. Louis 24  15 6  3  6  29 22
Rochester 16  14 5  8  1  20 21
Kansas City 12  14 3  8  3  24 33
Springfield  7  15 2 12  1  10 41

Cody Reinberg Signs With Harrisburg City Islanders

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College Soccer: Drury Panthers vs Northern KentuckyFormer Drury Panther captain, Cody Reinberg, continues his development by signing with USL-2 Harrisburg City Islanders.

A native of Missouri, Cody Reinberg joins the Islanders after a year with another elite PDL club the Des Moines Menace. Prior to joining the Menace, he was a four-year starter at Drury University in Springfield, MO and played for the Springfield Demize in 2007. During his time as a Panther, Reinberg was an All-Great Lakes Valley Conference Honorable Mention and All-Great Lakes Region Third team, and All-Conference First Team honors.

Cody’s not the only St Louis boy on the squad, he’s joined by Tim Velten who played for SIU-Edwardsville and Louisville before joining Harrisburg in 2007.

Another familiar face is Brandon Swartzendruber, formerly of the Thunder Bay Chill.

Though a rookie to the USL-2, Brandon Swartzendruber is a natural goal scorer. He proved his scoring ability during two impressive seasons with the USL’s PDL Thunder Bay Chill. During the 2007 season, he scored 16 goals and recorded 4 assists, finishing second in the PDL for both goals and points. He continued his scoring success in 2008, scoring 13 goals and adding 8 assists, leading the Chill to the PDL Championship. A five-time PDL team of the week selection over two seasons, Swartzendruber was selected to the PDL All-Central Conference team for the 2008 season

PDL Soccer: Springfield Demize Release Schedule

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United Soccer Leagues announced the details for the 2009 USL Premier Development League season. The PDL will consist of 68 teams in 2009, playing in eight divisions that comprise the four conferences.

Expansion teams that have been formally announced and include a new member of the Heartland Conference, the Rochester (MN) Thunder. The league will play a 16-game season with games based primarily upon their divisional alignment. The season will open May 13th for the Demize and conclude July 17th.

Heartland Division: Des Moines Menace, Kansas City Brass, Real Colorado Foxes, Rochester Thunder, Springfield Demize, St Louis Lions, Thunder Bay Chill

Wednesday May 13 – Des Moines Menace @ Springfield Demize, 8:30 PM
Friday May 15 – St. Louis Lions @ Springfield Demize, 8:30 PM
Wednesday May 20 – Springfield Demize @ Kansas City Brass, 8:00 PM
Friday May 22 – Springfield Demize @ Real Colorado Foxes, 8:30 PM
Sunday May 24 – Springfield Demize @ Real Colorado Foxes, 3:00 PM
Saturday June 6 – Kansas City Brass @ Springfield Demize, 8:30 PM
Thursday June 11 – Kansas City Brass @ Springfield Demize, 8:30 PM
Saturday June 13 – Rochester Thunder @ Springfield Demize, 8:30 PM
Thursday June 18 – St. Louis Lions @ Springfield Demize, 8:30 PM
Saturday June 20 – Springfield Demize @ St. Louis Lions, 6:00 PM
Friday June 26 – Springfield Demize @ Rochester Thunder, 8:00 PM
Saturday June 27 – Springfield Demize @ Des Moines Menace, 8:30 PM
Tuesday June 30 – Thunder Bay Chill @ Springfield Demize, 8:30 PM
Thursday July 9 – Springfield Demize @ Kansas City Brass, 8:00 PM
Saturday July 11 – Springfield Demize @ Des Moines Menace, 8:30 PM
Friday July 17 – Real Colorado Foxes @ Springfield Demize, 8:30 PM

The Demize will have a schedule heavily weighted to home games early, with 6 of the 8 home games being played between May 13 – Jun 18. The new line up also means they’ll play the KC Brass 4 times, while holding home-and-away series with everyone in the Division except the PDL Finalist’s Thunder Bay. They’ll only face the Chill once, at home, which was a 0-1 loss last year.

The season wraps up July 19 with the playoffs beginning the following weekend with the return of the Divisional Championship playoffs (July 24-26) for the first time since 1998 with each division seeing three teams advance to the postseason.

Springfield Demize Season Wrap

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PDL Soccer: Springfield Demize host Colorado Rapids U23OK, how many of you attended a Demize game this season? And if you didn’t, what kept you away this summer?

The Demize had a difficult season, as measured by their 0-16 result. There were 8 goals scored, 48 surrendered. Tough numbers to reflect on but only part of the story of the team and the season. On the other hand, fans also got to see the PDL Champion Thunder Bay Chill twice this season in Springfield. The first game was a narrow 1-2 loss on June 14th and the second an 0-3 loss on July 2nd. 6 times the Demize were beaten by a single goal, out of a total of 16 games. This is a tough Conference, with the 2005 Champion Des Moines Menace, Colorado Rapids U23′s and St Louis Lions setting a very high level of play.

After 4 years of tracking PDL soccer, both here and throughout the region, I’ve come to appreciate how difficult PDL soccer is for the teams and participants. Once again this year, only two of the six teams in the Conference had winning road records (Chill and Rapids) and only one had a positive goal differential on the road (Chill). The Demize scored 6 of their 8 goals at home while surrendering 19. The games were hard fought battles against familiar opponents who also turnover 50% or more of their team year-to-year due to the nature of the league. Important facts but mere background in the bigger picture.

