University of Akron men’s soccer team welcomes 10-player recruiting class

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AKRON, Ohio – The University of Akron men’s soccer squad under the leadership of eighth-year head coach Jared Embick, has announced a talented 10-member newcomer class that will hit the pitch for the Zips during the Spring 2021 campaign.

Donning the Akron uniform this spring will be Dyson Clapier (Layton, Utah), Josh Hangi (Decatur, Ga.), Sam Harter (Copley, Ohio), Paul Jones (Irmo, S.C.), Nate Metsack (Ashford, Ct.), Will Meyer (Solon, Ohio), Nick Scott (Fairview, Pa.), Jason Shokalook (Erie, Pa.), Tonny Temple (Millville, Pa.) and Damon Williams (Columbia, S.C.).

Dyson Clapier

A midfielder from Layton, Utah, Clapier gained valuable playing experience with the Portland Timbers Academy and Portland Timbers 2 in the USL. He made his USL debut with the Timbers 2 at the age of 17 and scored his first goal for the squad at the age of 18.

Embick on Clapier – “Dyson is a talented winger, who can play on the right or left. He is a skillful player, who is dangerous 1v1, and is a threat to score and create in the final third. He has great attacking instincts and competitive spirit.”

Josh Hangi

A goalkeeper from Decatur, Ga., Hangi gained valuable playing experience with the Atlanta United Development Academy. TopDrawerSoccer.com ranks him 31st in the South Atlantic Region.

Embick on Hangi – “Josh is an athletic keeper with great potential. We see him as a player that has great talent, work ethic and a positive attitude. Those attributes will help him develop into an outstanding keeper.”

Sam Harter

A midfielder from Copley, Ohio, Harter gained valuable playing experience with the Internationals Academy in the United States Development Academy. A four-year letterwinner at Copley High School, Harter is a three-time All-Conference, All-District, All-Akron and Touchdown Club All-Star selection. He garnered second-team All-State and first-team All-Region accolades as a senior en route to being selected as the Suburban League Player of the Year. He capped his prep career registering 38 goals and 29 assists in 71 games, including 57 starts, and is the brother of former Akron All-MAC performer Skye Harter.

Embick on Harter – “He is a very well-rounded player. I think he is further along in his development at this age than his brother Skye. He is versatile and can play multiple positions, but we see him as a midfielder that can help us control games on both sides of the ball.”

Paul Jones

A native of Irmo, S.C., Jones, a versatile center back has gained valuable playing experience with South Carolina United, where a year ago he earned Elite Clubs National League all-conference honors as well as an invitation to the ECNL after helping his squad to conference and regional titles. A year ago, he also played for the SC United Bantams in the United Soccer League Two. Additionally, he earned All-State and All-Regional accolades as a junior at Dutch Fork High School. He was also rated 24th in the South Atlantic Region by TopDrawerSoccer.com.

Embick on Jones – “We really like Paul’s ability to play out of the back and initiate our build-up play. He is a very smart player and has the toughness to be a very good player for us. He is just a player that fits our style and identity, who is a great player, person and student.”

Nate Metsack

A native of Ashford, Ct., Metsack, a defender, gained valuable playing experience with the New England Revolution Academy, where he helped his squad to an undefeated regular season and a U19 conference championship during the 2018-19 campaign. Appeared in 75 games with the New England Revolution Academy, including 71 starts, and registered six goals and one assist. Trained and saw action this past season with the New England Revolution II in the USL League One. Additionally, he played one season at E.O. Smith High School in Storrs, Ct., while garnering playing experience for the Oakwood Soccer Club.

Embick on Metsack – “Nate is an athletic defender, who can use his toughness and athleticism in the game to put out a lot of fires. He will allow us to play a high line in the back. His ability is a great compliment to our other defenders.”

Will Meyer

A goalkeeper from Solon, Ohio, Meyer joins the Zips after playing his initial three campaigns at Louisville, where he appeared in 15 career matches for the Cardinals, including 13 starts, posting 31 saves, nine shutouts and a 0.77 goals against average. As a redshirt freshman in 2017, he started and made three saves in net en route to earning a shutout in a 0-0 double-overtime draw with Akron in the Elite Eight, a contest which the Zips advanced to the College Cup on penalty kicks. He posted a 0.37 goal against average in three NCAA Tournament games in 2017, including garnering shutouts versus Colgate and Akron. He played four years at Solon High School, including 56 matches overall and was named first-team All-Ohio, Cleveland.com Goalkeeper of the Year, first-team All-Cleveland, Conference Player of the Year and First-Team All-Conference as a senior.

Embick on Meyer – “We are excited that we were able to convince Will to come back and finish his last year in our program. He is a very smart and athletic keeper that has the ability to steal games for you from the keeper position. I think he has potential to be one of the best keepers in college this year.”

Nick Scott

A native of Fairview, Pa., Scott, a winger/right back has gained valuable playing experience with the Internationals Academy in the United States Development Academy, where he led his squad in scoring as a freshman with 16 goals. He also helped lead his Columbus Crew SC Academy U17 and U19 teams to the playoffs as a sophomore and junior, as well as the knockout stage of the Development Academy Playoffs in 2018.

Embick on Scott – “Nick is a tremendous athlete, who brings speed and toughness and can really open up the game on the wing. He is an aggressive player and can run all day. He can play as a fullback or winger and is a player that is only going to get better and better in our program.”

Jason Shokalook

A native of Erie, Pa., Shokalook, a versatile forward has gained valuable playing experience with the Internationals Academy in the United States Development Academy. TopDrawerSoccer.com ranked him as the 12th-best forward in the Class of 2020 as well as sitting 48th overall in the IMG Academy 150. He was named to the Academy Select team and garnered an invitation to the U.S. Soccer Training.

Embick on Shokalook – “A big-time goal scorer, Jason has a chance to become a special player. He possesses good size, strength and is a hard runner. Every year he has played he has been one of the best goal scorers in the country in his age group”.

Tonny Temple

A native of Millville, Pa., Temple, a forward, joins the Zips after playing his freshman campaign in 2019 at North Carolina State, where he appeared in 15 matches, including a pair of starts and recorded eight shots, with two falling on target. He gained valuable playing experience with the Philadelphia Union Academy from 2013-16 before spending time with the U.S. National Team’s residency program in Bradenton, Fla., as well as the two seasons with IMG Academy. He returned to the Union Academy to finish high school where he was a 2018 United Soccer Coaches Youth Boys All-East Region Team selection and was rated by TopDrawerSoccer.com as a four-star forward and the No. 17 forward in the nation as well as ranking No. 43 in the IMG Academy rankings. Temple scored seven goals in 12 appearances with the Philadelphia Union U-18/19 squad during the 2018-19 season, while finishing second on the Union’s U-18/19s with 20 goals during the 2017-18 campaign.

Embick on Temple – “Tonny is transferring to us after a year at NC state. We tried to get him coming out of high school and are excited he is coming to us now. A winger with pace and power, he is another player that is dangerous every time he has the ball in the final third. He can open up the game for us and makes our attack even more dangerous.”

Damon Williams

A native of Columbia, S.C., Williams, a versatile forward/winger has gained valuable playing experience with the South Carolina United, where he helped his squad to conference and regional titles a year ago.

Embick on Williams – “Pace, skill and determination is best way to describe Damon. He is a bit raw right now, but we feel he can develop into an impact player in the future. He is a player to watch for us as he can play as a forward or an outside back.”

2020-21 Akron Men’s Soccer Signing Class