WRIGHTSTOWN — The Wrightstown Tigers made it all the way to the Division 5 state title game last year and unfortunately ran into Aquinas, which won their third straight state title. But the Tigers, entering this year, are bringing back their biggest stars from last year and are looking to win it all in 2024.
“It was amazing, the whole team had the best experience of their lives,” Wrightstown quarterback Trevor Vande Hey said of the state experience.
While it was a great experience, the Tigers don’t want to go through the experience of losing a state title again. They want to hoist the gold ball this year.
“I think it’s a matter of winning or losing,” Vande Hey said.
The Tigers bring back two cornerstones of their 2023 roster: senior quarterback Trevor Vande Hey, who rushed for 1,000 yards on 8.3 yards per carry while scoring 11 touchdowns on the ground.
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“He’s athletic, which definitely helps him,” senior running back Aiden Humphreys said. “He’s quicker than he is fast. Just an overall great kid and fast.”
Humphreys is the second pillar. He had 17 rushing touchdowns and over 1,500 rushing yards on 6.5 yards per carry. He also led the team in rushes
“His mentality is just crazy,” Vande Hey said of his running mate. “He doesn’t care who he’s fighting, he’ll just run through them. It doesn’t matter who it is.”
“Not only is he a great football player, he’s a great kid,” head coach Steve Klister said of Humphreys. “He’s been working his ass off in the gym his whole life. He’s always pushing and talking to his teammates, trying to make them better. He’s a great leader and a great team player.”
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However, the two, who are also captains, will play behind four modern players on the offensive line.
“We’re losing a lot of size. We have a lot of question marks at the beginning,” Klister said.
But the captains trust the huge boys up front.
“If Aiden and I can find a way to get this going, it will motivate them to do their job, and I know they can do it,” Vande Hey said.
The Tigers are ready to get back into the game and shake off the taste of defeat in the state title game.
“It’s hard to think, not think about what happened last year and just try to do it all this year, but you just have to treat every game like it’s your last. We did that last year and look how hard it was for us,” Humphreys said.
The Tigers will open their season on August 23 in Waupaca.