I’ve commented in the past about how much I enjoy the PDL season and this year was no different. It offers some of the highest quality play we can see in the region and a chance to see the continuing development of players we are familiar with in many cases. I talked to Armen Tonianse, Head Coach and Sam Blair, who handles the Reserves, about their experience this year as well as their plans going forward. The first topic of discussion was competition and here is what Armen offered:

The key this year was our effort to bring in committed players. That offered two immediate benefits, the first a higher level of competition with 25 or more players regularly practicing and working to earn playing time. The other thing we accomplished was offering our Reserve players the development opportunities that come from working and playing in a competitive environment like this.

The competitive environment described by Armen and Sam is something I have come to appreciate as an important aspect of any teams development. The most successful teams in my experience are practicing at game speed and building a team environment that supports that effort and competitive spirit. The Demize have also taken the time to explore the successful programs in the region. Thunder Bay’s win this year follows a 2-11-3 season only two years ago. One key for them has been consistency on the roster. Toniase addressed that topic as well:

A key commitment the team made from the beginning is the Reserve team. The Demize see the team as the future of the primary squad and there were several young men who benefited from that opportunity this year.

Sam Blair expanded on the topic:

The Demize made a commitment to the development of the Reserves this year with a couple of key steps. We took them on two road trips, including a trip to Colorado for our games against the Rapids U23. In addition, we see several of them as the future of this team, players like Robbie Curtis and Kyler Temple who begin their college career this Fall, and Lane Chapman who is a senior at Kickapoo. Our hope is that their experiences and growth with the Demize will lead to their continued participation in the future and the overall growth of the team.

I mentioned the 2005 Champion Menace earlier. They are a club and a team that set the bar when it comes to developing ties in the community and club programs in the region. Attendance regularly exceeds 2000 and Mediacom broadcasts several games live every season. Toniase described the model:

The key is building the pyramid. The PDL team is at the top, featuring the highest level of amateur play in the region. We want to offer players in this region an outlet to continue playing at the highest level, that is the key. It also requires increasing the depth and breadth of play locally, with the Reserves, the Club program Total Soccer is offering in Springfield and Logan-Rogersville and on-going play during the year.

I saw a lot of growth from the team as the season progressed, both on the pitch and in the area of sportsmanship. I hope that more of you will take the time to come out and support the players and the team in 2009. Look for more on the Demize and Total SC in the days to come.

PDL Soccer: Des Moines Menace Shut Out Springfield Demize

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Springfield Demize – 0
Des Moines Menace – 2
It was a close, tightly fought game last night that turned on a single goal in the 26th minute when the Menace were able to intercept an outlet pass and counter-attack quickly, with x slotting his shot past the goal keeper from inside the box. The final goal was scored in stoppage time as the Menace got a late corner kick with y scoring on a header from the far side, sending his shot back to the opposite side.


Des Moines Menace visit Springfield Demize from oleolson on Vimeo.

The Demize will wrap up their season with the 16 hour bus ride to Thunder Bay, Canada for a pair of games next weekend. They’ll be battling a team hoping to sweep their final four games to gain home-field advantage in the Conference playoffs. The Menace are trying to hold on for the second spot with games at St Louis Wednesday and hosting their primary rival, Rapids U23, next Saturday.

I’ll be back with video later today.

Springfield Demize Close Out Home Schedule Thursday

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The Springfield Demize will close out their home schedule this Thursday evening when the Des Moines Menace visit. Stephen ‘Cody’ Reinberg (Drury 2008) has played every minute of every game this year on defense for the Menace and Marco Cherisma has played in seven games, while dealing with injuries. The Menace are coming off a pair of games at home against Thunder Bay, splitting them while winning the series this season 2-1-1, positioning themselves for the final run for the title. They also have to deal with the Colorado Rapids U23′s who will host the St Louis Lions this weekend after having a week off.

The Demize lost their road game at St Louis on Saturday by the score of 0-3.

I finished the video editing for Thursday nights game in Springfield, a 2-3 loss on an 82nd minute goal by Tom Heinemann. I missed Brett Thomas’ early goal but you can catch the final 4 goals as well as some ancillary action from the game in this video. See you Thursday at Cooper #1!


PDL Soccer: St Louis Lions at Springfield Demize, Jul 3 2008 from oleolson on Vimeo.

PDL: Springfield Demize Announce 2008 Season Schedule

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Springfield Demize Opening night for Springfield’s Professional Development League (PDL) team will be Mother’s Day weekend, and the start of the girls District playoffs. Saturday May 10th they will host the Colorado Rapid’s U23, with Lance Parker (MSU) in goal for the Rapids very likely.

The KC Brass visit twice, the first time May 22nd, just two days after the Class 3 Sectional that is traditionally held at Lake Country Soccer as well. They return two weeks later on June 6th, also the start of the Toyota Cup, being hosted by Lake Country this year. The Rapids U23′s will visit on Saturday June 7th.That should guarantee large crowds!

The final home games in early July feature Heartland Conference rivals St Louis and Des Moines, which will probably feature Drury forward Marco Cherisma. The games are bracketed by a pair of long distance road trips (to Colorado and Ontario). It’s a fairly balanced schedule that offers the St Louis Lions and Des Moines Menace as the final home games.

Springfield Demize 2008 Schedule

There will be an open tryout/mini-camp on March 14th, 15th, 16th and March 21st, 22nd, 23rd. Contact the team for more information.