PHILADELPHIA – Temple women's soccer coach Seamus O'Connor announced the addition of two transfers and an incoming freshman to his roster which brings the total newcomers to eight for the 2019 season. Arryana Daniels
Juniors Samantha Munyon, a transfer from USC Upstate, and Arryana Daniels, who was a two-year starter at Winthrop, will provide veteran experience to an Owls squad that won seven matches in 2018 and advanced to the American Athletic Conference tournament. Niara Sapp, who prepped at Maret High in Washington, D.C., will be one of six incoming freshmen vying for playing time.
"We are always looking to make our team stronger as we look to achieve our goal of success in the American Athletic Conference and with the addition of these three student-athletes i definitely feel like we put the team in a better position to achieve success," said O'Connor. "All three of them can come in this fall and contribute immediately. Niara will bring another dimension to our attacking group. She looks to dribble the ball and go at defenders whenever she has the ball. She will create and get goals for us.
Samantha Munyon
Samantha and Arryana will be joining us after both competing in the Big South Conference. Samantha can be one of the best goalkeepers in our conference. We are already strong in the goalkeeping department with Cassy and Morgan, but when the opportunity comes along to add a goalkeeper of Samantha's ability we just could not turn it down. Samantha is great with the ball at her feet and should do very well in our system. Arryana is an excellent addition to our defensive group. She can play either in the center of the defense or as an outside back. She is very difficult defender to get past and more importantly she is very comfortable with the ball at her feet and she will do very well in our possession style of play. I could also see Arryana playing as a center midfielder in our system if needed."
Daniels, a 5-4 defender, anchored the Winthrop defense in 14 games in 2018 before suffering a season-ending injury. The First Team All-Big South honoree averaged more than 89 minutes per game and helped the Eagles post two shutouts. She earned one Defensive Player of the Week award while scoring one goal and registering one assist. The Wilmington, Del. native also started 11 games as a freshman and was named to the Big South All-Freshman Team. Niara Sapp
Munyon, a 5-8 goalkeeper, started 11 of 12 matches during her two seasons at USC Upstate and posted a minuscule 0.91 goals against average. As a freshman, she made four starts and allowed just one goal while recording three shutout wins. The Columbus, Ga. native stopped 16 of the 17 shots she faced and earned ASUN Defensive Player of the Week honors. As a sophomore in 2018, she posted three more shutout wins in her seven starts while making 25 saves against 10 goals allowed for a 1.24 goals against average.
Sapp, a 5-5 forward/midfielder, scored 32 career goals as a four-year starter at Maret. Named the team captain as a senior, the Washington native earned All-State honors as a sophomore when she tallied a career best 13 goals in leading her team to the ISL tournament championship. She played club ball for McLean and helped her team win the 2018 Elite Clubs National League (ECNL) National Championship in 2018.
Temple women's soccer opens the 2019 season against Lafayette (1 pm) on Sunday, August 18 at the Temple Sports Complex.
