ROXANA - It’s been a season to remember for the Roxana Shells on the football field as the Shells are now 8-0 overall. A perfect start, ranked in state, a very deep Shells football team has been lighting up the scoreboard so far this fall.
Junior Kael Hester has been making his presence felt during this memorable season for his team. Hester is a starting tight end on the 2023 Shells team.
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“Talk about unsung,” said DeVries of Hester, specifically remembering 2022. “Last year my left tackle got into a car accident, and (Kael) was a backup tight end and all a sudden I threw a new jersey on him and he started at left tackle for eight games.”
“Now his job is 98% blocking, and 2% catching the ball.”
Even if his job is just 2% catching the ball, Kael has racked up over 150 yards through seven games, mostly coming on big plays. With a handful of TDs from the tight end spot, Hester is still a constant threat to find the endzone in the fast-paced and high-powered Roxana offense.
“It’s fun, you know, as a tight end you always want to score,” said Hester.
As a tight end, Hester also serves a valuable role as a blocker, opening up lanes for the potent Roxana Shells rushing attack. It’s a rushing attack that has yet to be contained this season, and following a big 52-28 win against conference rival and perennial local power Breese Central, doesn’t seem to be slowing down anytime soon.
Hester found the score sheet in a big win at Charles Raich Field, catching a Chris Walleck pass to extend Roxana’s lead in the second half.
Outside of football, the name Kael Hester might be familiar to anyone who’s followed local high school baseball. Hester was one of the offensive leaders of the Shells baseball team in the spring, where he posted a .347 average, drove in 21 runs, and scored a team-leading 24 runs himself.
Even after a big win for the Shells football team, Hester admitted that baseball is still his favorite sport, and it’s the game he’s around the most.
“Baseball is probably my favorite sport,” said Hester. “But football, the environment is what makes it so much fun.”
When not on a football or baseball field, Hester says he’s spending time honing his craft. “Sports take up so much that I don’t have time for much else.”
Shell Nation is surely glad to have Hester, in both football fall and baseball spring.
