BLACKSVILLE, W.Va. — Andrew Joyce is already very familiar with the athletics programs at Clay-Battelle. He played football under Ryan Wilson and basketball under Josh Kisner during his time from 2009-13.
Joyce also has a pretty good relationship with the girls’ basketball coach David Joyce. He never played for him, but Andrew may know a thing or two about his dad.
Now, the younger Joyce will have an opportunity to work professionally with his former coaches as the new athletic director at C-B, approved during Tuesday night’s Monongalia County Board of Education meeting.
“When I was growing up, it was always WVU and Clay-Battelle for me,” the Wadestown native said. “I was always interested in getting into athletics and it has always been a passion of mine. This was just something that sort of fell into place and it was a natural fit for me.”
Joyce, 24, replaced Butch Varner, who served at the helm for five years before turning in his resignation following the C-B’s run to the softball state tournament. David Joyce served before Varner for 15 years.
While Andrew saw himself potentially in a role involving athletics, becoming an athletic director is not something he intentionally sought. After being a multi-sport athlete at Clay-Battelle, he graduated in 2013 and went to WVU and ended up earning his master’s this year in mathematics education.
Following in his parents’ footsteps, Joyce immediately got a job at C-B out of college as a teacher. But when the athletic director job opened up, it seems like a no-brainer to jump in and do that, too. With pre-existing relationships, it felt like the right fit.
“I went to school for teaching specifically, and I really wouldn’t say being an athletic director was really a goal of mine,” Joyce said. “But I have a really good relationship with (principal) Mr. (David) Cottrell. He was my Little League coach and a lot of the coaches there were my coaches while I was there.
“I’m looking forward to working with those people who helped raised me.”
The position doesn’t come with just bells and whistles — there is a lot of monotonous work that needs to be done behind the scenes, and with this being Joyce’s first full-time teaching position, adding these extra responsibilities as AD is a challenge he’s looking forward to.
“Mr. Cottrell has final say on coaching decisions but I will sit in on those meetings, Joyce said. “I also go through collecting physicals, collecting paperwork, I’m in charge of the trainers and making sure they have all of their supplies. I’m in charge of maintaining the fields, purchasing uniforms, pretty much scheduling and getting referees, making sure ambulances are there when they need to be.”
The feeling of being home and back in the community that made him who he is is what Joyce is most excited for.
“I’ve been to multiple schools and all had great things about them, but Clay-Battelle has always had a great community and turnout,” he said. “It’s a small crowd, but always had great community support. We are way out there and somewhat in the middle of nowhere, but we’ve built up a pretty good reputation. We’re small enough to where you don’t get lost and big enough to where you can make a name for yourself.
“We have a great staff and these teachers are who made me who I am.”
