High school notebook: Brighton soccer players don't mind targets on their backs

Reigning 5A MVP Austin Nate is well aware of the fact that teams will be gunning for his Bengals every time they step on a soccer pitch this spring.

That's what happens when you're the two-time defending state champs and you brought back a ton of immensely talented players and your school has as much boys soccer tradition as anyone in Utah.

But Nate wouldn't want it any other way.

"When (teams) come in they just want to beat you so bad," said Nate. "You can just tell by the way they warm up, by the way they get here early. The fact that every team wants to beat us that bad makes it just that much better when we win because we're maintaining our position on top."

That's what Brighton did last week when the Bengals pulled out a narrow 1-0 win over Copper Hills.

It was a game that realistically could have gone either way, as Copper Hills threw everything it had at the Bengals.

Nate expects to see that kind of effort from opposing teams in every game between now and the end of the year.

"We had a target on our back before we won our state championship — the first one," said Nate. "And then the second one made it the biggest target on every single one of our players and on the school in general. But I wouldn't want to have it any other way because we're gonna get the best game from the other team, and that's why I play soccer."

BENGAL SWIMMERS SHINE: Fresh off leading their school to the boys and girls state championships at the 5A state meet last month, Brighton stars Robby Miner, Long Gutierrez, Greg Ballif and Amanda Barrett all shined at the Sectional Championships in Texas at the start of this month.

Miner went 4:30.54 in the 500 free, which was 2½ seconds faster than his state-record time of 4:33.00.

Gutierrez went 48.97 in the 100 fly and went 1:53.18 in the 200 IM.

Barrett went 4:56.53 to break the five-minute barrier in the 500 free.

Ballif went 59.07 in the 100 breast.

e-mail: drasmussen@desnews.com