Champaign, Il - November 10, 2026 - Parkland College Athletics has named Alayna Briggs and Brady Guenther its October 2026 Athletes of the Month. Briggs and Guenther both earn honors after stepping up in October and leading their teams with season-high performances.

Alayna Briggs - Volleyball
A freshman from Emden, Illinois, Alayna Briggs saw a big improvement in her game through the month of October. Briggs averaged 11.8 kills and 7.2 digs per match along with a .250 hitting percentage for the month, improving from 8 kills per match and a .190 hitting percentage through the first month and a half of the season. She was named Region 24 Athlete of the Week on October 13th following an outstanding weekend at the Heartland Invite, where she totaled 30 kills, 24 digs, 4 aces and 4 blocks for the weekend and achieved a double-double in both matches as the Cobras earned back-to-back ranked wins that weekend. Briggs would put up two more double-doubles for the month. Her first was against Morton College on October 25th, as she finished with 18 digs and 11 kills, and the other against Harper College on the 30th, finishing with 13 digs and 12 kills. She also earned a season-high 23 kills against Sauk Valley on October 31st. Briggs helped the Cobras go 14-2 in the month of October, finishing the regular season with a 44-3 overall record and entering the postseason on a nine match winning streak. 

"Alayna has been our emotional leader from day one on this season," head coach Cliff Hastings said, "She has been fully accountable for herself and her teammates pushing us to success this season, and I've been impressed that she, as a freshman, has stepped up so much for all of us during this year. As her teammates have stepped up and matured on the season, that's allowed Alayna to focus more on her own game. She's given a lot to our team this season in practices, and it's been exciting to see her see some of those individual rewards along the way as well.

Brady Guenther - Men's Golf
Brady Guenther had a tremendous month for the Cobras out on the course. The freshman played his best rounds of the fall in October, leading the Cobras and securing a pair of top five individual finishes. Guenther took 5th place overall at the Battle of the Mississippi, carding a season best 68 to finish three under par in Round one, before finishing 3 over at 74 and 2 over at 73 in the final rounds respectively to finish one over par for the weekend. Guenther took 4th place overall at the Cougar Clash in Urbana on October 12th, breaking even at par after two rounds. Guenther scored 71 to finish one under par in the opening round, followed by a 73 to finish one over par in the final round. Brady led the Cobras to a 6th place team finish at the Battle of the Mississippi and a 3rd place team finish at the Cougar Clash to close out the fall season. Guenther also saw a major improvement individually. Through his five rounds in the month of October, Guenther averaged 72 strokes per round, improving from a 76 stroke per round average though his first nine rounds of the season.

"Congrats to Brady on earning athlete of the month," head coach Nick Berger said, "I believe he will continue to grow and show us the best is yet to come."