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This season, with former Tusculum University head coach Michael Joy at the helm, Morristown East’s girls soccer program is looking to raise their standing in the district power-rankings.

Joy, who spent the past 33 years coaching at the collegiate level — 26 of which being at Tusculum — likes what he’s seen from his players this preseason.

“We are focusing a lot on technique and fitness,” Joy said. “A number of our players are relatively new to the game, while we have a few that have played competitively for years. We played last weekend and tied Louden and then defeated Clinton HS. These players play with a lot of heart.”

A young core provides a good opportunity for an established coach such as Joy to implement a system and a culture. Joy is embracing the emphasis on teaching that the high school level requires.

“I have spent the last 33 years coaching collegiate soccer, while the game and coaching is somewhat the same, it requires more focus on teaching and instruction of those technical and tactical aspects,” Joy said. “Getting student athletes to buy in and be there for practices and games is another challenge.”

As far as players to watch this year, Joy has a lot of names that he’s excited about.

“Kirsten Sadlon in the midfield is a senior and is a tremendous leader on and off the field. She is a quality player, and Haley Baskette is our center back and other captain on the team,” Joy said. “We have a number of freshmen; Ava Begley at striker, Lynzi Hawk in defense, Abby Partin at striker and defense and Catalina Concha at striker are those freshmen challenging to start. At goalkeeper we have a returning All District player with Alyssa Potter, and some other notable juniors and sophomores are Jenna Carlyle in the midfield and Alexa Montalvo in defense.”

As far as scheduling for East, they’ll kick things off at West Ridge. The following week, they’ll host Northview.

Following Northview, they’ll travel to Pigeon Forge for tournament matchups with Macon County, Giles County and Lexington High.

From there, they’ll travel back home to host Grainger, followed by a matchup at Cumberland Gap.

Then, they’ll open up district play against Jefferson County, followed by two non-district contests with Chuckey-Doak and Daniel Boone.

They’ll resume district play at Sevier County, then return home for a matchup with crosstown rival Morristown West.

They’ll close out the season with senior night, hosting Elizabethton.

When it comes to expectations for this upcoming season, the focus is on growth. With a new coach at the helm and so many young players on the roster, the ‘Canes are looking for a foundation to build on.

“We have a few goals. One is a personal goal to grow soccer here at East. We have 28 players on the team which is nearly twice the size of the roster from 2022,” Joy said. “We want to challenge in our district this season, and hopefully in future years challenge to get to the state tournament.

“I enjoy this group of players, and I am joined by a wonderful assistant Carol Rouse who has worked with the girls soccer program over the years,” Joy said. “We hope to start the process of building a program that will be considered one of the best in the region and state.”

That next step in that process begins at 6:30 on August 17, when they travel to West Ridge to kick off the season.