MORRISTOWN, NJ – Coming into last season, Morristown had the difficult task of replacing a talented senior group that led the program on deep runs in the state and county tournament. Because of that success, the 2025 Colonials played a daunting schedule, playing nine games against the top 20 teams in the state. That difficult schedule led to some struggles from the team as they integrated a lot of young players experiencing varsity soccer for the first time.
“The group in general came in really fit this year,” head coach Ken Leeder stated. “They just got thrown into it at a ridiculous time in terms of the talent of the teams that we were playing. If you take those games, we were 6-3-2.”
Ahead of their season opener on Tuesday against Pope John, Leeder is confident that his squad can have a bounce-back season. Morristown is almost in the exact opposite situation they were in last year, with several key players returning to the team. That experience should help them on the field, but also in dealing with the mental and emotional tole of a full season and what it takes to get to the end feeling as strong as you did at the beginning.
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“We play some tough games, and we have a lot of players coming back, so they should have that experience of making through the season,” Leeder said. “The hope is that this year we should be better record wise, but we should be able to manage the season a little bit better because they went through that experience last year.”
The Colonials have a strong core of players returning to the roster as almost the entire starting lineup will be playing in their second or third year at the varsity level. Seniors Gianna Laratta, Addie Emge, Guiliana Gervasio, Syndey Lyons, Mackenzie Cantor and Charlotte Moronski are expected to be heavily relied on by the Colonials in 2026. Grace Mertz, who missed all of last year due to injury, Olivia Eickmeyer, Molly Maire, Alexa Armenti and Chloe Hillelson are also expected to be part of the lineup for Morristown.
With nearly a dozen players making their return to the squad, Leeder is hoping that the team can play well throughout all their competitions. Last year, the Colonials were bounced in the second round of both the county and state tournaments, but the talent on the roster should provide an extra boost for Morristown during tournament play in 2026.
“They won’t have that same schedule this year, but it is just kind of the way it is some years,” Leeder explained. “There is definitely room to go on a run in the section, and the county tournament is probably the same.”
After gaining valuable varsity experience last season, Leeder believes his returning players are entering this fall with a greater sense of confidence and maturity. In 2025, the team learned the hard way what it takes to be successful at the varsity level. The development as underclassmen, combined with a better understanding of the game, have raised expectations for what the team can accomplish in 2026.
“You can just tell they are more mature, they came in fitter,” Leeder noted. “They kind of understand it now. When you are a sophomore, you are basically a freshman plus a few days, so you are still kind of a freshman in that regard. Now they are not. They are mature, and we expect to have a good year this year.”