Excelling in all facets

Vestavia Hills’ Anna Towry the ‘perfect kid to coach’

By KYLE PARMLEY

Her basketball coach describes Anna Towry as a “hidden gem,” and that description seems apt in many respects.

Towry, a senior at Vestavia Hills High School, is finishing up a terrific multi-sport athletic career, playing four years on the varsity basketball and soccer teams.

In both sports, she worked her way up the ladder, from role player to pivotal piece, never seeking the spotlight and always remaining focused on the task at hand. Asked what she hopes her teammates have seen from her over the years, her message is simple.

“I just hope that they see if you keep working, it’ll pay off,” Towry said. “Don’t take a rep off. I hope they see consistency and if you keep on working in practices, it will pay off in games.”

Towry’s basketball career reached its conclusion in February. As the lone senior on this year’s Rebels team, she helped lead the team to the Northwest Regional tournament. She was never the team’s leading scorer over her four years, leaving that to the likes of Emma Smith and Sarah Gordon. But she was a force in her own way, going for 12 points and 6 rebounds per game as a senior.

She also eclipsed 1,000 career points late this past season, joining her mom April in the 1,000point club at Vestavia.

When coach John David Smelser arrived at Vestavia Hills four years ago, Towry tried out for the junior varsity team as a freshman.

“The next day, I saw her and told her, ‘You might want to come to the varsity tryout tomorrow,’” Smelser recalled.

Towry not only made the varsity team as a freshman, but she was a contributor on a team that broke through to the regional final. Smelser called her a hidden gem because the leading scorers would get most of the attention. He added he thought she had become one of the best players in the state and excelled in her leadership role as a senior.

“She embraced that and did a great job being a leader for us,” Smelser said. “She’s equally as good on the soccer field. You don’t find that much anymore, where you have a kid that’s dominant in two sports, especially in this day and age.”

As for the soccer team, the dynamic is slightly different. Towry is one of 10 seniors and is a highly respected member of the squad despite being on the quieter side.

Soccer coach Brigid Meadow commended Towry’s consistent presence she brings to the field each day.

“She’s a physical leader; her actions, her work ethic, her grit, they’re all palpable and people feel it, and they want to follow it,” she said.

Towry and the Rebels have their sights set on a state championship this spring, and their 17-2 start through April 18 makes that seem like a tangible goal. The basketball team had the same goal and came up a little short, something that has undoubtedly added some urgency to Towry’s final few weeks in a Rebels uniform.

“It’s definitely fueled my motivation knowing this is my last year, my last chance,” she said.

Towry has also managed to maintain a 4.5 GPA throughout her athletic exploits and is active in the youth group and choir at Dawson Family of Faith.

To some, she may be a hidden gem. But to those that know her, she’s anything but that.

Smelser said, “Coaches think about who would be that perfect kid to coach, and you dream of maybe one day getting a kid like that. A lot of time coaches don’t get that.

“Anna was that.”