Saves, Sprints and Smarts: The future looks bright for Whitley County’s Canaan Parsons

Being a student-athlete is no easy feat. Being a successful student-athlete is even harder. Breaking records on the playing field while earning academic honors in the classroom? Well, any young man or woman who can accomplish that is truly special.

For Whitley County High School junior Canaan Parsons, the hard work he has put into his athletic and academic careers are paying some pretty big dividends. Recently, he was one of several WCHS students to be inducted into the National Honor Society, a designation reserved only for high schoolers who are able to maintain at least a 4.0 GPA.

As impressive as Parsons’ classroom achievements have been, he has also managed to turn heads as a member of the Colonel varsity soccer team.

In 2022, he set an all-time program record from his goalkeeper position with six shutouts. As a sophomore in 2021, he finished the season third in the state for saves with 311.

“His athleticism and skill kept us in a lot of games that season,” said Whitley soccer Head Coach Michael Branham of the Colonels’ 2021 campaign. “As a junior this season he helped lead us to our second 10-win season in program history.”

“He leads on the field and off, and his overall energy and work ethic set him apart,” Branham added.

So, membership in the National Honor Society and some impressive accolades on the soccer field… As if that wasn’t enough, Parsons is also an accomplished member of the Whitley County track and field team, competing in sprint and relay events. Oh, and he also finds the time to help younger members of the community, like assisting with youth soccer clinics and lending a hand with a recent “family math night” event at Pleasant View Elementary.

“We worked with students grades kindergarten-through-sixth,” Parsons said of the special math night at Pleasant View. “We were mostly helping with activities that helped the kids learn about probabilities.”

Parsons said that he enjoys getting the opportunity to work with elementary school students, whether it be teaching them soccer skills, or how to solve math problems, and he is looking forward to volunteering more of his time to these efforts in the future.

As for the upcoming track season, Parsons said that he is hoping to improve upon his times in sprinting events, including the 100-yard dash, and he is hopeful that he and his fellow 4×100-meter relay runners will be able to break the school record in that event.

And in soccer? Parsons is looking forward to his senior season this fall, but he also understands that a lot of hard work and dedication will be required if the Colonels are to achieve their goals.

“It is difficult mentally, but it is also easy to have fun with it with teammates like mine,” Parsons said of being a goalkeeper for the red and black. “I know that I need to be a good leader, and I am trying to do better with that.”

“I think we can do very well, as long as we continue to work together as a team,” Parsons continued. “Under Coach Branham’s leadership, I know that we can do well, but we will need to start strong. We have to stay strong-minded.”

Parsons said that he would like to have a future in soccer beyond high school, but right now he is focused on putting together a strong finish to the current spring semester. After that, preparations will begin in earnest for fall the 2023 season, and what the Colonels hope will be another big step in the right direction for the Whitley County High School soccer program.

Photos courtesy of Spencer Bolt and Scott Powell