‘Love being a Shocker’: Kapaun grad living dream as Wichita State basketball walk-on

Attending Wichita State men’s basketball games has been a tradition in the Thengvall family for many years.

Emily Thengvall still has pictures when her oldest son, Henry, was growing up and decked out in yellow and black inside Koch Arena cheering on the Shockers.

After experiencing Shocker basketball as a fan for all of those years, Henry Thengvall is now living out his dream as a player for the Shockers. Entering his third year as a preferred walk-on, he still gets goosebumps every time he runs out on Devlin Court.

“I love running out on the court to the fans cheering,” Henry said. “I love hearing the fight song. I love that the fans stand until the opposing team scores. I love everything about being a Shocker.”

Representing the Shockers just means more in the Thengvall family, which is what made Henry’s eight-point scoring burst all the more special in Wichita State’s 99-53 exhibition game victory over Emporia State at Koch Arena on Sunday.

Not only was his family ecstatic to see Henry score a career high, but the performance left his grandfather, Phil, who was celebrating his 80th birthday inside the Roundhouse on Sunday, in tears of joy.

“I just told (Phil) that Henry scored eight points, one for every decade for you,” said Emily Thengvall, Henry’s mother. “He was just bawling. He was so happy. He comes to every game of his, and he is just so proud of Henry for fulfilling this dream of playing a sport that he loves for a school that he loves. It’s just been super special for all of us.”

It’s customary for the walk-on at the end of the bench to be the crowd favorite, as fans erupt every time they enter the game and cheer even louder on the occasional chance they score.

But Henry Thengvall is not the typical walk on.

Not only does he stand 6-foot-6, which makes him taller than the typical walk-on, but he was genuinely one of the best high school players in Kansas coming out of Kapaun Mt. Carmel in the class of 2022. He averaged 20.1 points, led Kapaun to an undefeated City League championship and was named a top-5 player in the state during his senior season.

He could have been a significant help for a junior-college or Division II team, but instead he wanted to be a Shocker — even if it meant being a walk-on.

“I really pride myself on working hard,” Henry said. “I try to get in the gym every single day and make myself the best player I can be. That’s really important to me to be the best I can be for my team, so I can help push the other guys to be their best. It was a struggle for me to adjust athletically when I first got here, but I think I’ve gotten to the point where I can really compete with the guys and help them get better.”

That work ethic has not gone unnoticed by teammates.

When Henry hit a 3-pointer in the final minute of Sunday’s game, the bench nearly spilled onto the court in celebration. It wasn’t because it was so unexpected, rather his teammates were thrilled to see his hard work paying off on the court during game action.

“That’s my guy,” WSU newcomer Corey Washington said of Thengvall. “I feel like he deserves moments like those. He works so hard. And he’s just a great guy.”

On Sunday, Henry was rewarded by playing the final nine minutes of the game. He made all three of his shots, including two beyond the arc, and grabbed two rebounds.

WSU head coach Paul Mills said that Henry has turned himself into such a good shooter that the coach has received text messages from other players trying to persuade him to put the Wichita native on their team ahead of an intrasquad scrimmage.

“He can really shoot it,” Mills said. “We see it every day in practice. That kid puts in the time. He could care less what title you give him, he’s going to show up every single day and work hard.”

Taking ownership of a role on a team has been drilled into Henry by his parents, Andrew and Emily, who also raised two other Division I student-athletes: William Thengvall is entering his first year as a walk-on on the Kansas men’s basketball team, while Nathan Thengvall is a freshman on the KU men’s track and field team.

“We talk to our boys a lot about knowing their roles and understanding what a blessing it is to represent our state and our communities and to be able to play at this level,” Emily Thengvall said. “Because this doesn’t just mean a lot to them and to us, but also to the communities and people who have supported them so much along the way. So we just try to get them to understand how amazing this opportunity is to represent a school like Wichita State and be a positive impact on their team.”

Henry has embraced the mindset completely. He’s never played basketball for the attention or credit, but he can appreciate a moment like the one Sunday when the spotlight did shift his way.

On his grandfather’s 80th birthday, it put life in perspective for him.

“That was a real special thing to be able to do that for him,” Henry said. “I’m just grateful to be here. This is always something I’ve dreamed about. I loved coming to Wichita State games as a kid, so (Sunday) was a surreal experience.”