Doug Anderson Caps Off Successful State Meet for the Giants With a 6th Place Finish in the 400 Meter Dash

The Highland Park High School state qualifiers were ready for the 2023 IHSA 3A State Meet at Eastern Illinois University in Charleston, Illinois. It was a busy weekend for the Giants with multiple individual qualifiers and one relay team. 

DAY 1

First up was Barak Goldstein in the 800 meter run prelims. Goldstein got out well and was in great position through the first 400 in :56.5. He moved well through the last lap and had a strong finish but got passed right before the finish by a runner from Wheeling High School. Goldstein ran a personal best 1:56.15. Unfortunately, the kid from Wheeling ran 1:56.09 for the final qualifying spot in the finals. Despite running the 2nd fastest outdoor 800 meter run time in the history of Highland Park High School, Goldstein just missed the finals. He ended up finishing 13th in the state for 3A (the largest school class). This experience will only make Goldstein more determined to get to the finals and place well next year. It was a great performance for a junior in his first IHSA state meet. 

Next up for the Giants was the 400 meter dash prelims with two state qualifiers. Doug Anderson ran a school record :49.08 to win his heat in a new Highland Park High School school record. His performance qualified him for the finals the next day. Lukaas Nales ran :50.16. He missed making the finals by just over .5 seconds. Nales improved on his finish from last year to take 11th place in the state for 3A. This is an incredible feat for someone that missed most of the season with a hamstring injury. Look for him to come back next year with a huge performance at the state meet.

The final event for HP on the first day of the state meet was the 4X400 meter relay. Robert Oboza led the team off with a solid :53.6. Barak Goldstein came back with a :53.0. Lukaas Nales ran the next leg in :49.4 to help the team move up. Doug Anderson ran the anchor in :48.4. The team finished with a season best 3:24.62 to finish in 19th place in the state for 3A. The time was the 5th fastest ever run by a Highland Park team. All four of these guys return next year and will be focused on making the finals. 

It was a strong first day of the state meet for Highland Park. Two HPHS top 10 performances and a school record performance and everyone finishing in the top 20 at state for 3A. 

DAY 2

On the second day of the state meet, HP had three athletes competing in the IHSA 3A state finals. 

The Giants had two competitors in the second heat of the 3200 meter run. Nate Wehner and Brian Hatoum did what they have done all season and worked together to stay towards the front of the pack. They stayed together with the leader through the 1600 in 4:41.0. In the final two laps the leaders picked up the pace and Wehner had his best finish as he battled to stay with them. Hatoum fell off the pace a little bit but still had a strong finish. Wehner ran an impressive 9:23.89 to take 15th place in the state for 3A. Hatoum ran a solid 9:26.97 to come in 18th in the state for 3A. These two Giants had great seasons and will be back next year in the hunt for all-state medals. 

The last event on the track for the Giants was Doug Anderson racing in the finals for the IHSA 3A 400 meter dash. Anderson had another great race to run :49.22 and finish in 6th place! This earned him an All-State medal. This also is tied with his own time for 3rd best all time in the 400 meter dash at Highland Park High School. What an amazing season of record breaking championship performances capped off with earning all-state honors. Anderson will be back next year looking to make even more history at the IHSA state meet. 

What a weekend for the Giants! Every qualifier equaled or outperformed their seed coming into the state meet. Next year the team will look to bring home more state medals, school records, and amazing performances. Go Giants!