Highland’s Kesner turns in outstanding season for Illinois State University track team
Keeping an open mind, Taylor Kesner was hopeful of avoiding a sophomore jinx after having a successful freshman year with the Illinois State University track team.
Kesner kept her expectations even keeled with each season, but this winter and spring she went from being good to downright formidable as one of the top women’s throwers in NCAA Division I track and field.
In just her sophomore year, Kesner — a 2021 Highland graduate — not only qualified for the NCAA regionals, but also made the preliminary round of the NCAA Division Track and Field championships.
It was definitely a special season for Kesner.
“It was great,” Kesner said. “I really feel like I really impressed myself and I feel like you go in and you wanna work hard and you try not to expect too much because everyone comes in and works hard. So I wasn’t expecting as much as I achieved, but I’m very happy and I’m glad it (this year) put me in a really good position. I’m very proud of myself.”
Things got rolling for Kesner in just the third meet of the indoor season in mid-January at the Mallory-Coghlan Invitational at Horton Field House at ISU in Normal. Kesner placed third in the shot put (14.10 meters) in that meet and won the weight throw with a first-place toss of 18.42 meters.
In late February, Kesner capped off her indoor season success with a silver medal showing in the women’s weight throw thanks to a personal best effort of 20.04 meters at the Missouri Valley Conference Indoor Championships in Chicago and a seventh-place finish in the shot put (14.42 meters).
Kesner credits her indoor season success as well as in part her outdoor season good fortune on just focusing on her own progress with each practice as well as a change of diet.
“It was really kind of just focusing on myself and I changed my diet a lot as I was in an apartment where I could cook for myself all the time and. So I was able to eat a lot more protein and I was focusing more on the weight room and just getting stronger and building explosive strength and that definitely helps with the weight throw,” Kesner said. “I was just kind of focusing on myself and doing what I could do.”
Kesner enjoys big results in spring
In the spring outdoor season, Kesner continued to excel in he throwing events as she turned in arguably one of her best performances of the campaign in mid-April at the Gibson Invitational in Terre Haute at Indiana State University. Kesner won the discus with a mark of 51.22 meters and then won the javelin with a throw of 45.97. Both marks were personal bests.
“Momentum was great (for me) in the outdoor season,” Kesner said. “It felt like a really long season and I kind took every meet like it’s just another meet and it’s just another chance for me to get a mark. And I didn’t put too much pressure on any of the meets which I think helped me just getting through training and not anticipating the big throw.”
It was a personal best throw of 54.11 in the discus at the Drake Relays in Des Moines, Iowa, in late April that put Kesner in position to qualify for the NCAA West Regional meet.
“Things hadn’t been clicking and I knew that I was clicking at practice. Not every meet is a big throw but the Drake Relays was a big PR for me and it put me at the top 48 of the people that go to regionals. And when I hit that throw I kind of shocked myself a little bit,” Kesner said. “Towards the end of the season you kind of realize, you’re gonna be up there with the big dogs.”
Strong showing at regionals
Kesner qualified for the NCAA West Regionals in mid-May thanks to a fourth-place finish (47.68) in the discus and a fourth place in the hammer throw (54.11).
“It was very exciting (to qualify),” Kesner said. “As a sophomore I think it wasn’t necessarily expected ... coach Amanda Youngblood and I had been talking about where she sees the group of us going and she expected the five of us to go. It was amazing and she was right about it.”
Kesner advanced through the regionals at Sacramento State in California in May and ended up placing 23rd overall (49.75 meters) in the discus at the NCAA outdoor championships June 10 in Austin, Texas.
She earned honorable mention all-American honors and also was named to the USTFCCCA-All Academic team.
Next stop: Madison, Wisconsin
As Kesner prepares for another big year as a junior returning to school in a few weeks, she has one big change that will happen at that time. Kesner will transfer to the University of Wisconsin in Madison to continue to her track and academic career and will major in geography.
“It’s a bigger school with more travel opportunities and more support and amenities, so I was open to options and I’ve been to Madison a few times for meets and couple of other things. I just love Madison and I knew Coach (Dave) Astrauskas was one of the best coaches in the nation, so it’s an opportunity I couldn’t give up, “ Kesner said.
