Parke Heritage ready for postseason test

What a difference a year makes.

Last football season, the Parke Heritage Wolves were a team without its head coach and offensive coordinator, as Dan Rector was half a world away on a deployment in the Middle East. As a result, Parke Heritage finished the year with only one victory.

This season, Rector has been firmly planted on the sidelines, helping guide the Wolves to a 5-4 record ahead of Friday's Class A, Sectional 45 opener at Fountain Central. The five wins are the most for the program since 2021. 

"We made some very positive strides this year in the regular season, particularly in the first two-thirds of the season. Obviously, injuries can be a factor in a football season. We really started getting banged up near the midpoint of the season, and this became an even bigger challenge in the last few weeks. Some of our younger kids have stepped up to fill some of those gaps and while there were some growing pains, those experiences will be beneficial in the long run. Our seniors did a great job leading the team all year and have set the stage for more good things in the future," Rector told the Parke County Post.

A week ago, Parke Heritage fell 56-6 against Fountain Central in the regular season finale. In that game, quarterback Sawyer Monik was 3-of-12 for 18 yards, while Blake Ledcke rushed eight times for 34 yards. Tucker Conley paced the defense with eight stops. 

Rector knows his team will be in for a test on the road to open the postseason. 

"FC is a talented and well-coached team. They have a very good quarterback, and they run their offensive and defensive schemes well. They are a team that battled injuries early in the year but have started to get healthy at the right team heading into sectionals. But we also believe we are capable of playing much better than we did in the second quarter last week against them.  We had to move several kids into different roles due to injuries and that created challenges. This week we have had more time to practice with some of those new realities and are hoping that will result in better execution," Rector stated.

While there is still at least one game to be played in the 2025 season, Rector acknowledges there is excitement for the future.

"It is always tough when you lose seniors to graduation, and that will be true this year as well. However, we will return a lot of experience and talent next year. Additionally, we will continue to see the benefits of our feeder program with a strong incoming class of freshmen next season," Rector said.