at Little Rock again this coming season . “ It would be amazing to have the opportunity to play in War Memorial for the championship again . We had never had that opportunity in school history until last year . Playing in that game felt surreal . Seeing how close we were to being able to win it all and not doing so was frustrating , but also promising . We returned a lot from last year including three all conference lineman , two all-state backs , and one all conference linebacker .”
While Rector football may have the highest hopes for the 2023- 2024 sports season , the Cougar basketball team made the final four last season and returns one of the conferences top players in Cooper Rabjohn along with Henderson and a few others . In baseball , Rector loses several key pieces but Henderson and Rabjohn both return to anchor the team . Henderson is the best catcher in the league . Rabjohn returns as one of the top pitchers , and they certainly make for the best pitcher / catcher tandem in the 2A-3 Conference . The two have been friends forever and share a great chemistry on the baseball diamond and on the baseball court . “ We ’ ve been together since we ’ ve been in diapers , literally . Our dads met each other at Williams ( Baptist University ) while playing baseball , and that ’ s how my dad ended up at Rector . Cooper and I have been playing sports together since peewee , so I feel that we have that special bond and chemistry that most athletes don ’ t have .”
Henderson ’ s dad Nate currently serves as the principal at Rector
High School and was previously the head baseball coach . He also still works in the athletic department serving as an assistant in baseball and in football . Nate has certainly been a tremendous asset to both programs . “ Having my dad on the sidelines and dugout has been an absolute blessing . I may have a love hate relationship with it at times , but he always wants what ’ s best for me . He pushes me to my limits every time I train with him , and he will correct my little mistakes hoping to improve my performance .”
Drew has set some lofty goals for the upcoming sport ’ s season . While high , they are certainly attainable . “ In football my goals are to receive all-state honors again , win our conference , and make it back to War Memorial . In basketball I ’ m striving to be a good team player and use my physicality to my advantage throughout the year while finishing in the top half of the conference and making it to the state tournament again . For baseball , my goals are to receive all-state for the second straight year and make it to the state tournament .”
Hard work pays off . Henderson is a genuine testament to that old phrase . While he is a great athlete , he is even a better young man . When watching Rector , it is simply hard not to root for a guy like Drew . It will be fun to see the individual and team accolades Henderson and his teammates collect this year .