Kesner leads way for Highland Lady Bulldogs state qualifiers at IHSA Class 2A meet
Taylor Kesner made sure the Highland girls track team left the IHSA Class 2A track meet with some hardware and a respectable showing when the Lady Bulldogs five state qualifiers trekked to Eastern Illinois University in Charleston.
Kesner, the Lady Bulldogs standout senior shot and discus thrower who is headed to Illinois State University in less than three months, ended her HHS career on a very positive note with a third-place finish in the shot put and a sixth-place finish in the discus in the Class 2A meet Friday, June 11.
A throw of 11.98 meters garnered Kesner her third-place showing in the shot, while she threw 36.46 meters to place sixth in the discus. Josie Hapack also fared well for the Lady Bulldogs in the discus, placing seventh with a throw of 35.77 meters.
“Taylor Kesner capped off an incredible track era by capturing medals in two events at the state meet,” Highland coach Doug Bradley said. “It’s really hard to medal in one event so it’s a rare athlete who medals in two. She competed in the shot put first and couldn’t quite find her balance in the ring but was still strong enough to finish third overall. At the discus, where she finished in sixth, she struggled to get a quality throw in the sector. She had one throw that was likely in the vicinity of 125 plus feet.”
Hapack, a junior making her first trip to the state meet, was impressive with her top seven finish in the shot put.
“Josie Hapack, in her first state appearance, earned her first medal and became the 10th individual (not counting relays) to medal in school history,” Bradley said. “She’s a tireless worker and easily put more time into her event preparation than any girl I’ve ever had on one of my teams.”
A major factor that could not be ignored in the meet for Kesner, Hapack, and their Lady Bulldogs teammates was an oppressively hot day at Eastern Illinois with humid temps in the mid 90’s.
“Part of the state story was the oppressive heat,” Bradley said. “There was just no way to prepare for it. It had to be a factor in all of the events.”
Thompson, Wilke notch key performances
Meanwhile, senior Tanille Thompon had a breakthrough performance in the 100-meter hurdles, finishing 16th overall with a time of 17.11 seconds.
“Tanille Thompson had the longest wait of the day,” Bradley said. “She got into her blocks for the 110 Hurdles about 3 1/2 hours after the meet began. She ran her fastest time of the year in the second of three sections. She’s had a pretty terrific year.”
Fellow senior Liv Wilke placed 20th in the triple jump with a leap of 9.69 meters.
“Olivia Wilke qualified in the triple jump at sectionals in her last attempt and it was an awesome way for a senior to cap off her last sectional meet,” Bradley said. “She’s been such a standout performer for the track team the entire time she’s been in high school. I was really excited for her to finally earn a trip to Charleston.”
Other notes from state competition
Lydia Hadowsky competed in the high jump competition but did not make the cut for the finals.
“At the state meet she couldn’t get comfortable and kept getting too close to the bar on her run-ups,” Bradley said. “The opening height was 4 feet 11 inches and that was just too high of a bar for her to work out the take-off issue. She had a great season.”
Kesner also made a bit of school history as she won her third medal at state which tied her with former Lady Bulldogs standout Alison Zobrist for third-most state medals in school history just behind former HHS standouts Lena Giger and Jenna Uhe, who won six medals each.
Highland scored 14 points to finish in 23rd place in the 57-team state field. Rival Triad tied with Galena for 19th place with 16 points.
This story was originally published June 13, 2021 at 3:36 PM.