Garrett Wilson, Brighton's second year athletic director, has a lot to be pleased about. 

All of his fall season sports teams made the next step in their progressions. Brighton cross country posted a strong second place at region; Brighton volleyball defeated nemesis Skyline and then shared the region championship with them; Brighton girls tennis produced a first singles state champion; Brighton football finally broke through and made it to the third round of the state finals; Brighton girls soccer broke into the state final four despite being in the state’s toughest region; Brighton boys golf produced a top-10 finalist; and dozens of Brighton athletes were named to all-region and all-state teams. Below are some highlights:

Brighton girls tennis

Avery Olsen brought home the 5A individual tennis title in first singles on Oct. 7.

The sophomore earned a bye in the round of 32. She then fought her way through Hunter, Wasatch and Granger to face Olympus High’s Lily Stohl, a fellow sophomore. In the finals match, Olsen won back-to-back sets, 6-1 and 6-3. “It was a fun season, and I was happy to play against so many of my friends,” Olsen said. “Every time we play, we make each other better. This will be something we can build on for the future.”

Olsen hopes her title will also make her future brighter as she tries to attract college recruiters over her next two years at Brighton. Olsen continues traveling around the country playing the top players. She will play the top juniors in the world at the Orange Bowl in Florida. 

Besides Olsen’s commanding individual state championship the team took fourth in region and fifth in state and garnered multiple individual honors. 

Second singles—Sadie Maxfield took fourth in region and lost in the round of 16 at state to the state champion. 

Third singles—Grace Jaggi won the back draw of region and lost in the round of 16 at state. 

First doubles—Naomi Smith, the sole varsity senior, and Cate Cook won the back draw of region and lost in the round of 16 to the state second place team. 

Second doubles—Sara Spangler and Victoria Jensen took third place in region and lost in the round of 16 at state. Academic all-region awards went to Haley Evans, Sophia Fisher, Maelie McCoy, Naomi Smith and Ava Starbuck. They have a 3.7 or higher GPA. The region Above and Beyond awards went to Acelyn Johnson and Alyssa Kasteler. 

“I’m proud of this team. They are some of the nicest young ladies I’ve ever worked with. They work hard and take care of each other in the process. I’m excited to see what the future brings for them,” coach Natalie Meyer said. 

Brighton girls volleyball

Coach Jenna Markey brought her alma mater volleyball team back to region relevance in her first year as head coach. She toppled reigning Skyline and developed four of her volleyball players to be recognized with all-regions honors: First team all-region Jordan Metcalf and Brooklyn Easton; second team all-region Isabela McMaster; and honorable mention Eliza Rosevear.

Brighton boys golf

“We had a good season in a tough region. I’m proud of our players,” coach Ron Meyer said.  Nathan Riedel placed in the top 10 at state, and he also placed second team all-state at the Arctic Circle Invitational at Coral Canyon in Saint George. Luke Alder received all-state honorable mention. Alder, Davis Cook and several other solid underclassmen will be coming back. 

“Golf is a life sport,” Meyer said. “It’s a game of integrity and it mimics life. Sometimes in life we hit a bad shot or make a bad decision. We can sit around and whine about it, but we’re going to have to make another decision in a minute. If we keep fretting over our last shot, it’ll ruin the next one. Just like golf, in life, we have to quit worrying about the past and focus on what needs to be done right now.” 

Brighton football

Brighton football showed uncanny defensive grit throughout the season. “Beating East on a goal line stand was a career highlight for me as a coach. Playing our best game of the season versus Woods Cross in the second round of the state championships was a gift from our seniors. And having 29 of our hard-working players be recognized with postseason honors is gratifying for me as their coach,” coach Casey Sutera said about the winning season.

All-region first team: Miles Morgan, Easton Adamson, Myles Peters, Nash Matheson, Jack Johnson and Siale Ofa.

All-region second team: Donovan Wismer, Jack Bowers, Andrew Wood, Kaden Morzewelski,  Mason Haertel and Marshall Huber.

Honorable mention: Dylan Thomas, Beau Lafleur, Tyree Pearson, Kimball Shill, Kai Fuertes, Luke Reece, Gustavo Queiroz, Drake Fletcher and Connor Melchior.

Academic all-region: Drew Morgan, Kimball Shill, Jack Johnson, Jack Bowers, Kaimana Fuertes and Easton Smith.

Academic all-state: Kimball Shill and Drew Morgan. λ