by By Dan Ninham (Oneida)
Monique Parrish, 17, is a member of the Navajo Nation. Her clans are Naasht’ézhì Tábaahá, Zuni Edgewater; kinłichíi’nii, Red House; kinyaa’áanii, Towering House; and, Tó’aheedlíinii, Water Flow Together. Her parents are Vanessa and Melfred Parrish.
“I played soccer and wrestled for Page High School, Page, Arizona,” said Monique. “I am a senior. This was my first year wrestling and I won third place at State for the weight class 185. Also, I was awarded Wrestler of the Year for my weight class for the Navajo Times. As for soccer I was awarded the Navajo Times Soccer Player of the Year.”
“My way my tribal core values define me as a student-athlete is that I have to protect myself and the people around me,” said Monique. “In soccer I played defense. I had to protect the goal and be able to pass a ball up to our strikers doing everything in my power to help us score. But, in wrestling it was individual and if I win my team gets points. When I wrestled in the Verado Tournament in Phoenix I won first place making our team Verado Team Champions. In the end my teammates became my family.”
“My mom has always supported me in all my sports,” said Monique. “She was at wrestling tournaments waiting hours to see me wrestle even if it was only two matches. She would stay the whole time at my soccer games that were 80 minutes long. Even if I lost she would always say ‘it’s not a loss, if you learn something and you know what to do next time’ because she knows I like to push myself.”
“I am a single parent since October of 2013,” said mom Vanessa Parrish. “My husband and I are welders and he went to work and didn’t come home. It took us awhile to get by the grieving process and my kids took it hard. I started working again as a welder and I moved my kids with me to Salt Lake City and Texas and they met new people and made friends.”
“Monique started playing soccer and basketball in Texas,” said Vanessa. “We were there for a year and moved back Arizona. Then she really like playing and I told I will support her and to just have fun. She played basketball for two and soccer for three years and this past season she was given an award for Player of the Year in soccer.”
“When the season ended I thought she was starting basketball again but she said she was going to try something different,” said Vanessa. “My friend told me about wrestling so I’m going to try it with her. I told her I support her as much as I can because it’s hard when I have to work and travel and be away from home weeks at a time. I told her do what is best and that’s all that matters to me and take it as far u can go. If you don’t like what you did then tell yourself the next one will be better. I told her that’s how I look at my work as welder. I always say the next one will be better and don’t be afraid of a challenge because that’s where you better yourself.”
“I try to make all her tournaments and I did my best. I was surprise she got to state and so I took time off of my job and made sure I was there. She took third place and she wanted first place but I told her I’m proud that she went that far and it’s amazing how she fought for it. I was so proud and I cried wishing her dad was there but she told me she had him in her thoughts and asked him to give her strength and wanted to make him proud of her,” added Vanessa.
“My coaches supported me,” said Monique. “Coach Ben Dalton was for soccer and for wrestling it was Coach Steve Smith. In the beginning of the season Dalton would ask about our goals and how he can help achieve those goals. He always pushed me to always connect with my teammates as a captain.”
“Coach Steve Smith would always give me a fist bump before every match and when I won my sectionals he said he couldn’t wait for me to win state,” said Monique.
“I am the Lady Sand Devils girls’ wrestling coach,” said Coach Steve. “Monique Parrish wrestled for me this year and is a senior first year wrestler. She picked up on wrestling very fast and medaled in all but one tournament we wrestled in. Monique never placed lower than 3rd place. Monique had one of the biggest hearts I’ve ever seen and often went into the overtime periods in her matches. This is where matches are won, with heart and conditioning. My only regret with Monique is I only got to coach her for one year. I believe Monique has a wonderful future with whatever she does in life due to her determination and desire to work hard at everything she does.”
“Every time I’m in practice I have the mind that I’m in a real game or real match,” said Monique. “Every time I step on the mat or field I tell myself I’m going to get 10% better if that means running harder on the field or having a faster takedown.”
“I train not by myself but with a teammate and usually someone who is better than me so that I have a competition between us,” said Monique. “The mental toughness is the hardest for me because I would get so nervous that I would lose and that my mother traveled so far to see me. But what helps me is that I breathe three times and tell myself I can do it. I feel the grass before the games start and I lay on the mat to tell myself not to be here.”
“I’m staying well by running everyday and my soccer coach is sending me workouts to do at home from total body workouts to leg workouts,” said Monique. “Also, I’m in Colorado because I wanted to change the elevation.”
“At the finals in the Verado tournament it was overtime and the rules were whoever scored first would win,” said Monique. “One opponent was at least 6 feet tall and was stronger than me. I took my shot and she sprawled on me and I was stuck. I held on to her legs with all my strength and when I was about to let go and take the silver medal I heard my cousin in the back yell ‘Don’t give up Mo, all you have to do is hold on and score!’ So when the ref brought us back on our feet, I was tired and out of breath but she shot and I sprawled on her and I knew I had the advantage because I was shorter. I used every last energy I had and I spun around as fast and hard as I could. And when I was on her back and I saw the two points on the ref’s hand with the red band I knew I won.”
“I began to cry as all the pain started to set in but I was crying not because of the pain but that it was over and my teammates were screaming at the top of their lungs for me. I couldn’t turn my neck but when they put that gold medal around me I had to call my mom and tell her right away. In the end I won because of my teammates support and my family’s support,” added Monique.
Photo Credit: Steve Smith
