Larry H. Miller Week 36 high school star athletes of the week

Baseball

Anthony Marziale, Fremont (Sr.)

Fremont opened Region 1 play with a sweep of Farmington to improve to 10-3 on the season, and a big part of the success through the season has been senior Anthony Marziale.

Marziale owns a 3-0 record on the mound this season with a 2.20 ERA with 29 strikeouts.

At the plate, he leads Fremont with 17 RBIs, which included six against Farmington last week as he homered and went 5 for 11.

“Tony is a great leader, fun personality. He has filled his role nicely as the new Game 1 starter on the mound. He is very consistent and if he struggles, he has a belief tomorrow will always be better. That has helped him never stay low, he can go 0 for 4 one game and 5 for 7 the next two games. He has stepped up and driven in runs when we needed them. Great kid, and a great teammate,” said coach Garrett Clark.

Marziale is batting .457 this season.

Softball

Toshlyn Louder, South Summit (Jr.)

Toshlyn Louder led South Summit to wins over Ogden, Providence Hall and Morgan last week to vault her team to the front of the Region 13 pack.

Louder owns an 8-5 record this season with 48 strikeouts.

“Toshlyn has been the defensive anchor of our team this year pitching for us. She is a mentally tough competitor who has a calm demeanor and stays emotionally grounded even through high pressure situations,” said South Summit coach Cody Bowen. “She carries a huge workload in our pitching. Tosh has excellent control, hits spots very well, keeps pitch counts low and has gotten stronger and stronger as the season is progressing. She has pitched incredible games against the top teams in our region. She is an outstanding leader and member of our team.”

One of her best performances of the year came against Grantsville a couple weeks ago as she struck out eight in a 3-1 win.

Boys Soccer

Ben Harley, American Fork (Sr.)

Ben Harley’s ability to impact the game on both sides of the ball has played a big part of American Fork’s 7-1 start to the season and rise to the top spot in the 6A rankings.

“Ben has been our difference maker this year through his energy and effort on the defensive side of things and creating on the attacking side. His urgency to impact the game is second to none. He understands the game very well and can dictate the tempo to manage the game. We rely heavily on his leadership and desire to make everyone around him better. Ben has been a key to our strong start to this season,” said American Fork coach Casey Waldron.

So far this season, Harley has recorded three goals and is second on the team with five assists. It’s helped the Cavemen make a huge step forward after finishing last season with an 8-9 record.

Boys Track

Teancum Jensen, Pine View (Sr.)

Teancum Jensen’s work ethic in the ring is paying off in a big way early this season.

The Pine View senior won both the shot put and discus events at the Crimson Cliffs Invitational last week, and his throw in the shot put is the best in Utah this season.

“TJ is a tremendous leader. Every day he spends hours in the ring not only perfecting his craft, but also working with his teammates. His presence and personality have spread throughout all our disciplines, and all our athletes look to his example and commitment,” said Pine View coach David Holt.

Jensen won the shot put with a throw of 59′00, and then won the discus with a throw of 162′07. Earlier this season Jensen recorded a throw of 174′11 in the discus, the second-best mark in the state this spring.

Girls Track

Burklie Burton, Layton (Jr.)

Burklie Burton had another strong weekend in the field for Layton’s track team.

The Layton junior won the discus and finished second at the Phoenix Invitational at Farmington High School last Friday.

She won the discus with a throw of 134′00, the best throw in the entire state so far this spring. She then finished second in the shot put with a throw of 36′06.50. A few weeks ago, she recorded a distance of 36′10 in the shot put, which ranks ninth in the state.

“Burkile is a hardworking and extremely focused athlete. We know that we can rely on her to show up to a competition and take care of business. She has overcome some obstacles this season and continues to give us her best,” said Layton coach Carrie Fredin.

Burton will try and continue to make strides heading into next month’s state tournament as she hopes to improve upon last year’s 6A runner-up finish in the discus and fourth-place finish in the javelin.

Boys volleyball

Mac Hillman, Maple Mountain (Sr.)

Mac Hillman is tearing it up for the Golden Eagles in the first year of boys volleyball as a sanctioned UHSAA sport.

The senior outside hitter has lead Maple Mountain to a 12-2 record this season, and a No. 3 ranking in 5A.

“Mac is a wonderful player, because not only is he a very powerful and consistent server and hitter, he is an amazing passer, and builds the team moral with great positive leadership,” said coach Geoff Wright.

Hillman has played a big role in Maple Mountain’s five-game winning streak, which includes two wins over Spanish Fork last week.

For the season, Hillman has recorded 85 kills, 68 digs and six aces.

Boys lacrosse

Nick Johnson, Davis (Sr.)

Nick Johnson came up huge last week in Davis’ key region win over Fremont, which vaulted the Darts to the Region 1 lead.

“He stepped up and had a big game for us against Fremont, which is always a tough region game. He finished the game with five goals, two assists, two caused turnovers and three GBs. He is someone that his teammates can rely on to make a play when the team needs it,” said Davis coach Dillon Yocom. “He commands the offense and helps those around him to be better. He is a great leader for our team. His impact goes far beyond the stat sheet.”

For the season, Johnson has recorded 16 goals, 11 assists, 16 ground balls and three caused turnovers, which included a season-high five goals against Friday.

Last season the 6A all-state honorable mention tallied 37 goals and 21 assists.

Girls lacrosse

Ayla Cole, Brighton (Sr.)

Ayla Cole’s strength at the back has led Brighton to five-straight victories, including an solid 11-7 win over Skyline last week.

“Stats do not show how vital she is to our defense. She is so smart on defense, she’s been our defensive leader her entire 4-years in high school. She forces bad shots (which boosts our goalie stats), she adjusts to how the refs call the game, she teaches our younger players on the field during games,” said Brighton coach Melissa Nash.

Cole leads Brighton with 20 ground balls and 12 caused turnovers, and she’s also tallied two goals and recorded two assists.

“She’s been on the Utah World Cup Team and the Utah National Team. She is incredible, her lacrosse IQ is through the roof, her stick skills and athletic ability are top 5%, and on top of that she is the most coachable, humble, hard-working, self-motivated and an amazing teammate,” added Nash.

Cole is also a student body officer at Brighton High School.

Boys tennis

Hans Baker, Rowland Hall (So.)

As a freshman last season, Hans Baker had a great season and finished runner-up at the 3A state tournament in first doubles. His goal a year later was to become a singles player for Rowland Hall, and that’s precisely what’s happened.

“He dedicated himself to working and improving to earn a singles position as a sophomore, which he achieved. He currently has a 6-2 record losing only matches to nationally-ranked older players. He is a pleasure to coach and has a great future, not only as a tennis player but as a student with a 4.0 GPA at Rowland Hall,” said Rich Francey.

Last season, Baker and teammates Zachary Klein combined to advance to the 3A championship match, narrowly losing 4-6, 6-0, 6-3.

Rowland Hall’s No. 2 singles player hopes to keep making improvements throughout the season to try and finish as an individual champion next month.

Girls golf

Avery Parker, Green Canyon (Sr.)

Avery Parker played a great round at Sky Way Golf Course last week to keep herself right in the thick of the Region 11 medalist chase.

Parker shot a 78 to win the match with a six-stroke cushion ahead of the second-place finisher. With the performance, she’s now tied for second in the overall Region 11 individual standings, just two behind the leader.

Parker finished fifth at last year’s 4A state tournament at Logan River Golf Course, and based on her recent rounds in Region 11, she figures to be right in the hunt for a medal again.