Minky Couture Week 39 high school star athletes of the week

Baseball

Ty Marvin, Payson (Jr.)

Payson is still playing baseball this spring, and a big reason why is Ty Marvin’s clutch play over the weekend.

Ater Payson dropped Game 1 of its best-of-3 series with Cottonwood last Friday, Marvin had great performances in Game 2 and 3 as the Lions rallied to win the series and advance to this week’s 4A Super Regionals against No. 3 seed Ridgeline.

“Ty had a key 2 RBI single in game 2 that flipped the momentum and gave us the lead that we never looked back from. Ty has worked extremely hard and it showed this weekend. In a couple games where we needed runs, Ty came through,” said Payson coach Riley Daniels.

In the two wins over Cottonwood on Saturday, Marvin went 4 for 7 with two walks, one double, one home run, seven RBIs and three runs scored.

For the season, Marvin is batting .300 with five home runs, eight doubles and 29 RBIs.

Softball

Kallee Lake, Emery (Sr.)

Kallee Lake backed up a strong regular season with a strong performance in Emery’s 3A playoff win last week.

She struck out six batters in Saturday’s 3A second round, and then at the plate went 2 for 3 with a double and an RBI to help her own cause.

“This young lady is one of the most dedicated softball players I’ve ever met. It’s been great to see the leader she has become for the team this year,” said Emery coach Daniel Luke.

The week previous, she went nine innings in a win over Duchesne and then seven innings against Manti, allowing a combined three earned runs and striking out 13 batters.

For the season, Lake owns a 10-4 record with 133 strikeouts and a 3.19 ERA. At the plate, she’s hitting .324 with three doubles and 11 RBIs.

Boys Soccer

Jackson Stevenson, Maeser Prep (Sr.)

Class 2A top seed Maeser Prep is in the semifinals for the third straight year, and senior Jackson Stevenson has had a big hand in that sustained success.

The four-year starter and two-year captain has logged 33 goals for Maeser and 15 assists. He ranks fourth in school history in both statistical categories.

“Jack is the heart and soul of our team. His energy and focus on the team, especially our younger players, is one of the hallmarks of his leadership. He loves Maeser soccer and honors the traditions of our program while continuing to build the legacy of our team. He’s had a storied and successful career, taking our team to three state semifinals in a row, and he’s taken our program to new heights,” said Maeser Prep coach Dustin Simmons.

This season Stevenson has scored 20 goals, including a brace in a second-round win over Wasatch Academy last week.

Stevenson will lead his team into the semifinals this Thursday against St. Joseph.

Girls Track

Tia Brown, Snow Canyon (Sr.)

Tia Brown wowed at the BYU Invitational last weekend, doing something that no Utah athlete has ever done.

The senior won the 100 hurdles with a state-record time of 13.89. No other Utah athlete has run under 14 seconds, as the previous state record was 14.03 which was set two years ago.

“Tia has been an amazing addition to our team. She is the constant professional at practice each day. She really cares about this sport and her performances in each event. I have been so impressed with her ability to acclimate to our team and culture,” said Snow Canyon coach Justin Redfearn. “She truly has been such a leader for us this year, her enthusiasm has been infectious and we are so honored to have her at Snow Canyon.”

At the BYU Invite, Brown also finished second behind teammate Amelia Nadauld in both the 300 hurdles and long jump.

Boys Track

David Konan, Corner Canyon (Sr.)

Corner Canyon sprinter David Konan enjoyed an outstanding performance at the BYU Invitational over the weekend.

Against the always strong field that the meet brings in, the senior won the 100 meters with a time of 10.65 and finished second in the 200 meters with a time of 21.23.

Konan’s time in the 100 was slightly off his state-best time of 10.53 that he posted a couple weeks ago at Davis High School.

Konan’s runner-up time of 21.23 in the 200 meters at BYU wasn’t a wind legal time, so his 21.36 is his current fastest time this year in terms of school record-book consideration.

Konan has committed to run track at Utah State.

Girls Lacrosse

Alexandra MacAulay, Farmington (Sr.)

Farmington was a 6A semifinalist a year ago, and Alexandra MacAuley has the Phoenix in the hunt again for the state title.

Heading into the final week of the regular season, Farmington owns a 12-3 record. MacAuley has been one of the catalysts of that success as she’s tallied 58 goals and 32 assists.

Last week in wins over Weber and Syracuse, she tallied a combined nine goals and eight assists.

Boys Lacrosse

Carter Sant, Davis (Sr.)

Carter Sant’s relentless defensive work helped lead the Darts to another win on Monday night as the reigning 6A runner-ups improved to 15-0 with the playoffs just around the corner.

“Carter Sant is a four year starter for Davis High. He’s currently a captain and has helped lead the Dart to a 15-0. He has over 40 caused turnovers and over 60 ground balls and is a great leader and shuts off offensive players down,” said Davis coach Trevor Yocum.

Sant has signed to play at Colorado Mesa at the next level, and is a reigning 6A all-state honorable mention.

With Monday’s performance, Sant has already surpassed his stats from a year ago and will be a key throughout the playoffs as Davis hopes to make another deep run.

Boys Volleyball

Aaron Nelson, Murray (Jr.)

Aaron Nelson’s strong play at middle blocker played a key part of Murray’s perfect 12-0 record in Region 10 this year and a No. 2 seed in this week’s 4A state tournament.

For the season the middle blocker hit .165 with 109 kills to go along with 25 total blocks.

“Aaron has been huge for us down the stretch. Over the last 5 matches, Aaron has led the team in hitting percentage (0.243) and is second in kills and aces behind our outside hitter Alex Beckstead in both categories,” said Murray coach Allan Mount. “That is almost unheard of for a middle blocker. Aaron has been a major contributor to our success this season.”

In Murray’s final win of region play last week, a 3-1 win over Park City, Nelson hit .250 with 11 kills.

Boys Tennis

Keanau Lei Foc, Juan Diego (Jr.)

Juan Diego’s Keanau Lei Foc hopes to back up a perfect regular season with a perfect state tournament this week.

Lei Foc posted a 15-0 record in first singles play this season for Juan Diego to earn the No. 1 seed in his bracket ahead of this week’s 3A state tournament. The No. 2 seed from Judge Memorial is a player that Lei Foc beat twice, the first a three-setter back in April and the second a 6-3, 6-2 win at the Region tournament last week.

Girls Golf

Maddie Fujimoto, Ridgeline (Sr.)

Fresh off of winning her fourth straight Region 11 title, Ridgeline’s Maddie Fujimoto heads into this week’s 4A state tournament hoping to wrap up her career with a bang.

Fujimoto, who finished in 13th place at last year’s state tournament, will be seeking a top 10 finish at Southgate Golf Course in St. George this Wednesday and Thursday in her high school golf finale.

“Maddie has been an outstanding player for the Ridgeline Girls Golf team since she arrived as a freshman. She has been the Region 11 medalist for all four years of her high school career. She has helped lead our golf team to three region titles in four years,” said Ridgeline coach Julie Major. “Maddie spends hours on the golf course and is never satisfied. She is a leader and has been our team captain for the last two years as well.”

Fujimoto, who’s signed to play golf at Eastern Wyoming College, finished with an 81 stroke average this year, and shot a 78 in the final region tournament of the season.