Jon Mason played soccer at John Battle High School.
He has been an assistant soccer coach for the Trojans.
Mason has now recorded a hat trick of sorts as he was recently named the head coach of the boys team at his alma mater.
Mason, 39, becomes just the third man to hold the position in the history of a program that began in 1997. Ellis Wimmer and Mike Posey were his predecessors.
Mason has been an assistant coach at Battle since 2018 and had many reasons to pursue the head-coaching job.
“My love of the game and desire to give back to the game and school I attended,” Mason said. “Also, many former players I’ve coached at John Battle the past five years have volunteered to help me coach my own kids’ teams. That’s the part I also love in not just developing a love for soccer, but also love of coaching and passing on what you’ve learned to those who come after you.”
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Mason is certainly dedicated to the sport.
He had a stint as an assistant at Patrick Henry and is a member of the Bristol Soccer Association’s board.
“I plan to continue coaching both my daughter’s [Callie and Zoe] soccer teams as much as I can, as well as my son [Foxx], who will start soccer this fall,” Mason said. “There were days last year, I’d practice with JSB boys, then coach one daughter’s team at 6 and finish my older daughter’s team at 7.”
Posey spent 21 years at the helm and led the Trojans to three straight state tournament berths from 2009-2011. He was named Group A coach of the year in 2010 when Battle went 17-2-1 and advanced to the state semifinals.
The Trojans struggled during the 2022 season and lost 12-0 to Gate City in the first round of the Mountain 7 District tournament.
Mason, a guidance counselor at Valley Institute Elementary School, will take on the rebuilding project and plans to build from the ground up.
“This will be a challenge,” Mason said. “At the conclusion of last season, we only had about 16 players on the roster. Five were hurt, so some of the last few games, we only played with 11 players. We also lost six seniors, so building a new enjoyment, recruitment, and desire to play at JSB is important.
“Another reason I’ve continued to coach my youth teams is that those kids attend High Point, Valley Institute and Wallace [Middle School] and will be the JSB players of tomorrow. I expect it’ll be challenging at first, but building a new foundation with what current players remain and new players we get excites me, molding the team in the direction I envision.”
Battle is the second school in Bristol that will have a new boys soccer coach in 2022. Hunter Meade was hired last month take over the program at Tennessee High.
Meade is a Virginia High graduate who previously coached the Bearcats.
“Hunter and I played club-level and high school soccer against one another and are both on the BSA board together,” Mason said. “I would love to create a Bristol Derby or Bristol Cup sort of thing and have spoken with Kevin [Wright at Virginia High] and former THS coach Andrew Snyder in the past of creating that.”
Mason certainly doesn’t lack enthusiasm.
“Coach Mason has been around our program for years and he is involved in our youth programs,” said John Battle coach Jimmy King. “He wants to be actively involved with our feeder programs and we are excited for Coach Mason to lead our program.”
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