Colin Parry puts all of his heart into Center Grove soccer every time he takes the field.
He also wears that same heart proudly on his sleeve.
A three-year starter and four-year varsity player, Parry delivers whatever is asked of him for the Trojans, and he doesn’t hold a thing back verbally or emotionall while doing so.
"He’s fiery, and you’ve got to have people that are like that on a team to be a championship team," Center Grove coach Jameson McLaughlin said. "You’ve got to have kids that are just willing to be mean, do the dirty work sometimes, and he’ll do it. He’ll work hard. He gets on his teammates — sometimes I want him to be a little more positive when he’s doing it, but he gets on them.
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"He gets us going, and we feed off his energy a lot."
That energy isn’t always perfectly harnessed. As a sophomore, Parry scored the lone goal in a 1-0 Trojan victory at Perry Meridian, then promptly got pulled off the field after running past the bleachers and making a throat-slash gesture to the Falcon fans.
While he’s avoided similar moments since, Parry still doesn’t do a lot of self-editing out on the pitch, and he’s not about to apologize for being that way.
Love him or hate him, he ain’t boring.
"I just try to be humble, but I love putting my emotions out on the field," Parry said. "It makes it enjoyable.
"It keeps the energy up throughout the team. … It’s just a killer instinct."
And he’s got the skills to match. Parry has worked diligently to hone his craft, which has allowed him to be an asset at just about any position for the Trojans. After playing almost exclusively in the holding midfielder spot as a junior, he has spent a little more time this fall in the striker role, where he says he feels more productive.
McLaughlin certainly doesn’t mind having such a versatile weapon at his disposal.
"He’s a sensational athlete," the coach said of Parry. "Foot skill wise, he’s very technical. If you drive by any soccer field out here in the summertime, you’re going to see Colin by himself working. It’s the work that the kid puts in; he never quits working, and that’s why he’s such a good player. He’s got a lot of technical ability, coupled with that athleticism."
And with an unbridled display of emotion. Parry can often be heard during games exhorting his teammates, or himself, always pushing the Trojans to get better.
He’s polarizing, to be sure; a prime example of the player you hate when he’s not on your side, but you love when he is.
Not coincidentally, those players — think Draymond Green in basketball — are usually on winning teams.
Parry expects to finish his high school career as a part of one. In each of the past two years, Center Grove has gone into the postseason ranked highly but been upset by Perry Meridian in sectional play.
With only one more chance to get it right, Parry is doing everything he can to ensure that the Trojans go out on top.
"Every practice, every game, 110 percent," he said of the team’s mindset. "Making sure everyone’s healthy, and it’s just getting ready for every game day by day. That’s how we’re taking it."
No matter how Parry’s final act ends up, it’s a safe bet that he won’t be going out quietly.
