By Ken Hansard

            Michael Parrigon’s father coached collegiately.  Both of his parents were college athletes, so it was only natural that Michael grew up around sports and built a love for competition.  Michael, a senior at McAuley Catholic High School, has already enjoyed a highly decorated career for the Warriors.  However, what he has in mind for his senior year would be nothing short of amazing, “I want to go under 16 minutes in the 5k and win state individually and as a team. My goal for the fall is to come home with three gold state championship medals – two for cross country and one more for soccer.”

            While those are certainly ambitious goals, Parrigon seems prepared to make good on them.  As a senior, Michael understands that he first has responsibilities to his team.  Coach Andy Youngworth has created a strong culture for the Warriors; Parrigon has been a key part of that process.  As a fourth-year starter and someone the other runners look to for guidance, Michael wants to contribute even more to that legacy, “My role is to be the leader. I have been our number one runner since freshman year, but I didn’t know how to lead. Coach had a talk with me, and something clicked. After that, I started leading by example, not just by running.”

His willingness to lead could pay off big for the Warriors this fall.  They are currently two-time defending champs in the Ozark 7 and took fifth at Class One State last year. “We were six points away from placing second.  That makes us hungry.  We practiced Monday through Thursday at 6:30 a.m. most of the summer.” 

That training regimen couldn’t have been easy, but it was likely extra hard on Parrigon, who also plays soccer in the fall, “Battling playing two sports can be challenging.  You’re competing against other people who are fresh, so mental toughness is important.” 

Parrigon’s work ethic has pushed him to become a two-time state medalist and defending Ozark 7 Champion.  He was additionally named to the SWCCCA All-Area First Team.  He won the league championship by a full minute, placed second at Districts, and finished fourth at Class One State.

Michael’s accolades are not confined to cross-country.  He plays basketball in the winter.  In soccer, he has been named the regional Offensive Player Of the Year and has additionally been named All-State twice – and would likely be a three-time All-State nominee if not for a torn MCL his sophomore year. He also runs track, and as a junior, was the runner-up in both the 800 and the 1600. He and his teammates were state champs in the 4×800.  Michael also stars in the classroom, boasting a 3.7 GPA.

Michael is still undecided on a post-secondary school, but he plans to continue to run and will be going into pre-med and eventually med school to pursue dermatology.